geoff Posted June 22, 2008 Report Share Posted June 22, 2008 hi, iv'e had one male and two females for about 3 months as well as two clowns and a catfish. first the catfish died suddenly for no apparent reason, then one of the clowns which seemed to lose equilibrium and lasted about one day, about 3 weeks have passed and a female fighter has developed the same symptoms but has lasted a week and keeps hanging on. I dosed the tank with some stuff called "tonic" from the the local fish shop two days ago, my male fighter did'nt seem too keen although ok but today just lost balance and died very quickly, i'm gutted he was a real favorite. I do the usual water changes etc but don't want to replace the fish if i'm doing something thats causing them to become ill, any thoughts on the loss of balance symptoms would be much appreciated as well as anything else. Cheers Geoff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VinsonMassif Posted June 22, 2008 Report Share Posted June 22, 2008 Hi Geoff. What size tank is it? What filter do you run on it? What are the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH readings? By usual water changes how much do you do each week? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted June 22, 2008 Report Share Posted June 22, 2008 What have you been feeding them? If they 'die very quickly' it just sounds like nitrite. You need to test for ammonia and nitrite (dont worry about the others unless you have it handy). Did you do a big water change recently? Wash the filter or change the media? Filter get turned off? Fed too much? Tonic wont really help, if anything it'll stain the tank and/or cause problems with the bacteria in the filter. Rarely do medications available at pet stores offer a serious benefit. First thing is to test for ammonia and nitrite, personally I'd be doing large water (1/3) changes (proper temp, not just cold water) with water ager. Whether it is nitrite that's killing them or something else, clean water is the best medicine. So if you can't get the water tested like now, just keep changing the water. Remember to use water ager or water conditioner, and use water that is warm not cold not hot, otherwise you risk the bacteria in the filter (which keep the ammonia and nitrite away). I'd wager its nitrite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted June 23, 2008 Report Share Posted June 23, 2008 geoff, if you don't have the test kits at home to test for ammonia and nitrite, then take a sample of water to the shop where you bought the fish and ask them to test it for you (they should do the tests for free). Also don't put any more fish in the tank until this problem has been sorted out, or you'll probably have the same result. Good luck to you and the rest of your fish - I hope you don't have any more losses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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