swordtail drama continues...

[kiko]

As I've said
I wish you and your fish the best of luck

 

[emeraldking]

As WhistlingBadger has already stated: Keep it civil, people...
We don't have to agree with ones opinion but if the urge to state an opinion is present, then it can be told in an adult way. And if someone is giving an advice but won't use it for a certain reason, that is totally up to that person. We're here not to force someone to do something but try to help someone. And it's up to that person to decide wether he/she will accept the help or not.

"Group hug"...

 

[Uberhoust]

I have been following this thread and don't really see anything that should be killing the swordfish, especially since the plecos are doing ok from what I have read. In this kind of situation we need to step back and see if their is something else that might be causing an issue.

1. Is there any wood in the tank, if so it might be something leaching from it that plecos like, coming from areas with high tannic acid, that the Swords might not tolerate. Maybe some rock is leaching.
2. Are the plecos attacking the swords? Not likely but my bristlenose has gone after some of my fish but not in a way that would cause fatalities.
3. Bad stock. This has been mentioned and has some possibility if the swords were purchased young. I don't have direct experience with the Swordtails, but with Angels on some of my batches I get some poor performers that just never do well. If all your fish you have purchased come from the same supplier you might simply have a bad batch that are simply never going to do well. I hate to say this but the bad ones I raise I euthanize, but if you are trying to sell them the dealer might take the opinion that it might be someone else's issue.
4. Disease or Pestilence. This is a distinct possibility as well, if it is a disease or parasite it is either slow to spread or the Plecos are not affected by it.
5. Are the plecos and the Swordtails eating the same food? Maybe one food has been contaminated or gone bad.
6. Other environmental factors. Too many to list but perhaps a cat or other creature in your home is interacting with the Swords in a manner that is affecting them more than say the plecos who might just hang out under a piece of wood.
7. You might just be bad with Swordfish. I know I am not good with cories for some reason, so I avoid them now.

Again reading the responses and your comments I would say that items 3 and 4 are the most likely issue, I haven't raised swordfish since the 70's but at the time the biggest problem was keeping the population down. I don't think the Swordfish I had then are the same you can buy not but I don't have any evidence to support that feeling.

If it were me I would try the advice of Byron or Colin with trying to treat the possible issue of parasites, but if that doesn't work I would be planning on trying a different type of fish that likes harder water.