Fish tank horror?

[jredouard25]

My tank is just... idk what to even say....

So this has been going on for like weeks but nvr really threw me

1. My gourami is always itching in my plant once in a while. (Going on for 1 month 1/2).

2. My tiger barbs are always rubbing against eachother and one of them breathes with there mouth WIDE OPEN lookin like its about to die any second

3. My other fish keeps like “sipping” or taking a gulp of air every once a while.


4. My other fish just LOVES the outtake. And my outtake is Pretty STRONG. I read a lot that the species of fish doesn’t like high flow but mine likes it.


PH: 7
AMMONIA: 0
Nitrite : 0-1ppm
Nitrate : 2-5 ppm
GH OR KH : very soft
Aeration : Excellent
Plants : 4
Stock : Medium stocked-OVER
Compatibility: pretty good (for now)
Water change: weekly; 25-30%

Overall question. What in the world is going on in my tank? Cuz Ik dang well a disease (don’t know) most likely came from a store LONG AGO. I analyze my fish before buying.


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I WOULD LIKE TO MENTION

I have all juvenile fish INCLUDING : 1 marble angel fish , 2 kuhli loaches , 3 Cory cats , 3 tiger barbs , and one Bristlenose Pleco in my 20G tank (trust me Ik its over stocked, upgrade coming very very soon) . I recently moved my gourami and betta to different tanks.

 

[jredouard25]

Z

 

[TallPaul]

It sounds like a parasitic infection but it could be a reaction to pH swings or trace metals in the water.

If your water is good then it's most likely a parasite such as Ich or gill flukes.

I would immediately recommend regular big water changes. Do at least 50%, preferably 75% every other day and give the filter media and good clean (but not under the tap as to remove all the beneficial bacteria).

If it is a parasite then there are options such as adding aquarium salt and medicating. I would seek further advice on medicating as I am not experienced enough to say and wouldn't want to give bad advice.

That said, you need to act now. Start immediately doing bigger water changes as that will remove a large quantity of whatever nasties are living in there

 

[Colin_T]

If you have any ammonia or nitrite it can irritate the fish and cause them to breath heavily or rub on objects. You put your nitrite as 0-1, if your test kit does not read levels between 0 and 1 then perhaps get the water tested at the pet shop to find out what the level actually is. Alternatively use a liquid test kit. If you have a liquid test kit, check the expiry date and try to keep the kit cool and dry.

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If you can post pictures of the sick fish and a short 20 second video of them rubbing or breathing heavily near the filter outlet, that can help us ID the issue.

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Fish generally hang out near filter outlets and the surface if they are having trouble breathing. Poor water quality or exposure to chemicals can damage the gills and make it harder for the fish to breath. Gill flukes will also damage the gills and can be treated with Praziquantel (available from any petshop), which is used to treat tapeworm in cats and dogs but also treats tapeworm and gill flukes in fish.

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If the water is good then the main reason fish rub on objects is because of a protozoan infection. Whitespot (Ichthyophthirius) is the most recognisable protozoan infection in fish but there are others like Velvet (Oodinium), Costia, Chilodonella & Trichodina. If you turn the tank lights off and shine a torch on the fish, and they have a gold sheen anywhere on their body, then they have Velvet. If there are no white spots and no gold sheen then they probably have one of the other protozoans irritating their skin. Costia, Chilodonella & Trichodina usually cause the fish to develop cream, white or grey patches on the body, but if there is only a few parasites on the fish they won't show any discolouration, and will only rub occasionally.

It doesn't really matter what protozoan infection they have because they are all treated the same way, Copper Sulphate, Malachite Green or heat (30C for 2 weeks). Heat treatment is the safest way to treat them and you simply raising the temperature by 2-3C each day until you reach 30C (86F) and then you keep it there for 2 weeks. After that lower it back down to whatever it normally is. Copper Sulphate will kill any protozoans but it also kills snails and shrimp. Malachite Green will kill protozoans too but is carcinogenic and pretty toxic to everything.

Before you treat with chemicals or increase the temperature, wipe the inside of the glass down and do a 75% water change and complete gravel clean. Remove any carbon from the filter if using chemicals. Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. Increase aeration/ surface turbulence to maximise the oxygen levels in the water.

 

[jredouard25]

If you have any ammonia or nitrite it can irritate the fish and cause them to breath heavily or rub on objects. You put your nitrite as 0-1, if your test kit does not read levels between 0 and 1 then perhaps get the water tested at the pet shop to find out what the level actually is. Alternatively use a liquid test kit. If you have a liquid test kit, check the expiry date and try to keep the kit cool and dry.

-------------------------
If you can post pictures of the sick fish and a short 20 second video of them rubbing or breathing heavily near the filter outlet, that can help us ID the issue.

-------------------------
Fish generally hang out near filter outlets and the surface if they are having trouble breathing. Poor water quality or exposure to chemicals can damage the gills and make it harder for the fish to breath. Gill flukes will also damage the gills and can be treated with Praziquantel (available from any petshop), which is used to treat tapeworm in cats and dogs but also treats tapeworm and gill flukes in fish.

-------------------------
If the water is good then the main reason fish rub on objects is because of a protozoan infection. Whitespot (Ichthyophthirius) is the most recognisable protozoan infection in fish but there are others like Velvet (Oodinium), Costia, Chilodonella & Trichodina. If you turn the tank lights off and shine a torch on the fish, and they have a gold sheen anywhere on their body, then they have Velvet. If there are no white spots and no gold sheen then they probably have one of the other protozoans irritating their skin. Costia, Chilodonella & Trichodina usually cause the fish to develop cream, white or grey patches on the body, but if there is only a few parasites on the fish they won't show any discolouration, and will only rub occasionally.

It doesn't really matter what protozoan infection they have because they are all treated the same way, Copper Sulphate, Malachite Green or heat (30C for 2 weeks). Heat treatment is the safest way to treat them and you simply raising the temperature by 2-3C each day until you reach 30C (86F) and then you keep it there for 2 weeks. After that lower it back down to whatever it normally is. Copper Sulphate will kill any protozoans but it also kills snails and shrimp. Malachite Green will kill protozoans too but is carcinogenic and pretty toxic to everything.

Before you treat with chemicals or increase the temperature, wipe the inside of the glass down and do a 75% water change and complete gravel clean. Remove any carbon from the filter if using chemicals. Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. Increase aeration/ surface turbulence to maximise the oxygen levels in the water.

Oml my barb had a gold sheens on its stripes what do I do?!


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[Colin_T]

If your tiger barb has a gold sheen on its black stripes then it has Velvet (Oodinium) and you can treat it by raising the water temperature to 30C (86F). Keep the temperature at 30C for 2 weeks then lower it back down.

Only raise the temperature 2-3C each day until you get to 30C. And after treatment lower the tem by 2-3C each day until you are back to 24-25C.

Increase aeration if possible, you might already have enough but try to maximise aeration/ surface turbulence because warmer water holds less oxygen than cool water.

Wipe the inside of the glass with a clean fish only sponge, do a 75% water change and complete gravel clean, and clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. Then raise the temp to 30C and keep it there for 2 weeks.