Guppy Deaths

[Wildbetta]

something I have had sweep through my tank before is dropsy, which makes my fish lethargic, pale, and their tails seem to be falling apart. Any cures for dropsy that I have heard of usually don't work, the only thing you can do is quarantine your healthy fish. Even if you don't know what the illness is, I still think if you can quarantine the fish, and perhaps do a full water change to clear out anything that might be contaminated.

 
Dropsy is a symptom of several different problems and is actually the accumulation of fluid in the body cavity making the fish swell to the point of the scales pineconing out.  It is not a disease in and of itself.  The symptoms you have described in no way sound like dropsy.  
 
 

If you have something like a water cleanser for your fish or salt put a little in the main tank if you haven't already with the water changes.  It will help the guppy stay well if it has been infected.

 
A water cleanser will do nothing to help sick fish and salt in a fresh water fish situation is not really anything that helps the fish stay well.
 
 
OP -- While I am not really sure what the main issue with your guppies is, I would harbor a guess that it is a bacterial infection of some kind by the sound of everything you have described.  Including the "fungus" that came up on your red guppy.  A bacterial infection like columnaris could be the issue.  
 
I personally do not like medicating without a need to but since you have had that many deaths already and then added new fish to the tank(not because you decided to

) I would treat with a broad spectrum antibiotic just in case.
 
As for your snail issue,  you can put a piece of fresh veggie in there and "catch" some snails each day and throw them out.  Also cut back on feeding a bit and you should start seeing some improvement with the snail population.

 

[mystichorseangel]

 

something I have had sweep through my tank before is dropsy, which makes my fish lethargic, pale, and their tails seem to be falling apart. Any cures for dropsy that I have heard of usually don't work, the only thing you can do is quarantine your healthy fish. Even if you don't know what the illness is, I still think if you can quarantine the fish, and perhaps do a full water change to clear out anything that might be contaminated.

 
Dropsy is a symptom of several different problems and is actually the accumulation of fluid in the body cavity making the fish swell to the point of the scales pineconing out.  It is not a disease in and of itself.  The symptoms you have described in no way sound like dropsy.  
 
 

If you have something like a water cleanser for your fish or salt put a little in the main tank if you haven't already with the water changes.  It will help the guppy stay well if it has been infected.

 
A water cleanser will do nothing to help sick fish and salt in a fresh water fish situation is not really anything that helps the fish stay well.
 
 
OP -- While I am not really sure what the main issue with your guppies is, I would harbor a guess that it is a bacterial infection of some kind by the sound of everything you have described.  Including the "fungus" that came up on your red guppy.  A bacterial infection like columnaris could be the issue.  
 
I personally do not like medicating without a need to but since you have had that many deaths already and then added new fish to the tank(not because you decided to

) I would treat with a broad spectrum antibiotic just in case.
 
As for your snail issue,  you can put a piece of fresh veggie in there and "catch" some snails each day and throw them out.  Also cut back on feeding a bit and you should start seeing some improvement with the snail population.
 

I apologize it appears I was misinformed by previous fish owners

 

[bluesword23516]

If their male is sick it will help him recover. Some salt is also good for live bearers and it helps build up natural slime coat to prevent infection.

 

[damanax]

The boyfriend picked up Melafix and Pimafix today as a way to apologise for being impatient and moving his tetras over 

 
I have heard mixed reviews about Melafix but the LFS doesn't stock anything but API products for some reason. If I buy something online postage takes weeks and since it's close to Christmas it will be a much longer wait so I'm stuck with it for now.
 
There's no mention of reducing dosages for sensitive fish. Should I still use the full dosage or halve it for the neons?

 

[damanax]

Well I've finished medicating and none of the other fish have shown any kind of symptoms, let alone died.
 
I'll also be giving the survivor guppy to a friend of mine tomorrow.