cat Posted October 23, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2002 Shouldnt be too hard to spot then. As long as the piercings are in visible places :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted October 23, 2002 Report Share Posted October 23, 2002 No piercings anywhere actually. If we were meant to wear such things we would have been born with holes in the required places. I can't even stand the sight of pierced ears! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted October 28, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2002 I would like to thanks Goldie, Caryl and co that came up from the South to Napier and for bringing me some lovely dwarf gouramis. My wee fella is just over the moon and has already showed her around a few rocks and plants Was very nice to meet you all and I hope you had a safe trip home and all your purchases arrived alive. Look forward to meeting some other time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted October 29, 2002 Report Share Posted October 29, 2002 you are so welcome cat. Hopefully the flame gourami will burst forth into parents soon. :-) Weekend was great and nice to now be able to put faces to names. Please do keep us updated with the fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted October 29, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2002 I sure will!!! I am asking you to be the Godmother ... :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted October 29, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2002 Ira ... I am disappointed in you ... you said Caryl was "Caryl is really a 6 foot tall goth chick with 20 piercings" She was nothing like that at all!!! Either your imagination is worse than mine or you have been sniffing too many fish tank fumes. :roll: ps .... nice to meet you in Napier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted October 29, 2002 Report Share Posted October 29, 2002 DAMN.... Our illusion of Caryl has now been shattered Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted October 29, 2002 Report Share Posted October 29, 2002 Good to meet you too Cat. I don't have to be a 6ft tall Goth chick with 20 piercings - I only act like one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted October 30, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2002 Just for something completely different .... My mum has a two foot tank ... hasnt been set up long (1 month) ... when she set it up she used prepared water (already filtered etc) and about half from my tank ... this way I figured the water would be good enough for fish. A week ago she had one sick fish so took it to a shop here and was told nothing the matter with it ... she took it home and it dies 1 hour later. She went back to the shop with the fish and water. The shop told her the ph level was too high and to put a capful of the ph down into a cup of hot water ... disolve it and put it into the tank. This she did and within an hour fish were dying. She only has little fish (tetras, guppies, little platties and swordtails plus two bristlenoses). I told her to get the fish out straight away and into good clean water again. When I went to see them last night they did not look good. She has since lost 5 more little guys and only has a few left. What can I do to save the rest? I think the shops advice killed the fish! They have been poisioned by the ph down. I have never had this happen before so have no idea what to do to try and save the rest. ps - the ph was actually fine as I had tested it the day before - was 7.2. She has nothing in the tank that is any different to my tanks and they are fine - ph tested last night at 7.2. I had actually stolen bits out of my tank for hers!! This 'shop assistant' doesnt appear to have known diddly-squat and neither of us will be going back there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted October 30, 2002 Report Share Posted October 30, 2002 I'd be skeptical that the PH down killed the fish. I'd be inclined to say it either had no effect or just added enough stress to kill off already sick fish. First thing you should do though is, since you've already tested the PH, test the ammonia, nitrite and nitrates. Since the tank is probably not cycled if all you transfered is water, I'm thinking you've got really high levels of ammonia or nitrite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted October 30, 2002 Report Share Posted October 30, 2002 I doubt the pH down itself killed the fish but fish can go into shock if the change in pH is rapid. From memory the generally held view is that you shouldn't adjust the pH more than 0.2 units a day (ie 7.2 down to 7 shouldn't over stress the fish but 7.2 down to 6.2 is likely to cause problems). You say that the fish have ben put back into fresh clean water, so I assume it's a pH of 7.2 again? I'd be inclined to just leave the pH alone for the time being (if more changes are made it's just likely to increase the amount of stress the fish are under). Testing for ammonia wouldn't hurt, I'd probably be inclined to reduce/stop feeding them until things have sorted themselves out (if they're not happy fishies, they're probably not inclined to eat much so rotting uneaten food is just going to add to the problems). I'm also assuming that the fish are just dying without obvious signs of disease (ie whitespot, mouth fungus etc), rather than their being stressed having bought on a disease. If there is no sign of disease don't worry about medicating the tank. Unfortunately I think it may be a case of weathering the storm. Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted October 30, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2002 Hi Rob ... thanks for the advice. I tested the tank after the fish had been taken out and the nitrate etc were all fine but the ph was down to 6.8 from 7.2, when I tested it before the ph down went in. I have since taken the fish home and put them in a separate tank. We are now down to three fish left. Made sure this tank was a close to what they had before and two seem to have perked up. Two died over night but two are bouncing around. The third, a little gourami, is lying on its side but still hanging in there. Has been like that for three days now. I have put it in a breeding net/cage so it is not lying on the stones and is up near the air etc. Is this likely to recover? I checked the two that died overnight and it appeared as if they had a slimy coverage. Not sure if that is just the start of decay or 'velvet'. I have treated the tank for the reamining guys, just in case. I think I will either kill them with concern or they will survive. The other thing I noticed from the other fish that died is that most of their fins were very tatty, especially the siamese fighter. Looked like they had been burnt off. Is this a sign of stress or from the ph burning them? I feel so hopeless watching these poor fish die! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted October 31, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2002 I have been to the said shop and they have told me that they may have given my mum the wrong advice. Very sorry and all. No offer to pay her back for the fish she had (three of which she had only had three days) etc. Never mind. They did give me some malachite green. Said that should help. Only I am now a bit worried about putting more chemicals in with them. Is this safe to use??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted October 31, 2002 Report Share Posted October 31, 2002 Malachite green tends to be one of the more potent medications - unless you're sure you've got velvet I'd lean towards not using it (IMO). If you do use it make sure you stick to the recommended dose ('a little bit more for luck' can be a bad thing with medications) Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted November 5, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 5, 2002 Thank you to everyone that offered advice. Only saved the platy but it is swimming around as if nothing happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted November 6, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2002 My discus keeps lying on its side. It is one of two in the tank. We have tested for everything!!! No ammonia, no chlorine, no chloramine, no nitrate, ph is 6.8. Everything seems just fine. It started this evening after I had fed them. Just went over on its side. They only got flake as normal. We have just done a 30 - 40% water change(using rain water collected and tested as ok). We tested the tank after the change and there is no difference in anything but the ph is now 6.8 after being approx 7.2) It moves around then seems to go to the bottom and is really pumping his fins and is a bit jerky in his movements. The other discus seems to be fine although it is very shy and hardly seen so a bit hard to judge. The tank has three U/G filters running and an Eheim internal filter. There are numerous neons, glowlights, yellow tetras and rummy nose in the tank also. It also has five bristlenose cats in the tank as well. The only thing we have done differnet is last night we put in a piece of cucumber for the bristlenose to eat. This has been eaten and has been removed after 24 hours max in the tank. Could this cause any problems? I have a feeling by the time anyone reads this and respomds the poor thing will be dead as it has now gone on its side and just about stopped moving!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted November 6, 2002 Report Share Posted November 6, 2002 Hi Cat, You have mail. There's a site here in Holland that has so much info on Discus that it may hold some immediate answers to your problems. http://www.dph.nl/ Hope it helps, Bill (Pegasus) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted November 6, 2002 Report Share Posted November 6, 2002 Hi Cat, You say in your PM that you turned the internal filter off. Under the circumstances (or any for that matter) it's not a good idea to turn an established filter off for prolonged periods. You could finish up with cloudy water due to bacteria buildup/dying. A good water change wouldn't go amiss if your filter has been off awhile. Hope he/she survives. Regards, Bill (Pegasus) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted November 7, 2002 Report Share Posted November 7, 2002 Hi Cat, Another forum here that might give you some answers. http://www.simplydiscus.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted November 8, 2002 Report Share Posted November 8, 2002 OH Cat how upsetting. Have you done anything to re adjust the PH back towards 'normal' for your tank. How is the discus doing??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted November 8, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2002 Well. The fish has survived and is looking 200% better. My other half reckons it had a 'belly ache'. After looking at the discus sites on the net it said I shouldnt feed my discus dry food as it swells in their belly and causes 'belly ache'. They will now only get bloodworm and daphnia. Only problem being that the bloodworm is too big for the little neons to eat!! I will do another test of the water etc tomorrow and probably another water change too just to be sure. Thanks for all your help to all that sent me advice etc. I think I should stick to the fish I know and can look after really well!!! But I do love my discus. Such an elegant fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted November 8, 2002 Report Share Posted November 8, 2002 Hi Cat, I was a bit concerned about reading your post as I was thinking the worst, but am delighted your discus has pulled through. Bloat tends to affect Angels as well as they tend to gorge on the food. Feeding lesser amounts at one go usually helps with a good break in between feeds, which gives them time to digest what they've eaten. Fill up a bucket with old tank water and stick it in the garden. You will get lotsa mossie larva which can be an extra variety for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat Posted November 8, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2002 I am so amazed it it alive and swimming around like nothing happened!! Just wanted to stress me out a little. Great!! Just what I need - a discus with a sense of humour :lol: :lol: :lol: I am thinking of taking the internal filter out and just leaving the three U/G filters going. I have noticed that, even though the filter is on the weakest flow, it still is quite strong and the discus dont go anywhere near the flow. This means they dont swim around as much as they could without it. I dont think it would hurt to take it out as I have seen bigger tanks operating with only two U/G's. I will also do water changes every three days to help keep everything else down. Worth a go I think for a week and see if anything builds up in the tank. If it does then I will put it back. I am putting it in another tank just in case I need it back. That way it is still alive with goodies! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted November 8, 2002 Report Share Posted November 8, 2002 Good thinking Cat Woman he he. Just don't switch it off and leave it in the tank if it is an established filter. So pleased your fish is back to normal. Right, your next project is a Discus breeding program Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted November 9, 2002 Report Share Posted November 9, 2002 yay good news Thanks for letting us know cat. My hubby saved my discus when he noticed them on the bottom of the tank curling up. The heater had malfunctioned and was not working. He just took out the tank water (not a fish hobbyist at all) and replaced it with tapwater which he had heated to 26 degrees and he did that all day until I returned home from work. WELL the discus did well and never suffered any ill affects. So miracles do happen. Needless to say the heater was replaced without cost to me (it was new). I always have backups now of everything. Re the filter my fluval 304 has strong out let and I have it facing the tank wall so it hits the glass before going into the tank. works for the discus swim around the whole tank. Again great news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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