Sick Loach

Request Help urgently

Tank size:10 gal
pH: 7.0
ammonia:0.02
nitrite: low but not specific
nitrate:low but not specific
kH:?
gH:?
tank temp:78f

Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior): Loach is highly inactive swims and crashes into walls. Loach has a small pea shaped white growth on his body, as well as a lightening of his body near the back. Recently another loach died that came from a batch with a very sick one he was black, and when he died he was light brown and had faded white patches on his body. I have a dalmation platy that has also been acting abnormally, it tucks its finns and drops its tail, and has been hiding under the filter.

Volume and Frequency of water changes: 20% every other day

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank: Amquel Plus water conditioner. TetraCare EasyBallance. Just now tank buddies Fungus Treatment (I went to Local Fish Store, and described the symptoms and they thought that it was a fungus).

Tank inhabitants: 3 x cardinal tetras (look fine), 1 dalmation platy, 1 Marble anglefish, 1 Molly, 1 Oto Catfish, a ghost shrimp and an amano (i think) shrimp, 1 kuhili loach.

Recent additions to your tank: none

Exposure to chemicals: treated for parasites (without the shrimp in the tank) a week or so ago when a molly died. (Looked as if it were in mid swim, had no abnormal behavior, was freverently chasing after the female molly till the morning when I woke and found it dead.)

Here's a pic of the loach:

Overstocked badly, what type of loach are they.
Angel need a 30gal tank.
And your stats are bad and the filter not coping with the load of fish in the tank.
I would rehome some of the fish why there still healthy.
The loach sounds like it has a bacterial infection.

Overstocked, huh? Yeah beceause other than my tetras no fish comes within 6 inches of the other, and there is about 80% of the tank that doesn't have a fish within an inch of it.

Someone told me that this place was usefull but you all are a bunch of lemmings squaking "overstocked" whenever anyone has more than two fish.

I wouldn't have bought any of the fish if the people who sold them to me told me that they would be miserable and compacted into a tiny capsoule. I have thie fish I have, and I want help keeping them not getting rid of them.

If you have anything useful please let me know.

Wilder is one of the most knowledgeable people on this board and your tank is overstocked. Just because the fish don't 'come within 6" of each other' doesn't mean your tank is at it's proper stocking capacity. This place is extremely useful and your ignorance is the only thing making it not useful to you. People at most pet stores don't care what you do with your fish and will sell you any fish just to make profits. If you want to keep your fish so badlyget a bigger tank or rehome them to someone who can properly care for them! Plain and simple. Don't come here asking for advice and then berate the first person who gives it to you. Also, a good stocking rule is 1" of adult fish per gallon after the minimum stocking gallonage:

Angelfish 6" - 30 gallons minimum (6 gallons)

Kuhili Loach 3" - 3 gallons

3 Cardinal Tetras 2" - 6 gallons

Platy 2" - 2 gallons

Molly 3-4" - 3.5 gallons

Otocinclus 2" - 2 gallons


Even without the angel you'd need at least a 22g tank. With the angel you'd need a 30 gallon tank.

Thanks jake, can't please every one.
I would seriously look your fish up on the net and find the info out, as that tanks overstocked.

Ok so say I am going to "rehome" some of my fish, where am I going to find someone to take them? I have a few friends with tanks, but none of them want any more fish.

How long does it take fish to mature? I am planning on getting a bigger tank when I move in May.

Many stores will take them or you can find a local online bulletin board such as craig's list thousands of people in my local area use it and it is how I found my original 125-gallon tank. Most fish take somewhere between 4-6 months to fully mature, but keeping them in such a small tank you risk stunting their growth (where the fish's body stops growing due to not having enough space but the organs keep growing) and shortening their lifespan. Also, if you really want to keep the fish try searching your local ads for second hand tanks. There are some real gems out there you just need to look. The last tank I bought was a second hand 35-gallon hexagon with filter, heater, stand, lighting and hood, only 5 years old for $25. The least you can do in terms of setting up a second tank is getting the angel it's own 10-gallon until you can get a bigger one.

As for treating your fish...

It sounds like an internal bacterial infection due to the poor water quality and the filter not coping with the load. I would add a second filter and you could try treating with a med but you would need a powerful one such as tetracycline and chances are that your loach will not make it as it seems to have a secondary fungal infection as well that will need to be treated with a separate med and cannot be used at the same time as the other. If you wanted to try treating go ahead, but be warned it will kill off your biological filter putting more stress on your other fish. I would just euthanize the loach as he sounds in bad shape and probably won't make it much longer and try to save the rest of the fish.

you could probly find a cheap used 10gallon and split the fish up...

Well Technically in my apartment complex we are only aloud to have a 10 gallon tank, but I could probably get a smaller tank like a 5 gallon or so. I am going to add an air wand and a foam filter.

35degreesofheel said:

you all are a bunch of lemmings squaking "overstocked" whenever anyone has more than two fish.

Click to expand...

the problem isn't how much room the fish have. technically, all of our fish would do better with a 1 fish per 10,000 gallons rule. The ''science'' of the aquarium hobby has to do with replicating that 10,000 gallons in an infinitely smaller environment. The way this is done is FILTRATION. The reason members of this board (and anyone else involved in this hobby) cry overstocked, is because there are too many fish in a given area for the filtration to support. The answer isn't necessarily a larger filter, because then water is turned over too quickly.

It is unfortunate that your complex only allows 10 gallon tanks. The smaller the tank, the harder it is to keep any fish healthy. I consider myself somewhat versed in this hobby and I will not allow myself to try anything smaller than a 30 gallon. 10 gallon aquariums should be used for hospital tanks or reserved for the 'pros' only.

As for the problem of rehoming or tetanking your fish...
How often does the landlord come over? Could you get away with multiple 10 gallon (preferably larger) tanks? How about setting up a few high strength shelves in a closet in order to run several tanks, and reserving one ''show'' tank for the common area of the apartment...

It is sad that the lfs never asked you about tank size, but as was said earlier, they are out to make a profit. Now that you have ''taken'' their advice, you will have to return several times to purchase medications, new tanks, new tank supplies, and ultimately new fish to replace the ones that die because of their advice.



Hope all works out.

p.s. not all fish stores employ idiots, you just gotta look around...