I think my fish are sick

[Idolz]

I think a couple of my guppies are sick, they stay at the top of the water line and dont really swim around much. When I turn off my tank's light I notice they are more active. The tank has been running for 3 weeks before I put fish in it. Could it be that they are sick or that my light is too bright for them?
Thanks

 

[Cheese Specialist]

Sorry to hear about your trouble,

I don't think it;s the lights, it seems unlikely unless you are using lights not meant for aquarium use.

Have you been able to check your amonia, nitrIte and nitrAte levels? It could be amonia poisoning or lack of oxygen. If you do not know what amonia etc or the cycle is then look at one of the pnned topics sure to be in this forum.

HTH

 

[Idolz]

No i havent bought a kit for checking amonia and nitrite lvls.
Im doing partial water changes each day now.

 

[Alien_spawn]

First thing that sprang to mind with fish being at the surface was a lack of oxygen.

But I would really invest in a water test kit

 

[ryan]

All of the above suggestions and alot of disease can lead to fishes dwelling near the surface, as mentioned invest in a test kit.

Good Luck

 

[Cheese Specialist]

If you can't afford or don't want to buy a test kit (I know they are quite expensive, even though you get a lot) why not take a water sample to your lfs. Most will do a test for you. Be sure to take a pen and paper to get down the exact values, them saying "it's fine" is usually no good! If you get them, then post them we can take it from there.

According to a booklet I have (from an Interpet med, it has an esay to use table!), gasping near the surface is a symptom of:

Possibe Symptoms:

* Whitespot/ich - other symptoms of whitespot include salt like grains on the body and flicking/rubbing against things

* Velvet - other symptoms include flicking/rubbing, rapid gill movement, red irritated areas of skin, opaque (white/grey) areas of slime, dusting of yellow/gold (1mm) spots giving a velvel appearence

* Slime disease - Same as above

* Higher form parasite - come with large easily seen attachments to the fish (this is unlikely as I am sure you would have noticed them)

Definite Symptoms:

* Bacterial Gill Disease - different symptoms including darkening of the skin, pop- eye (dropsy sign) depending on how acute the disease is

* Poisoning/water quality problems - ie low/high ph, amonia/nirtIte levels, untreated tap water (not using a dechloringator), overdose of medications, household toxins (eg polish, perfume etc)

I don't think you can do anything more until you determine your water parameters.

HTH

 

[Idolz]

I have noticed I have some type of parasites growing on the sides of my tank. Im putting Aquarisol stuff in it. It seems to be working a bit.
Thanks cheese ill try that at my lfs.

 

[wetwetwet]

Hi Idolz,

Sorry to hear your fish arn't doing well - but as said it could be down to many factors - water results are essential...

I'm not familiar with 'Aquarisol' but I'd advise against any medication, untill you know what you are medicating against, whats wrong with the fish and what could have caused the problem...



www

 

[Idolz]

Hi guys I got a kit ( they were on sale and it tested in the .6 range for amonia so i dunno if thats not bad or what. The treatment im putting in is for whats growing on the side of my tank.

 

[sinistral]

Hi Idolz! Did you test for the nitrite levels and pH in the tank? Those are important to keep track of as well. Did you follow Cheese Specialist's suggestion and look at some of the pinned articles in the forum, particularly the one about Avoiding and Treating New Tank Syndrome? That one might answer a lot of questions you have already...

Also, as wetwetwet suggested, I wouldn't add medication to the tank unless you know what you are treating. Aquarisol is a treatment for Ich, and it isn't clear if you have that. What does the stuff growing on the side of your tank look like? If it's green, it's probably algae and you wouldn't want to add Aquarisol for that...

 

[Idolz]

The things living on the side of my tank are white. I had a problem with small wormlike parasites before. My Aquarisol says it treats "Ick, closed fins, body fungus, velvet and other parasite infestations" It seems to be curing my fuzy whit crap problem

 

[Idolz]

Oh i forgot
I dont have a nitrite tester yet but i do have a ph tester and its around 7.4-7.5

 

[Lateral Line]

Your Ammonia level should be zero. That is probably your biggest problem. The flat worms are Planarians and usually indicate overfeeding, which would also make your ammonia problems worse, I suggest you stop feeding for a few days until you get your water livable.

 

[Idolz]

Hey good news, I put an air rock in the middle of my tank today and already have noticed more action in my guppies.
Thanks guys