meris Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Hi everyone, My friend has a small tank with a sick silver shark, she is not a member here but would love some help from anyone. Heres the info she emaild me this morning: temp is 24, ph?? no idea but other fish r sweet!, 36 litre aquarium, 1 shark, 2 angels (1 big, 1 little), 2 suckerfish, 1 tetris and 1 kreb it looks like mould (that fluffy stuff on him) some of his tail is missing and it looks like there is a little wound (round hole) in his side where the fluffy stuff is. im not sure if big angel is being a bully. or if i hurt him when i cleaned them last week (cos he is a bloody mission to catch and jumps around everywhere) i just want to know if he will be ok, if him being sick will hurt the other fish? She sent me a picture, but i dont have another website to host it, it kind of looks like a growth between the body of the fish and its tail. Its quite large. Any help would be very appreciated! Thanks! PS, ive addes the picture she sent me in a nother reply further down the topic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dasher Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Hi everyone, My friend has a small tank with a sick silver shark, she is not a member here but would love some help from anyone. Heres the info she emaild me this morning: temp is 24, ph?? no idea but other fish r sweet!, 36 litre aquarium, 1 shark, 2 angels (1 big, 1 little), 2 suckerfish, 1 tetris and 1 kreb it looks like mould (that fluffy stuff on him) some of his tail is missing and it looks like there is a little wound (round hole) in his side where the fluffy stuff is. im not sure if big angel is being a bully. or if i hurt him when i cleaned them last week (cos he is a bloody mission to catch and jumps around everywhere) i just want to know if he will be ok, if him being sick will hurt the other fish? She sent me a picture, but i dont have another website to host it, it kind of looks like a growth between the body of the fish and its tail. Its quite large. Any help would be very appreciated! Thanks! http://www.boatsnz.co.nz/listings/sick_silver_shark.jpg Try using some melafix in the tank. It will aid most problems is it is damage to the fish. Just pull out the charcoal from the filter first or put the fish into a hospital tank. PM me if you want and you can send the photo - I can list uu on a website here and you can link into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meris Posted October 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 thanks i'll do that in a couple of hours, ive got to go out to a meeting now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 umm 36 litres?? That will stunt the growth of the shark and angels which will both grow much to large for that tank :roll: Make sure this person is aware that her angels and shark are only babies. That shark will eventually need a 200+ L tank, and the angels ~80L for the pair minimum, lol and I hope by 'suckerfish' she means Bristlenose plecs, as common/redspot plecs get absolutely huge. Anyway sounds like he got a wound and stressed and its just fungus. I find if I medicate I get 100% survival against this stuff, or if I just leave them alone about 50%. I'd use Melafix and maybe Furan2 if I had some on hand. Also 20% water changes using a small gravel vac weekly is sufficent, just in case your friend is completely dismantling the aquarium on a regular basis, as doing this will cause the tank to never mature properly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 i agree on tank size, but i would reccomend upping the w/cs to 50% minimum if all the fish are of medium size (around 10cm or so) as they will be creating a good amount of waste. clean water is a good healer too. i would go for something like meth blue, furan 2 (more broad spectrum) or something of the likes for the shark, furan is totally safe for the cats but if she uses meth blue (or something similar) make sure she does a half dose if she cant treat in a hospital tank as cats are sensitive to most meds. when i cleaned them last week (cos he is a bloody mission to catch and jumps around everywhere) that bit makes me think perhaps she is catching the fish, breaking down the tank and giving it a big over haul- would you be able to find out her cleaning routine please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meris Posted October 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2006 Heres a pic of the sick shark - thanks for your help Dasher! Im not to sure how she cleans the tank, or how often...she is reading the posts, and is really appreciative of everyones help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted October 31, 2006 Report Share Posted October 31, 2006 I too am worried about how she is cleaning the tank and agree with the others, the tank is way too small for a shark or angels. That fluff is fungus, which is a secondary infection usually from a wound, as noted. It may have got in a fight with another fish, damaged itself on decor, or been sucked on by the "sucker fish" depending on what it is. Can we get a pic of the sucker as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted October 31, 2006 Report Share Posted October 31, 2006 that looks bad is she able to set up a quarentine asap, she just needs a 40L or so bin (large bucket would work etc) you can buy at the warehouse, a little internal (like 20 bucks from the pet store) and stuff some of the filter media from the old tank into the new filter and a little heater. fill the bin with half old water half new, set up and your away for a hospital tank. its way easier to treat in a seperate tank and it wont stress your healthy fish. is also handy for quarentining and new fish before they go into the main tank. it will need to be treated asap as it is quite far gone, i reccomend furan 2 as its gentle and seems to do the trick well but others use other products. there should be a product at her LFS that will tackle fungus. where abouts is your friend located? we have a fish club in tga and someone may be able to pop around and help her 1 on 1 if shes having and doubts or problems when it comes to treatment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meris Posted November 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2006 Thanks to everyone for comments & suggestions, i have passed on your advice to my friend - she is reading your posts...i'll let you all know what happens with the shark. Caryl, i dont have a pic of the sucker fish, they are both quite small, she got them from the lfs, at the time she got the other fish, so i presume (& hope!) they wouldnt have given her fish that are not compatible. i've had a quick look on google for a similar looking fish, the best match i can find is Corydoras adolfoi but an albino version, as for her other sucker fish, i cant remember what it is, (it may be a pleco). i have never seen either of them go for any of the other fish in her tank (i like fish so always look at her tank when i visit!) thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted November 1, 2006 Report Share Posted November 1, 2006 i suspect you have plain albino corys (cant remember sci name but its not adolfoi), i have some and theyre very peaceful fish and have never heard of them causing damage to other fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted November 1, 2006 Report Share Posted November 1, 2006 And any "sucker fish" wouldn't be able to attach itself to a young shark, sharks are very quick, so I wouldn't worry about that. I'd say it probably injured itself avoiding the net, their instant reaction is to full-speed away which works in the wild, but in small tanks they end up just hitting glass and objects etc only thing you can do to minimise this is chose rounded decor and/or be quicker with the net. Also thats an impressive fungus growth! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted November 1, 2006 Report Share Posted November 1, 2006 I'd use a hospital tank with water from it's tank. Less shock for it. Then net the fish, and while in the net, apply methelene blue, directly onto the wound. Do this over the Q tank, as any surplus will be there waiting for when you now release the fish. Keep the tank dark to try and alleviate any panicing. Why doesn't she join the site and then we can deal directly with her. I too am concerned with her discription of "tank cleaning". Alan 104 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.