Turquoise Dwarf Gourami Suddenly Passed Away. :(

[Snowman23]

I am fairly new to this hobby.
My Nitrites and Nitrates are Zero.
My pH is right where it should be. ( My LFS tested my water for free using a liquid test kit)
I added 2 Angels, 1 Siamensis and a Fartuella on Saturday.
My tank has been established for about 2 months. I have had a Swordtail, betta and guppy within my tank since day one and they have been and continue to be healthy. I feed them once in the morning and once at night. I had a small bout with green alge(the siamensis and Fratuella are handling that), but that shouldn't harm the Gourami should it?

Other tank mates:
2 Head-Tail light tetras
3 Black Skirt tetras
2 guppies (1 male, 1 female)
1 Raphael Cat
1 betta
1 Swordtail

Any advice would be appreciated. I want to get an other one, but I am going to wait a while until i can figure out why. I plan on doing a filter and 25% water change in 2-3 days, depending on when the filter medium comes in. Any advice?

 

[alistairw]

Hi Snowman

I am not really sure why your Gourami has died, but I do know it's not uncommon as they seem to be quite fragile fish and this isn't an uncommon problem as you will see in other Gourami related threads.

What do you mean by changing yor filter medium? If you mean buying new medium to replace what you already have, I would seriously not recommend this. All the bacteria you have grown ove the last 2 months ( the ones that turn deadly ammonia into equally deadly nitrite and then the nitrite into the not so deadly nitrate) will be lost and you will have to cycle your tank again. With the amount of fish you have, this would be a nightmare unless you have another cycled tank.

Sorry to go off topic, but I think that is quite an important point and I am sure other members will point this out.

Unfortunately fish do die and Dwarf Gouramis seem to be susceptible to this.

I am relatively new to this too so hopefully other members can help a little more.

Al

 

[Snowman23]

Hi Snowman

I am not really sure why your Gourami has died, but I do know it's not uncommon as they seem to be quite fragile fish and this isn't an uncommon problem as you will see in other Gourami related threads.

What do you mean by changing yor filter medium? If you mean buying new medium to replace what you already have, I would seriously not recommend this. All the bacteria you have grown ove the last 2 months ( the ones that turn deadly ammonia into equally deadly nitrite and then the nitrite into the not so deadly nitrate) will be lost and you will have to cycle your tank again. With the amount of fish you have, this would be a nightmare unless you have another cycled tank.

Sorry to go off topic, but I think that is quite an important point and I am sure other members will point this out.

Unfortunately fish do die and Dwarf Gouramis seem to be susceptible to this.

I am relatively new to this too so hopefully other members can help a little more.

Al

I have an Ehiem Ecco, I am just replacing the carbon and the fine filter. I am keeping the course medium in place. The fine medium is falling apart. I also run a Ehiem waterfall filter. Between the two I should be ok, right?

 

[alistairw]

I am afraid I have no idea! As I said, I am new too. Hopefully someone else will be able to advise on your filter. It sounds a bit more complicated than mine!

 

[Crossfire]

Sounds like Dwarf Gourami Disease. Due to Dwarf Gouramis being heavily inbred in commerical trade, most will suffer from Dwarf Gourami Disease which kills quickly and painfully, and there is no known cure. Sorry for your loss.

 

[alistairw]

One of my female DG's has just died. All water stats are fine, all other fish fine, she just died so will put it down to the aforementioned Dwarf Gourami Disease

 

[crazyforcordoras]

Definately Dwarf Goirami disease. I myself no longer purchase dwarf gouramis, as they always seem to succumb to DG disease.

 

[Snowman23]

Definately Dwarf Goirami disease. I myself no longer purchase dwarf gouramis, as they always seem to succumb to DG disease.

Well that is shinanigans! I love the way those little guys look! The big ones are too big for most of my other fishies

 

[Crossfire]

Definately Dwarf Goirami disease. I myself no longer purchase dwarf gouramis, as they always seem to succumb to DG disease.

Well that is shinanigans! I love the way those little guys look! The big ones are too big for most of my other fishies

Try Sparkling Gouramis. Stay tiny, but beautiful and gorgeaous, full of characters and they croak!

 

[crazyforcordoras]

They are pretty, but there are better alternatives. Like Crossfire said, sparkling gouramis, or honey gouramis.

 

[Snowman23]

They are pretty, but there are better alternatives. Like Crossfire said, sparkling gouramis, or honey gouramis.

Aren't honey Gouramis agressive?
I've got so small fish so i dont want something that will eat them or nip their fins

 

[crazyforcordoras]

Honey gouramis are actually more peaceful than dwarfs.

 

[citrus-squid]

I concur with all the "Dwarf Gourami Disease" suggestions. They're really delicate fish... I have a male blue DG and 2 females, all are happy and healthy, but I am totally aware of how lucky that is. I was rash with my male (got him first), just added him straight to the tank, but I was more informed when I got the females later and kept them separate for a week or two. When I got the females, I watched the tank in the store for a while before picking out the two healthiest looking ones, but since I've read up more about DGs, everytime I go to the shop I notice how very sick all the fish seem. In hindsight, I'd have avoided the DGs, but I do love my little guys, and I've been lucky enough not to have any issues with them so far. I agree that there are some more robust alternatives that would be easier to look after and less heartache!