why are my ottos dying?

[vanvran]

Hi, I have been trying to keep two ottos and they keep dying on me. One last over 2 months, seemed really content, and for the last two days he was hanging under my veggie clip, and then I found him laying on the bottom of the tank. he was so sweet. I've replaced my other ottos, and they don't last very long. I do weekly gravel vacs/water changes, my water parameters are always good--no ammonia, no trites or trates. Even had my LFS check my water. I do occasionally add small amount of Aquarium Salt.

I have a 20 gallon tank, three live plants; 3 cories; 5 neon tetras and two platies.

 

[WILDER]

No salt in the tank with plecs and cory it will burn there skin otto's are quite fragile compared to other algae eaters they need good water quality all the time, any signs of illness on the fish.

 

[smithrc]

we went through 8 otos in about 3 months.. our tank water was fine...

Appaerntly to catch them the pioson the waters they live in and then scoop them out... the ones that live get shipped... and then die soon afterwards...

 

[Wyld-Fyre]

I have 3 Oto's. They're alive, healthy, colourful, eating well, and have their own patch to boss. They've been with me about a year now, and hopefully longer still.

Reading what you've said makes me wonder. You change your water on a regular basis. Could this have an affect on them, due to having more sensitivity to water variations?

I also feel that you have not described your tanks' living environments very well. Do the Oto's have enough room to swim, and perhaps even a patch for them to 'rule' over? I'm thinking about physical health as a result of psychological well-being.

My 3 Oto's are currently living in a 20G tank containing a variety of substrate: bogwood, gravel and lava rock, and with the addition of plenty of live plants to rest themselves on (they prefer this than laying on gravel, bogwood, rock). Water changes are once 3-5 wks, depending on water quality readings. Filter media gets changed once a month.

I hope this helps you and anyone else.

 

[vanvran]

No signs of illness on any of my ottos. I have 3 live plants, decorations, a rock/cave, plenty of hiding places--I thought weekly water changes were a must. Am I mistaken?

 

[JacopoFishy]

No salt in the tank with plecs and cory

I was going to say no salt with cories, but Wilder beat me to it.

 

[steelhealr]

Hi...I have lost a few otos too. I have 2 that are doing great. Search the threads here. There are some posts that talk about certain bacteria in the otos stomach that helps it digest things and this gets killed in transit over here. Not sure if it's true or not. But..don't feel bad...I've had excellent water conditions at times and have about a 50% initial success rate. Make sure you have algae or put veggies in (spinach or zucchini). They can starve if the tank is spartan. You can also try spirulina algae pellets but I've never seen my otos sitting on them. The two I have are really 'mellow'. Good luck. Don't give up on them. SH

 

[FoundMoney]

You can also try spirulina algae pellets but I've never seen my otos sitting on them. The two I have are really 'mellow'. Good luck. Don't give up on them. SH

hehehe...mine will just pig out on them. I throw one in once or twice a week primarily for my bristlenose. He eats it for a while then my three otos "settle in" and just munch on it constantly.

 

[vanvran]

Hmm, I'm confused--I put in Hikari sinking wafer 2x a week which my cories lofe, but the ottos don't even go near. I put zucchini and lettuce in when the algea gets lean in the tank, but it was pretty algea-laden when "Coco" died. thanks for the info.

 

[gadazobe]

Ottos can be very difficult to acclimatise to new tanks. Quite often they just curl up and die for no apparant reason. It's quite possible that the reason for this is the way they're caught, it just seems to be one of those things that we can't control. Just make sure that the water is changed regularly and that all the water parameters are good.

 

[jflowers]

I noticed that you said you got your lfs to check your water, do you have your own tests? SOME lfs say the water is fine when it may have traces of ammonia and nitrIte, ask for the actual readings.

Oto's prefer a mature tank (6 months plus) and as gadazobe says acclimatise poorly. Take your time when introducing any new ones. After the initial floating the bag, undo the bag and roll down the top and add a cupful of tank water, wait 5 mins and repeat for 30 mins.

Jon

 

[FoundMoney]

After the initial floating the bag, undo the bag and roll down the top and add a cupful of tank water, wait 5 mins and repeat for 30 mins.

Also, net the fish out of the bag. Don't add the water back into your tank.