Dwarf Puffer Dying

[LittleL]

Ok, so i thought my 3 dwarf puffers where doing fine but when i came home from work today, one had completely dissapeared (think he is hiding.... i know he hasnt been eaten or anything) one is fine, just swimming about and the other one is not looking to good....

he is getting dragged around the tank by the gentle current from the filter, but its dragging him all over the place. He little fins are still going but its not making much difference. I have turnt the bubbles off to ease the current but it hasnt made much difference, he is still getting dragged around and turnt upside down, smashed into rocks etc.... i dont no what to do. I havent got a spare tank to put him in.

What can i do? why is he so life-less? it looks abit like his tail is nibbled and has a very fine, red streak through it, but only very faint and fine... whats this? he eyes ar'nt moving either... if you didnt look close enough to see his fins going still, you would say he was dead... will i lose him?

Do puffers not like a gentle current? the other puffer looks fine and is swimming around fine and under control or his body...

 

[WILDER]

Need to look at your water stats in ammonia,nitrite,nitrate,and ph, put the fish in a container at the top of the tank, something like a tupperware box, if he has red streaks running through his tail it's septicemia, he sounds bad, and to be honest i don't think he's going to make it, you need a bacterial med.

 

[Nina]

Can you let us know if your puffs are in a tank by themselves or with other fish.

Also it may be to do with the size of tank if it is too small

 

[LittleL]

ok the 3 dwarf puffers are in a 52 litre tank with:

2 rosy barbs
4 harliquins
4 honey dwarf gouramis
1 bristle nose plec

I know this is not brilliant, but the LSP told me they would be fine with this lot and due to my lack of knowledge and niaveity, i brought them anyway going on LFS advice.

the stats are (using tetra test 5 in 1 kit) :

Nirite: 0
Nirate: 100
PH: 7.6
GH:> 10d
KH: 10d

does this look normal? tank temperture is 26..

 

[WILDER]

The nitrate needs getting down as it high anything above 50 wants water changes.
I would take the plec back as they are big waste producers.

Yes you are overstocked, i would buy another filter for the load as that one dosn't look like it coping.

 

[LittleL]

the plec is tiny though so i cant see him making much mess.. The filter is one a above water one that came with the tank. Is one that sucks stuff up a pipe and then filters it through the top in the lid and pumps it back into the water, so its not so easy to get another filter..

the stats arent to bad... i have been using teta minus nirate to help...

 

[Nina]

Regardless of everything else Dwarf puffers can't go with pretty much anything else. They should ideally be kept with other DPs and that is it. Some plecos are okay (we have bristlenoses with ours).

I would either take the other fish back as it could (and is very likely to) go very very wrong or take back the DPs.

There are a few topics on here about DP's and their (lack of) tank mates so if you are planning on keeping them I would suggest you read them.

Water change the tank and then test again this should bring the nitrate down.

How often do you usually water change? You may need to increase how often you do them.

 

[WILDER]

All you need to do is add an internal filter to the tank, or you will have to rehome some fish, as they are already getting unwell, only thing to keep nitrate down is water changes and maintance, and plec really mess the bottom of the tank up, so i would give it a gravel vac.

 

[LittleL]

ok, i cant really do much now, but i think ill take the DP backc when i can (although i love them to bits) and hopefully it will be ok.

I water change twice a week (if i can) but diffenitly once a week i do 1/2 water change. I havent got a vac but will get one and ill look at buying a second internal filter.

cheers

 

[WILDER]

You need a vac that why you are doing alot of water changes and your nitrates are high, believe me kept plec and they do half mess the bottom up with waste, you need the gravel vac and it will smell awful when you vac it with the plec.

 

[Nina]

If you are water changing twice a week then your nitrates are very high.

If you are taking the DPs back then you will be reducing your bio load so that will go a long way to helping your filter cope!

When you water change do you use a hose to take the water out. If you do then hover the hose just above the substrate (if you have sand just be a little more careful) and this will hoover up the poo and crap on the bottom. Much cheaper than buying a gav vac.

 

[x1x.obsessed.x1x]

I have 3 rosey barbs- if u notice nibbles on ur other fish it is probably them. I hav a wall in my tank now and none of my fish hav bite marks anymore.

they need to be in large groups or they are really agressive (they say 6 atleast)

and i dont kno what to say about ur puffer fish, my fish was still this morning, but still breathing then died a little later.

yes i vaccum almost every weeknd, if not once a month. Make sure u always clean up food that is un eaten too.

 

[tttnjfttt]

Helpless - your rosy barbs are so agressive because you don't have a school of them and you are keeping them in an over stocked, too small tank. Since your tank is overstocked, you need to be dilligent with your tank maintence, and not let it go for a month at times. And in the tank of the original poster, until he rehomes the dwarf puffers, they would msot likely be the agressor, not the rosy barbs.