Pleco Help Please I Dont Want Him To Die

[Himmel]

I bought a pleco from Walmart. It was labeled as a dwarf pleco (looks like a common pleco but is small) He is just an inch long and sooo cute
Problem is I put him in a 5 gallon tank with a betta well the betta died of unknown things. His color faded and he became lazy. the pleco is showing the same symptoms. faded color and not moving much. the water was tested yesterday everything is within safe ranges and the ammona was .05 ppm or something like that I put an ammonia clear tab in and that seems to have cleared up the ammonia.

Pleco is still not doing better
I dont want to move him to another tank as I do not want to infect any other fish if it is contagious HELP PLEASE

 

[smithrc]

I'll be blunt - If it looks like a common - It'll be a common.

I'll take a stab that your not running a filter on the 5 gallon tank.
the extra load that a plec will add to the tank will have messed up you levels massivly - Any ammonia is a bad thing as it the fisrt stage in the cycle - if this is present there are big problems ahead as you wait for the bacteria to build up to remove the ammonia (a process that takes weeks.

Take the Plec back - 5 gallons isnt big enough for any plec - no matter what they call it

 

[Egmel]

Take the Plec back - 5 gallons isnt big enough for any plec - no matter what they call it

Gently does it, it's unlikely the lfs will take back a sick fish so how about trying to make it better first!

I'll agree that even if it is a true Dwarf Plec (like the gold spots who only get to 2") 5G is probably not going to be enough, they do make a lot of mess Maybe if you can get some nice clear photos of it then we can help you find out what it is. From your first post it sounds like you have other tanks he could go in if he were not ill. I think this would be best if he gets better

First off are you running a filter on the 'hospital' tank, if so was it cycled before you added the fish? What temp is the tank running at?

How long did you have the betta before he passed away and when did you add the plec?

I'm not an expert on these things but loosing colour, becoming lethargic and then dying sounds like a bacterial infection to me. These are usually brought about by stress. Have you made any major changes to the tank recently? The other thing I would suggest is posting in the emergency section. Don't forget to use the cut and paste form that's in the pinned thread at the top of the section.

Good Luck

 

[smithrc]

Gently does it, it's unlikely the lfs will take back a sick fish so how about trying to make it better first!

sorry.

 

[Himmel]

First of all what the do you think I am YES i run a filter in the tank I am NOT a retard. Second the ammonia levels are Zero now and everything else is Safe I dont have the exact numbers in front of me.
the temp is 80 degrees the water is clear.

I use aquaclear to purify the water
Aquarium Salt
Melafix
Prima Fix
Stability
Cycle
Waste Control
and
Keta Peat Almond leaves
Now the Melafix and Prima fix and any other meds are used only when needed

The Tank is FILTERED , Planted, heated and lit. Has been set up for 4 Months Now
Did not add fish for the fist 2 months
Had the Betta in there for about 2 Months Pleco same they were bought from the same take at Walmart so I saw no harm in keeping them to gether

I have had this type of pleco before and while I do plan on getting a 55 to 70 ga tank in the future for now he is okay in the 5 gallon as he is about an inch long maybe less

He still eats
and he is still alive hasnt grown at all in the 2 months I had him

 

[KathyM]

Ehhh no pleasing some folks is there? You asked for advice, and got very good advice. One post you're saying your plec's dying, the next you're getting arsey and saying he's fine when you don't get the advice you want.

Fact is, NO plec is suitable for a 5g tank, whether it's filtered or not. Whether you take him back or not is up to you, but you know it's the responsible thing to do. No need to use disgusting language when people don't pat you on the back.

 

[demonmagus]

. Has been set up for 4 Months Now
Did not add fish for the fist 2 months


and he is still alive hasnt grown at all in the 2 months I had him

the growing isn't a good sign if he is a common, he is stunted I think.

Did you cycle the tank though? you mention now putting fish in but was it cycled?

 

[Egmel]

First of all what the do you think I am YES i run a filter in the tank I am NOT a retard. Second the ammonia levels are Zero now and everything else is Safe I dont have the exact numbers in front of me.
the temp is 80 degrees the water is clear.

No-one's calling you a retard (which is a word I hate by the way). It's just that we are aware that some people don't use filters in their betta tanks but instead do frequent large water changes. As you can imagine while this works ok for a betta the pleco just produces too much waste!

I use aquaclear to purify the water
Aquarium Salt
Melafix
Prima Fix
Stability
Cycle
Waste Control
and
Keta Peat Almond leaves
Now the Melafix and Prima fix and any other meds are used only when needed

Wow that's a lot of chemicals, do you have the salt in there at the moment? IIRC Plecs aren't huge fans of salt and he might be better off without it.

The Tank is FILTERED , Planted, heated and lit. Has been set up for 4 Months Now
Did not add fish for the fist 2 months

Did you do a fishless cycle using ammonia during this time? If you're using cycle then I guess not.

Had the Betta in there for about 2 Months Pleco same they were bought from the same take at Walmart so I saw no harm in keeping them to gether

They should be fine together.

I have had this type of pleco before and while I do plan on getting a 55 to 70 ga tank in the future for now he is okay in the 5 gallon as he is about an inch long maybe less
He still eats and he is still alive hasnt grown at all in the 2 months I had him

Generally it's recommended to buy things when you have the tanks to put them in rather than in anticipation of getting a larger tank, all to do with the future being unpredicatble! However you are aware that he may get very big quite quickly so I'll leave it to you, but remember the signs of stunted growth are not always obvious and he may just die unexpectedly one day because he hasn't had enough space.

[edit]I'll agree with demonmagus the lack of growth is worrying. What do you feed him? Even my little dwarf gold spot plecs have grown in the short 3 weeks I've had them.

 

[Himmel]

Sorry all its just I hate ppl being rude when they dont know I asked for help which means I want help with him which means I am doing the best I can for him.
I bought him originally to put into my 30 gall tank but needed to make sure he was healthy first so he went into the 5 gall.
Yes I do do a fishless cycle hence why the tank was set up for 4 months but fish have only been in for 2 months, Cycle came with the tank and is not actually in the water at this point that was more of a list of things I have on hand.
There is a small amount of Aquarium Salt in the water.
I have always had Plecos in my tanks just never had a Pleco that did this.

I am here to learn and do not want to be yelled at for doing something wrong. like all ppl if you gently explain what I am doing wrong and what I could be doing I am more likely to listen.

He looks alittle better today all though not what he used to be.

I cant get a clear pic of him as my camera does NOT have a Macro setting on it

AND I am purchasing a 80 Gall tank with stand and hood today so It will be cycling for the next 2 to 4 months then if the water tests clean I will add fish the healthy Pleco first and once the other pleco gets healthy too he will go in to the 30 gall

 

[Cheffi]

2-4 months to cycle a tank seems an awful long time especially if you already have cycled tanks running. You could take media from them to start it off.

 

[Himmel]

2-4 months to cycle a tank seems an awful long time especially if you already have cycled tanks running. You could take media from them to start it off.

I do prefer to try to make sure nothing is going to happen
Right now I have one 10 gall and one 5 gall that I am scared to put anything in the 10 gall has a very hi Nirate level and I cant bring it down thinking I should restart tank from scratch (funny thing is thats the only tank with carbon in the filter. the others because they are betta tanks have a Keta Peat instead of the carbon


and the carbon made it so the Prima fix didnt work ( My girls had torn fins)

Really concerned for my little guy now what do I do with him...........

 

[smithrc]

Sorry all its just I hate ppl being rude when they dont know I asked for help which means I want help with him which means I am doing the best I can for him.

I wasnt rude... I was blunt but factual.
And apoligised before you even read the reply.


If you had given the information that has now come to light we wouls have been able to offer better advice.

In the mean time I hope the plec pulls through.

 

[KathyM]

I will add fish the healthy Pleco first and once the other pleco gets healthy too he will go in to the 30 gall

Just to clear things up - how many plecs are in the 5g? Or is the other in the 30g?

 

[Himmel]

I have 2 plecos one in a 30 gal and one in a 5 gal
the one in the 5 gal is an inch or less long the other is about 8 inches.


they look the same lol all but size would love to put them in the same tank cause it would look hilarious but I dont wantt o make the other pleco sick or something so

 

[KathyM]

Seeing as the 30g isn't big enough for either of them in the long run, I think you're going to have to look at rehoming one or both of them anyway. If your "dwarf" plec looks like a common plec, it most likely is one, in which case he could grow at a rate of an inch a month. Your 8" common is already in a tank far too small for him, so obviously he'll go in your bigger tank. However, both won't go in the bigger tank, and the 30g isn't big enough.

Edited to add: What are the dimensions of the 80g?