Sick Guppy, need help!

[GuppyMama1234]

Hello! I am new to the forum and haven’t quite figured out how to navigate yet. I have a mama guppy who has started acting strange and now has some weird splotches on her. She WAS pregnant and then seemingly reabsorbed the fry because she didn’t give birth but she is no longer pregnant. She has stopped swimming around and is warbling back and forth with a drooped tail. Her tail has developed some reddish lines in it and today she developed two pink spolotches. I will include a picture. Does anyone know what this is? I have quarantined her into a breeder box but she is still in my community tank.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

View attachment 140750
Hello! I am new to the forum and haven’t quite figured out how to navigate yet. I have a mama guppy who has started acting strange and now has some weird splotches on her. She WAS pregnant and then seemingly reabsorbed the fry because she didn’t give birth but she is no longer pregnant. She has stopped swimming around and is warbling back and forth with a drooped tail. Her tail has developed some reddish lines in it and today she developed two pink spolotches. I will include a picture. Does anyone know what this is? I have quarantined her into a breeder box but she is still in my community tank.

Not a happy fish.
Apparently, guppies will reabsorb their young when water conditions are not good, or if the fish is overly stressed.
So what water parameters is she swimming in? Temp., pH, GH, KH, Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, etc.?
Tank mates?
Is your tank well planted?

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Not a happy fish.
Apparently, guppies will reabsorb their young when water conditions are not good, or if the fish is overly stressed.
So what water parameters is she swimming in? Temp., pH, GH, KH, Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, etc.?
Tank mates?
Is your tank well planted?

...And welcome to the Forum.

 

[Colin_T]

poor water quality or something in the water irritating her.

do big daily water changes and maybe add some salt but water changes first to make things safer for her.

 

[GuppyMama1234]

Not a happy fish.
Apparently, guppies will reabsorb their young when water conditions are not good, or if the fish is overly stressed.
So what water parameters is she swimming in? Temp., pH, GH, KH, Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, etc.?
Tank mates?
Is your tank well planted?

I believe we discovered the problem! It was the ammonia level, everything else tested good (nitrate 0ppm, nitrite 0 ppm, PH 7.6) but the ammonia was around 2.0. (Tank temp is 78-80) On the advice of another fish forum friend, we did a 75% water change right away. We also put in a new filter. That lowered the ammo to around a 1.0. He advised us to continue doing water changes until we get the level back down to 0. The fish are already more lively today. He advised us that when ammonia is high it causes a normally good PH to be super toxic. From what I understand, a 7.6 PH is good for guppies normally but due to the high ammo it is all causing a toxic situation for our fish.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

I believe we discovered the problem! It was the ammonia level, everything else tested good (nitrate 0ppm, nitrite 0 ppm, PH 7.6) but the ammonia was around 2.0. (Tank temp is 78-80) On the advice of another fish forum friend, we did a 75% water change right away. We also put in a new filter. That lowered the ammo to around a 1.0. He advised us to continue doing water changes until we get the level back down to 0. The fish are already more lively today. He advised us that when ammonia is high it causes a normally good PH to be super toxic. From what I understand, a 7.6 PH is good for guppies normally but due to the high ammo it is all causing a toxic situation for our fish.

To summarise, ammonia, any ammonia, burns fish.

 

[GuppyMama1234]

Yes unfortunately my yellow tailed guppy didn’t make it. I also had a dead neon tetra this morning as well. We decided to transfer all the fish from the toxic water into another tank that only had live plants and guppy fry in it. They all seem to be doing much better just since changing them over a few hours ago. We are going to completely drain the toxic tank and fill it back up( we have spring water) and we are going to add some quick start bacteria to it. Does this sound like a good enough plan? Any suggestions?

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Yes unfortunately my yellow tailed guppy didn’t make it. I also had a dead neon tetra this morning as well. We decided to transfer all the fish from the toxic water into another tank that only had live plants and guppy fry in it. They all seem to be doing much better just since changing them over a few hours ago. We are going to completely drain the toxic tank and fill it back up( we have spring water) and we are going to add some quick start bacteria to it. Does this sound like a good enough plan? Any suggestions?

Removing the fish was a good call. Just pay very close attention to the water parameters of the tank with the fish now in it...you don't want a repeat performance of misery.
When setting my tank up, I indulged in daily, (sometimes twice daily) water testing. This gave me something fish-related to do, whilst waiting for cycling to complete and got me into a good habit of testing, testing.
Assume your 'toxic' tank still has bacteria in it, so you could leave as is and cycle it accordingly, sans fish.

 

[GuppyMama1234]

I am now encountering the same problem in the hold over tank... this is a nightmare I tested this morning and the ammo level is a .25ppm whereas it was a 0ppm yesterday. My mollies and loaches are fine but the neons and guppies are “hyper ventilating” and laying at the bottom of the tank. They look extremely bleached out as well. Im not feeding them right now and I added quick start bacteria to the tank yesterday and I added it this morning as well but I’m just not sure what to do at this point. I am afraid they aren’t going to make it until their big tank is back in order. I am considering getting some of that API Ammo Lock, I read that it can detoxify the ammonia.

 

[Colin_T]

Reduce feeding to 2-3 times a week and do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate 4-8 hours after feeding.

Then do a 75% water change any day you have an ammonia or nitrite reading above 0ppm, or a nitrate reading above 20ppm.

Once the filters have cycled (in about 4-6 weeks), you can increase feeding and do a water change and gravel clean once a week.

Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

I am now encountering the same problem in the hold over tank... this is a nightmare I tested this morning and the ammo level is a .25ppm whereas it was a 0ppm yesterday. My mollies and loaches are fine but the neons and guppies are “hyper ventilating” and laying at the bottom of the tank. They look extremely bleached out as well. Im not feeding them right now and I added quick start bacteria to the tank yesterday and I added it this morning as well but I’m just not sure what to do at this point. I am afraid they aren’t going to make it until their big tank is back in order. I am considering getting some of that API Ammo Lock, I read that it can detoxify the ammonia.

Do you have a filter in that 'hold over' tank?
Aeration?

 

[GuppyMama1234]

Do you have a filter in that 'hold over' tank?
Aeration?

I do have a filter running in it but do not have an air pump hooked up to it. It is heavily planted with live plants. I just left my LFS and they told me to completely drain the 37gal tank, clean the filter and the gravel, re-fill with fresh water( I am on well water) and add slime coat and ammo lock. So I purchased the tetra brand slime coat stuff and the topfin ammo lock and am on my way home with it now.

 

[GuppyMama1234]

I do have a filter running in it but do not have an air pump hooked up to it. It is heavily planted with live plants. I just left my LFS and they told me to completely drain the 37gal tank, clean the filter and the gravel, re-fill with fresh water( I am on well water) and add slime coat and ammo lock. So I purchased the tetra brand slime coat stuff and the topfin ammo lock and am on my way home with it now.

Correction: I purchased API AMMO LOCK AND AQUASAFE PLUS

 

[GuppyMama1234]

These are all the products I’ve purchased in the last few weeks. I’m not sure what to use. And I’m not sure if I should follow the advice of the LFS employee and drain the entire 37 gal. tank. I just tested the water in it (it’s been sitting empty since yesterday morning) results are as follows:
PH: around 7.4
Ammonia: around 1.0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate:0
I am about to test the 10 gal. Planted tank that all the fish are in and will post the results in a few minutes. I just pulled 2 more dead neons out

 

[GuppyMama1234]

Reduce feeding to 2-3 times a week and do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate 4-8 hours after feeding.

Then do a 75% water change any day you have an ammonia or nitrite reading above 0ppm, or a nitrate reading above 20ppm.

Once the filters have cycled (in about 4-6 weeks), you can increase feeding and do a water change and gravel clean once a week.

Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.

Hey Colin, have you seen my latest post? I need some advice. I posted a picture of all of the products I have on hand and the readings I got from the empty 37 gal. Most of the fish are in a 10 gal. planted tank as of now. I had 2 dead neons this morning and another one I just found in the filter. I tested the 10 gal and the results were as follows:
PH: around 7.4
Ammonia: between .25 and .50
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 5.0
I went to my LSF and was advised to get aquasafe plus water conditioner and API ammo lock. She told me to completely drain the 37 gal., clean the gravel and the filter, fill it back up with spring water and use the 2 additives I just named. This advice is contrary to the advice I have been given on the forum. With the fish dying right and left and the readings I just stated... what should I do?