Medications:The Ich parasite can only be attacked by medications at a very specific point in their life cycle. Medication can work during what is called the “free phase,” when the parasite is multiplying. Once the infection phase has begun, medication will not work because the parasites are inside the fish’s tissue.
Effective medications include:
- anti-parasitic medicines
- malachite green
Anti-parasitics should be of the antibiotic type, specifically for anaerobes. This way they don’t attack the aerobic de-nitrifying bacteria in the aquarium.
Malachite green is a dye known to effectively combat white spot. A disadvantage to this method is that not all fish can tolerate the treatment.