Blue Ram Not Doing So Well..

[TropicDan]

Yesterday I added a pair of German Blue rams to my community tank. The male seems fine and as of this morning the female was swimming actively as well. Now she is just sort of lying on the bottom, breathing rather hard, and if you ask me I'd say she looks bloated. I think she might be constipated or has some sort of internal damage. My PH is a bit high around 7.2. Other levels are at zero or very low. I just did a water change. I think I'm gonna add PH down, I'd rather not add any chemicals, but I think I need to get my ph down soon. Any comments very appreciated. Tank stocking in my signature.

 

[WILDER]

What was the ph of the lfs.
How long did you climatise the fish for.
Can you also post other water stats in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate.
Are her scales sticking out.
Dosn't sound to good if i'm honest.
Ph adjusters are more trouble then there worth.
Best of adding peat to your filter.

pH Shock

As its name suggests this condition occurs when a fish is introduced to quickly into a new environment which has a very different pH from the one it came from, when the pH is adjusted to quickly and the fish have little or no time to adjust themselves, or when the pH is to far outside the fishes normal range.

It is very important that any change in water chemistry is made slowly and fish should never be exposed to changes of pH greater than 0.5 of one unit on the pH scale in either direction.

Avoidance is by far the best solution because in most cases the symptoms don't appear until the second or third day by which time the damage has been done and the fish will probably die.

A fish suffering from this condition will show all the typical signs of shock -

Lying on the bottom and paying little or no attention to its surroundings and ignoring potential threats.
It may even lay on its side or go upside down completely.
There could be other signs to, related to Acidosis and Alkalosis
Excessive mucus production.
Rapid breathing.
Swollen abdomen. (Alkalosis only).
If the condition is allowed to go on for one or two days then the chances of a successful remedy are greatly reduced because a lot of damage will have taken place. If the symptoms are spotted early enough there are a couple of things that will help.

Begin to return the pH to the original pH in steps of 0.4 of one unit on the pH scale and allow 3 hrs in between the adjustments. Make these adjustments until the pH is returned to a safe and satisfactory level.
Treat the tank with a broad spectrum anti-Bacteria/Fungus compound to prevent secondary infections of the Skin and Gills.
Prevention is easy. A successful treatment isn't!

 

[WILDER]

Has the fish only bloated up since you added her to the tank.

 

[TropicDan]

Ammonia 0; Nitrite 0; Nitrate <15ppm. Not sure of the exact ph from the store, I'm pretty sure right around 6.8 though. Acclimated for at least an hour. Bloated as of I'd say a few hours ago. Like I said this morning she was swimming around, definitely not bloated.

 

[WILDER]

Ok.
All you can do is epson salt baths to help draw fluids out.
Once fish heavy breath when bloated not good news.
If you can issolate try a bacterial med, don't forget to increase aeration as med reduce 02 in the water.

 

[TropicDan]

Despite the help you graciously gave Wilder, I'm afraid my reaction time wasn't prompt enough. She did end up dying a short while ago, and I can only hope the male is doing fine. I see nothing wrong with him at this time, but you did say symptoms might not show for a few days, so I'm going to add peat media to my filter and hopefully maintain a lower ph. Thanks very much for your help, although I did lose a pretty fish, I at least learned something. I very much wish I could have known to isolate her sooner and medicate. Thanks again.

 

[WILDER]

The fish didn't sound good.
R.I.P.