[Austin]

Well, I got 20 neon tetras and apparently they had ich... there's a few white spots on a few of them. They are in my 44g "quarantine" tank now. So, can anyone help suggest a treatment for me? I've been reading a lot and the high temperature treatment seems the most appealing but I'm not sure how well neon tetras will do at 86. Neon tetras seem specially sensitive to everything, so not sure how to begin. Thanks!

 

[keepsmiling]

Raise the temp very slowly and do daily water changes, making sure to eliminate anything on the bottom.

 

[jaysee]

In my experience they can take the heat treatment just fine - at least 86 for 2 weeks. I don't ever do water changes or vacuums during treatment. The heat kills off the parasites and dead parasites don't reinfect the fish.

 

[Austin]

Thanks! I'll raise it to 86 for a couple weeks then... It's currently at 84... inching my way up. The neon tetras seem to not be acting any different. They don't look stressed. They are fairly new though so I feel bad putting them through additional stress but the ich will kill them if the heat/stress doesn't, I guess. We'll see how it goes!

 

[jaysee]

The heat wont kill them in 2 weeks. However, they are a cooler water fish so if one were to keep them at that elevated temp long term, then it's likely that they will see a shortened life span from them.

 

[cyclesnipas]

Had the same problem with my Cardinals. Raise the temp to 86 your neons will be fine. May take up to 3 weeks before the ich fully disappears. But once its gone its gone.

 

[jaysee]

If it's not all gone by the end of the first week then it would be good to bump the temp up a little. Some strains are a little more tolerant of the heat than others.

 

[Austin]

Do you think about 85.2 is okay or should I go a bit higher? My neons seen okay at that temperature but I'm a bit skeptical of the accuracy of my thermometer... The water feels warm to the touch. Don't wanna go too crazy.

I will keep an eye on it. I feel like I see less spots today. They have probably dropped off; hopefully the heat prevents them from reproducing or whatever.
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[jaysee]

I have never experimented to see how low will work. If it's working at the temp you have it, then I would stick with it. If it's not all gone after a week, kick it up a little but start the 2 weeks over.

What kind of thermometer is it?

 

[Austin]

It's a digital thermometer but its cheap from walmart... acurite? I've had it for a while and its been dropped in the water several times.... I guess I have no real reason to assume its inaccurate other than that it's cheap. I'll try my aquarium thermometer later too The heater is set to 87 but I have the calibration all screwed up on it. :/

How do I know its gone? No white spots? Isn't it possible its still present? :/

 

[jaysee]

No white spots. If it wasn't working, then the number of spots would be increasing. Parasites need a host to survive so the reason to maintain the treatment for an additional week after the spots are gone is to ensure that they have all perished.

 

[Austin]

I haven't seen any white spots for almost a week now... Though some do have slightly cloudy areas of their tails, but I think I am looking too hard. I think it may have been where they had ich and now it's healing. It's definitely not ich. And I haven't lost a fish in a few days (I had gotta overall about 27 neon tetras and managed to kill 12....)

 

[jaysee]

Glad to hear things are under control. If you haven't seen a spot in over a week then you can return the tank to its normal temp. Neons are the most popular fish in the trade - breeding pressures are enormous so while some may look alright, they can be defective in ways we can't tell and so some die much easier than others. In my opinion it's a good thing those fish died - I only want the healthiest, strongest fish in my tanks, not ones that nature should have culled. There are a lot of fish that make it into our tanks that would never survive in nature, due to survival of the fittest.

 

[Roccus]

Glad to hear things are under control. If you haven't seen a spot in over a week then you can return the tank to its normal temp. Neons are the most popular fish in the trade - breeding pressures are enormous so while some may look alright, they can be defective in ways we can't tell and so some die much easier than others. In my opinion it's a good thing those fish died - I only want the healthiest, strongest fish in my tanks, not ones that nature should have culled. There are a lot of fish that make it into our tanks that would never survive in nature, due to survival of the fittest.

this is a real good point... I've had them in the past( Neons)... when i look at them in the LFS.. it seems like that are always a fair number of dead ones on the bottom or stuck in the filtration..others will have spinal dis orders.. and stil lotheres willhave tail rot or ich...if I ever get them agian..it will be from a breeder..

 

[rsskylight04]

Thanks for the very useful thread guys. I haven't kept tetras for a long time but when I did I always had problems with neons. I've always used salt treatment for ich , but tetras are sensative to even small amounts. Now I read that heat might also be an issue for them long term. They are very beautiful and eye-catching, your school of 20 must be a very impressive sight, but oh so sensative and susceptable. I've had much better results with cardinal tetras, not quite as flashy as neons, but very nice in a school, also more healthy in my experience.
Best wish for your future fish health!