Do all fish get ich?

[nbradley88]

I just recently set up my 125g reef tank and used the sand from my previous tank which was getting over ich, right now I have a yellow watchman goby and an algae blenny in the tank. I've heard that gobies don't get ich. I'm skeptical though I'm thinking to take them out just to be sure but I'm gonna hate setting up more qtsand stressing the fish out but I do want to get rid of the ich. Anyone know for sure if those fish can get ich or not I want the tank to sit long enough for the parasite to die

[kjhart04]

I think all fish can get ich, its just a matter of how easily they can get it. Fish with a thick slime coat (i.e. mandarins) will not as readily get it. The ich cysts can last awhile in your tank, but if your fish are healthy before you put them in the tank I would think that they should be okay.

[Foxface210]

I don't know if there are fish that don't get ich but there are fish that are less likely to contract it.

Wrasse tend to do well because they bury themselves in the sand at night and shed a mucus coat when they emerge. In my experience; fish with visible scales are less likely to get it but nothing is foolproof.

***This part is purely my opinion***
I think ich is omni-present, like a flu bug or bacteria that cause a cold. Granted, sometimes its more present than others when it finds a susceptible host to feed off of but I believe the real trick is to make sure the fish are healthy and less susceptible to the parasite. Low stress, high quality foods w/garlic, etc. I have yet to have an outbreak of ich in an established tank (Knock on wood) so another factor (IMO) is to not stock the tank with fish too soon. The balance of the water and beneficial bacteria needed helps maintain the health of the fish. If a tank is still cycling and the chemistry of the water changes daily; the fish will stress and it brings down their immune system making them more susceptible.

My two cents...

[johnett]

eels don't get it that I am aware of

[nbradley88]

Yeah my tanga were so healthy it didn't bother them, but it was really bothering my clarki clown but he's been in at for about a month now, I just don't want to put him in the tank to get reinfected, I guess my concern is will the goby and blenny provide a food source for the ichto thrive

As much as I hate it I think I'm gonna remove those fish and raise the tank temp to speed up the ich lifecycle

Ide rather just play it safe then risk future fish becoming infected

[nbradley88]

alright well tonight i fished out the goby and blenny so the tank is devoid of fish, it was a pain, but on the upside i have peace of mind and i got to go ahead and aquascape my new tank

Gobies and blennies are highly resistant to ich while others are outright immune such as eels/sharks/rays. But ya foxface is spot on in regards to more scaly fish being more resistant and wrasses shedding most would be attackers.

Often times ich is not visible (in the gills) of new fish, therefore I think it is very important to know how long a fish has been on hand at any fish store. And ehem... Not tooting the LFS horn but it's impossible to know an online fishes health or history

The great debate of course is to quarantine or to not quarantine? I am a non quarantiner... Yes lash me if you need, but the risk is as high if not higher of loosing fish in quarantine, especially gobies/blennies/jawfish/wrasse who dont prefer a bare bottom tank. I do make exceptions for many tangs though. I feel it is paramount to know the fish you are about to buy above and beyond to reduce the risk of outbreaks. Using cleaner shrimp, neon gobies and such will also keep things in check and will often help beat back any outbreaks that might crop up.

[nbradley88]

thats how i feel... the longer they spent out of their element the more risk they have of passing, as i understand the importance of placing fish in quarantine Im starting to adopt a method of having a med tank, then a FOWL tank in my quarantine process.

I think that stressing the fish out when it comes home with you can lead to its death, and my fish seem so depressed in just a bare tank for qt. So when they come home with me now i put them in the bare medication tank, watch them for a few days to a week, place them in my small FOWL tank so they have a little more of an environment and ecosystem, and then a week or two later if everything looks good they hit the display. If they show any abnormal signs of sickness or parasites its back to the medication tank and massive water change and empty time for the FOWL tank to allow parasites that need fish to survive to die off.

Im adopting this method due to my recent issues.