Pitbull Pleco's Mouth Has Gone Really Red , Help! :-\

[frog_girl]

Hi, really really hope you can help!
We've just noticed today that one of our two pitbull plecos has developed a realllly sore-looking red mouth, and looks to be honest, not happy. It looks dreadful and I'm freaking that something is horribly wrong, everyone else is going to get it and - I don't know what to do.

We added some new plants 2 weeks ago and it shoved the nitrates right up (50) but we've been changing water and whilst I haven't tested in the last 4 days (since the last change) I'm hoping they're going down. Could this be causing it? The ammonia/nitrite was 0 (well it was the point above 0 but our test kit shows the water as that even when it's water just out the tap so we figure it must just be marginally over-enthusiastic)

If it's any help I shall list the other things we have noticed with our fish that in and of themselves I don't think have been enough to suggest an actual problem but I wonder if they will be indicative of what is wrong here.

- guppy looked red between the mouth and the eye
- fish occasionally flash off leaves or ornaments
- one of the platys has had 2 lots of floaty poop

The tank is 125 litre, and contains 5 guppies, 5 platys, 2 plecos, 3 cherry shrimp, 2 algae eating shrimp, and about 15-20 platy babies (ranging from small to ridiculously tiny).

Help!!!

 

[Anna Robinson]

It sounds like a bacterial infection. This sometimes happens in these types of fish if there's a lot of debris in the substrate - is your substrate kept very clean and well-hoovered?

Not sure about the flashing and the red guppy, but I wouldn't pay that much attention to occasional gas in the droppings of the platy.

 

[Luzi]

I doubt it's the nitrates that are causing it, 50ppm isn't too bad and they tend to damage the gills
Could be the substrate but then it's likely that both fish will have the same problem.to be bacteriaa
Most likely to be bacterial, maybe mouthrot but don't medicate yet, just keep an eye on it. Is the fish eating? Post some pictures if you can

 

[frog_girl]

Hello lovely people
Just to update for those interested, I spoke to our local pet fish shop and they said that with the red mouth, it was best to do a melafix course so that it didn't become a fungal infection etc dead fish etc.
So we've done a 7 day course of melafix (air stone on the whole time) and pleco is looking a LOT better, in fact I'd say the red has gone. Everyone else still seems happy, the shrimp are still insane ;-) and we have even more platy babies than before (argh!)
So yes! Hurrah!

 

[KAISER]

Are you in the UK, Frog? If so, where did you get the pitbulls, if you dont mind me asking?