Unwell Fish...

[carronann]

I lost a guppy earlier on in the week, I think he was poorly from when I first got him. I've got another one with the same symptoms, it's a guppy (orange tail), top half of his tail is now white and straggly. The same thing that happened to the other one, except the other one's tail got shorter.

I though it was fin rot, so I used "Interpet Aquarium Treatment, Anti Fungus And Finrot".
It said you only need to dose once.

Now this guppy has come down with something, it's lost it's colour out of its tail.
This has been overnight.

He does not look well & is shaking like a leaf.

Please help, i'm losing my fish :'(

As for my Siamese Fighter & the concerns in the other thread about him living with guppies. He died the day I got him.

(Oh, and the Hexagonal tank is 17x9 1/2. 1 Panel width.
Fluval 3 filter, plastic plants, bog wood (which was boiled for an hour before it was put in). Also already done partial water change, cleaned plants, & just don't know what else to do )

 

[stang1]

Can't help with the guppy problem but I am really sorry you've lost your fish.

 

[carronann]

Can't help with the guppy problem but I am really sorry you've lost your fish.

Thanks.
We're getting quite attached to them now! They even have names.

 

[Tolak]

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=2330

Providing this info helps with any diagnosis.

 

[carronann]

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=2330

Providing this info helps with any diagnosis.

Thankyou!

1. Water parameters. (ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, PH, temp', Hardness etc)

-Got no stick at the moment to test, but temperature is 25-26 degreesC

2. A full description of the fishes symptoms.

-Top half of tail has lost it's colour. Fish seems to be shaking. Same symptoms of other fish that died earlier, except the other fish's tail disappeared & went ragged/

3. How often you do water changes and how much.

-20% every week at weekend.

4. Any chemicals and treatments you add to the water.

- Put Tetra Aquasafe in the tapwater before I added it. Put in Anti Fungus & Finrot (Interpet Aquarium Treatment)

5. What tank mates are in the tank.

- 3 other guppy's, 2 orange tail, 2 yellow tail. (They all get on fantastic!). One dwarf guarami. Four tetras and one small pleco.

6. Tank size.

-17" X 9 1/2" Hexagonal per panel.

7. Finally Have you recently added any new fish?

-They all went in together. I'm a newbie! Gave the tank two weeks to settle like I was told, before putting the fish in. Plastic plants were put in to begin with which were thoroughly cleaned (no disinfectant etc added), aswell as bogwood (boiled for an hour)


Will try and get photo tomorrow.

 

[Tolak]

How long has this tank been running, and how did you cycle it? Most lfs will test the water for you, have them write down the numbers & post them here.

 

[carronann]

How long has this tank been running, and how did you cycle it? Most lfs will test the water for you, have them write down the numbers & post them here.

pH 6.4
Alkalinity 0
Hardness 0
Nitrate 0
Nitrie 0

Tank has been running 3 weeks. What do mean by cycle? Just did exactly what the fish shop said

Lost a tetra this morning

 

[WILDER]

A cycle can take it toll on a fish as they have to go trhough the ammonia and nitrite process, which is like living in a toilet, this can cause the fish immune system to shut down.
It dosn't take much for guppys to come down with finrot that why they need excellent water condition.
The shaking is the fish also swimming in place and getting no where.

http/www.fishtanksandponds.net/care-main...lth/fin_rot.htm

 

[sylvia]

Your ammonia readings are probably through the roof if your nitrIte and nitrAte are at 0. Get an ammonia test kit if you don't have one.

There are links in my signature on what cycling is but I can explain it quickly:

Fish produce waste/leftover food rots. This produces ammonia. Ammonia is highly toxic but good bacteria grow in your filter and gravel (BTW, chlorine kills these good bacteria so always use dechlorinator when changing water and always rinse filter media in OLD tank water).

These bacteria convert the ammonia to nitrIte. NitrIte is also toxic but less so. It is converted to nitrAte by another set of good bacteria that also live in your filter and gravel.

The cycling process is all about allowing these bacteria to establish themselves in your tank so that, when you have fish, all ammonia and nitrIte is converted as quickly as possible to nitrAte. NitrAte is far less poisonous to fish than ammonia or nitrIte and you simply dilute the nitrAte levels in your tank by doing a weekly water change of about 25%.

You know when your tank is cycled (will take a month and a half or so if you're doing it with fish - takes about 2-3 weeks fishless) because your ammonia and nitrItes will test at 0 while your nitrAte will be quite high (you should aim to do water changes often enough to keep nitrAte under 20). This is when the tank is safe for fish. Before that, they are in danger of being poisoned and could die either directly due to poisoning or indirectly because of stress (and disease brought on by the stress).

You need to focus on doing lots of water changes while your tank cycles. That means changing water every other day if necessary. This is even more important now your fish are sick.

While you are at it, lower your temperature (one degree at a time over the next couple of days so as not to shock your fish) to 23 deg C. This slows down the progression of finrot considerably. I've had good results with the treatment you're using (Interpet's treatment #8 ) and fish can handle finrot for a good while. You're priority should be in keeping the tank's water as clean as possible by doing water changes as often as possible (watch you don't forget the dechlorinator and make shure you don't cause sudden temperature changes when you fill the tank).

Again, read the links in my signature. BTW, don't add any more fish and use this calculator to work out your tank's volume: http/www.aquariumlife.net/hexcalc.asp

Just so you are aware, and I know everyone has this problem when they are starting out, pet stores very rarely give out good advice. They are either just plain ignorant or couldn't care less (and want your money ). You should be able to rely on them but you can't so take anything they say with a good dash of salt .

 

[carronann]

Your ammonia readings are probably through the roof if your nitrIte and nitrAte are at 0. Get an ammonia test kit if you don't have one.

I will get an ammonia test kit straight away. I let the tank cycle for 2 weeks before i added any fish (as my pet shop said). Wish i had checked it out further

While you are at it, lower your temperature (one degree at a time over the next couple of days so as not to shock your fish) to 23 deg C. This slows down the progression of finrot considerably. I've had good results with the treatment you're using (Interpet's treatment #8 ) and fish can handle finrot for a good while. You're priority should be in keeping the tank's water as clean as possible by doing water changes as often as possible (watch you don't forget the dechlorinator and make shure you don't cause sudden temperature changes when you fill the tank).

I will do a water change every other day as you advise... is this the 20-25% that I usually do every week? Also, I added tapsafe to the clean water i was putting in. Is this the dechlorinator you are speaking about? I used a thermometer to make sure it was the same temperature as the tank.

I thought at first it was fin rot but then read that it says it takes a good few days before you see it.. My fishes tails turn silvery white within a day, then it progresses up to the middle of their backs... it isnt till they have died that their tails seem to have withered away a bit.. this processes only takes 2 days max. is it still fin rot?

Also, its been over a week since i added the Interpet's treatment #8 . Do i add any more as i am changing the water so often or is it a one off dose?

thanks for all your help. I am devastated at the loss of the fish