Sick Fish!

[MeganA]

OK so I have had my 30 gallon since May. My current stock is as follows: 2 Peppered Corys, 2 Julii Corys, 1 Albino Cory, 2 Red Eyed Tetra, 1 Albino Rainbow shark, 1 female platy, 2 male platy, 2 female mollies, 2 Ghost cats, 2 platy fry, 1 mollie fry, 1 common plec (currently looking for a new home because he is going to get too big, but I need my tank well first), 2 ghost shrimp.

My water readings are: PH 7.6, Ammonia .25, Nitrites 0, Nitrates 20

My current situation is that about a month and a half ago or so I had ich in my tank. I treated it as directed. I treated with Copper sulfate I believe. I have not seen anymore ich in my tank and I did not lose any fish to the outbreak I think I caught it early. Up until 2 weeks ago everything had been good in my tank. 2 weeks ago my fish one by are falling sick. One by one they start hanging around the heater and act completely lethargic then they just float at the top of the water with their tails hanging. When it first happens they still perks up at feeding and as it gets worse they stop eating then before they die they lay on the bottom until they die. They do look like they are having labored breathing. I don't know what to do. I am losing almost a fish a day. Yesterday I lost an albino cory and he also had a bulging eye. I don't know what to do I know that shrimp and corys are both sensitive to meds and I don't want to make any of the healthy fish sick by medicating with something they cant handle. Is this a parasite or bacteria? What should I do? How do I save my fish?

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Definitely no sign of Ich on any of the fish?

How long did you leave the Ich meds in the tank after seeing no spots, before doing a water change?

Any sign of your Rainbow Shark getting aggressive yet? They do get very territorial with other bottom dwellers as they gain confidence with age/size.

What temp are you keeping the tank at?

What fish species and numbers have you lost to this mystery?

 

[MeganA]

I have been really watching for ich and I have not seen anything. I have notice slight flashing in some of the fish. I dont remember exactly how I did the ich meds but I did it exactly how it instructed me to because I was worried that I had not bought the right kind and it was all the LFS had. I do remember that the medication said that it lasts for a month in the tank. But I was already doing water changes as soon as I stopped seeing spots. I do very regular water changes I do about 25% to 40% at least one time a week but sometimes more if I think it is needed. I vacuum the sand every 2 weeks thoroughly and I stir the sand about every 3 to 4 weeks.

My rainbow shark is pretty good. I have named him Vinny because he is the boss of the tank. He doesn't hurt any of the fish but he does have his territory. I have plenty of areas in my tank for them all to claim an area and he doesn't like any of the middle swimmers in his territory. He never bothers any of the bottom feeders at all or the plec just the middle tank swimmers that travel into his log. So far he is doing fine, he was the first fish we got and I didnt know anything when we got him but now that I know more about his aggressive side I keep a close eye on him and I will move him if he gets out of hand.

I keep my tank at 79-80.

I have lost mostly live bearers. A few mollies and a couple platys. Yesterday was the first day that I have seen any distress in my corys (and they are all starting to show signs too) and I did lose one yesterday and 1 red eyed tetra. Up until yesterday I thought maybe I had a problem with my live bearers but now it is moving on to all my fish.

 

[Cazgar]

Sounds like ammonia poisoning
Any presence of ammonia is toxic to fish & your reading of .25 is too high.
You need to do a large water change asap, then retest your water, & if necessary do another water change.
Also your temp is a bit high, especially for the corys

 

[MeganA]

I thought .25 was ok in ammonia?...OK What would be considered a large water change? 50%? more? Do I continue doing large changes until the reading is 0?

 

[MeganA]

I feel awful .25 reading in ammonia is what I have always had...I have been slowly poisoning my fish?? What causes ammonia? I know that it is food and waste but do I keep getting a .25 reading because I am over feeding possibly?

 

[MeganA]

and what do you think the temp should be kept at?

 

[Cazgar]

I mean do a large water change, 75% or more, then test your water again for ammonia, if it's still showing any, then do another large water change.
I'd drop the temp to around 75

 

[MeganA]

OK thank you! I will do that! Do you think that my fish will get better? Or have I lost them?

 

[Cazgar]

Hopefully if you can get that ammonia to zero, & keep it there, you shouldn't lose any more

 

[MeganA]

OK thanks

 

[Bugdozer]

I'm curious as to how on earth your shrimp survived a copper sulphate treatment - that should kill them stone dead! Or did you take them out?

 

[b3cca]

Are you actually testing purely for ammonia or using a kit which tests Ammonia (NH3) and Ammonium NH4+ combined. Have a look what it says on the kit.
 
If your tap water has ammonium in it then it could easily be what's showing up on your test kit results rather than actual pure ammonia.
 
Most test kits like API test them combined meaning your reading of .25 PPM will be a total combined Ammonia and Ammonium reading and at 
7.6 PH and a temp of 80 degrees would only mean a total Ammonia reading of around 0.005 ppm in the tank which is still not perfect but obviously not as bad or toxic as an actual .25 ppm NH3 reading.
 
What is the ammonia/ammonium reading from your tap water supply ? I would check this first and see if it showing up anything on the ammonia/ammonium test