I Need Help

[Diane]

Over the last week I have lost 7 fish. I noticed at the beginning of the week that 2 of the fish had clamped fins and so I treated them for a bactierial (sp) infection. the rest have shown no signs at all. the rest of my fish have been fine and I have suffered no loses over the last couple days, until today. the last of my specials species c121 catfish is not looking to clever. He is showing no signs that the others had but he does jagged fins and up to last night he was feeding well, he now has no instrest in anything and he tilts slighty to the side.

my stats are as follows

My tank has been set up since June 2004
I have not added any fish in the last few weeks
Nitrate = 5
Nitrite = 0
Ammonia = 0

Please help I don't wany to lose any more fish

Thank you in advance for any help and advice

Diane

 

[tttnjfttt]

What do the edges of its fins look like? Is there any other symptoms, such as rapid breathing, scratching on objects in the tank, white fuzz, red streaks, bloating, becoming thin, etc?

Also, is there any chance anything got into the tank such as a chemical cleaner? Even though your water stats look good, i'd do a water change, as that can help perk up fish.

 

[WILDER]

Laying to one side can indicate a bacterial infecttion, has he darkened in colour or gone pale, is his tummy swollen or sunken in, plus the fins being jagged could indicate a bacterial problem.

 

[Diane]

the first two fish that die were thin and had clamped fins this is why I treated for a bacterial infection. I have done several water changes and this has perked the fish up. the fish with the jagged fins are like they have been nibbled, but I have no agressive fish in my tank.

There is no signs of swollen tummy,red streaks, white fuzz, rapid breathing or scratching. I'm the only one who deals with my tank so there is no chance that any chemicals have got in it. nobodys else evens feeds them, only me.

 

[WILDER]

Being thin can mean internal parasites or fish tb, what does it look like when the fish goes to the toilet, is the anus enlarged or red and inflamed, can you see anything prutruding from the anus, finally have they gone thin even though they are still eating.

I would take a look here just to be on the safe side.

http/www.4qd.org/Aqua/disease/tb.html

 

[Diane]

Being thin can mean internal parasites or fish tb, what does it look like when the fish goes to the toilet, is the anus enlarged or red and inflamed, can you see anything prutruding from the anus, finally have they gone thin even though they are still eating.

They have no trouble in going to the toilet, their bums all look ok. the two that went thin had not eaten for a few days.

I always make a point of watch my fish at feeding time as this is when most of them come out of their hiding holes and I can get a good look at them.

 

[tttnjfttt]

Usually fish won't go very thin after skipping a few days of meals.

 

[WILDER]

That's why they have los weight then, I would just carry on with the bacterial med for now.
Not the writer of this information below.
WEIGHT LOSS: INFECTIVE CAUSES
EXPLANATION

Flagellates
Unicellular parasites with one or more "filaments" (flagella). Often associated with whitish and stringy feces.

Tapeworms (Cestodes)
Large intestinal worms, in most cases segmented

Nematodes (roundworms, pinworms, threadworms)
Round worms (in cross-section) ranging from microscopic size to several millimeters long. Capillaria is one of them.

Other intestinal infections
Bacteria (including fish tuberculosis), viruses, other parasites

Skin and Gill parasites (Flukes, Ciliates, Dinoflagellates)
The fish stops eating in the late stages of the disease and the parasites rob nutrients from the fish