Any thoughts?

[herefishiefishie]

I guy on a forum in these parts posted this,

Hey i really need some help. I have a tank full of frontosa fry (4cm) and they are starting to contract a disease of some sort that involves them heavy breathing then slowly passing away. I have some comps in with them and they are fine. This is the second batch that has contracted this mystry bug. WHAT SHOULD I TREAT THEM FOR?????

I have tried uping the heater and adding salt along with a 50% water change. Should i clean the cannister filter? What else can i do?

Thanks in advance!!!

to which he got the ph, ammonia, oxygen, temp, water changes........

Then he replied with

Hey, they stay to the very bottom of the tank, hugging the substrate very lethargic! nThey have more then enough air, actually overkill comparted to any tank i have ever seen. 

the fronts are the only effected thus rulling out ammonia, nitrite and nitrate ( i have had the water tested so this is an informed conclusion). 

Tank temp is 28C and goes no higher. 

They have gone almost 6 months without a single health complaint. All this time weekly 50% water changes buffered with tanganyikan buffer and conditioned with prime. 

What do you all think?

Frenchy

[craig]

hi herefishiefishie,

frontosa's hate over oxygenated water,and also not fussed on temp 28.

i run mine at 25-26.these fish are extremely hardy and very desease free.

most little guy's hug the bottom,extremely shy fish when young.

hardness of water pretty important and ph 8.2-8.4.

sometimes food can be a problem,keep away from pellet till bigger.

i'd suggest bring temp down slowly and can the air,only need a small bubble filter,plodding away slowly. and find out what he is feeding.

frontosa's don't like big waterchanges neither. i w/c 6-2-2 once a month,1/3. fry once a week,never add buffer's as they don't break down.

if the tank is set up right you don't need them. calcite/arganite substrate with limestone or dolimite rock,magnesium important to these fishies.

and only need to feed fry twice aday[flake morning/brineshrimp night].

temp to high,to much air,food,water to soft[maybe] stressed front's will be dark in colour,almost black,to much food water will go soft quick,less food and smaller waterchanges/stop buffing tank as he will be poisoning the fry,6mths of buffing everyweek will be building up toxin's,set tank up right. desease i don't think so.

hope this helps.

shelley.

[craig]

back again,

tell guy to check level's calcium/magnesium. all that buffering is probably the problem, 3-1 ratio. magnesium,potassium,sodium,calcium all good at right levels.

but toxic if not. better to do it naturally.also if filter is old why use prime.

"toxic overload"even 50% w/c will leave level's of these in the tank,then he treats tank again,go higher and so on and so on, just taken 6mths to reach overload.comp's might be fine now/but they could also have a higher tolerence to it.

i have used african cichlid conditioner/once or twice a year,but only when i am getting tiny air-bubbles on edge of glass[protein]water getting abit soft.

also scrubbing algae off rock's works just as good,letting the rocks add the nutrients the tank needs[scrub-off 1yr]

frontosa's are so hardy,never lost one[touch-wood] have kulled a couple through not being quite right.[fry that is] and i did it humanly/quick.

shell

[herefishiefishie]

Yeah all the comments above were mentioned in one form or another.

http://www.qldcichlid.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=2106

Frenchy

[craig]

that was a good read, surprised no one asked guy what substrate he was running,and no one picked up on the additives he is adding to his tank every waterchange he does,also this is the second time this has happened to him(around the 6mth mark) toxic overload. magnesium overload along with everything else,these poor fish are being poisoned slowly,that's why they are so small. at six months old my fry are about 2inch.

shell.

[herefishiefishie]

Good point about the gravel, I read a while ago, substarct with just shell grit/ coral sand...can cause gill irritation. Death though :-? Seeing as fronnies dig up subtract more than comps, maybe that could be it.

What you said about under sized fronnies is what Deagon said too.

Thanks for the reply Shelly. I will post up asking how he went.

Frenchy