morgie Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 hi guys first off i have had 1 pleco, 1 molly, 1 corydora!!, and 1 platy die in a week or so, i dont know whats going on, the ph is good and same with the ammonia. they are getting the right amount of food as far as i know but that maybe the problem. my platy looked sick when i got it, the molly i had for 5 days then its stomach caved in and looked starved, dunno what happened with my corydora but ive had him for almost a year and he was pretty hardy, my plecostomus got what looked like a bulgie stomach, maybe swim bladder or something. My fighter looks like its on its way out and it is really frustrating!! can any body help please? advice is greatly appreciated, morgie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke* Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 When's the last time you did a water change? Ever tested for nitrate? What's the pH? It may have swung recently Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LYNDYLOO Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 Yea, it would be good if you could list ya water parameters, have you added anything to this tank lately? is there a dead fish in there somewhere that is causing the water to go bad, have you added any meds lately? Lets us know how ya get on. Lynda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 Also what size is the tank, how long has it been set up, what else is in it (fish-wise)? A sunken belly makes me think internal parasites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke* Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 She mentioned she's had the cory over a year assuming in the same tank? Could also be worms, is there anything protruding from their anus? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 id think the one with the sunken tummy had worms, the parasties would be eating its food? also buying the platy when it looked sick was probably a bad idea if you didnt qaurentine it first because it may have transferred what it had to the others? apprently tape worms will make the fish swim funny but the bulge is normmally asymmetric?could be worth looking into? sorry i cant be of more help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 You could try grinding up 1/4 of a dog worming tablet and mixing it with their food. This will kill and worms and parasites, I used to do this with all my new fish and the whole tank once a year or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morgie Posted January 25, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2006 She mentioned she's had the cory over a year assuming in the same tank? its a guy, also there seems to be heaps of small snails about the tank lately, i am going to treat it but would that be the problem?, the tank is 2' x 1' x 1.5' measurements in ft... i have been putting in some ph up because the water is looking slightly acidic morgan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted January 25, 2006 Report Share Posted January 25, 2006 you have to be VERY careful using that stuff... i would just add some shells or something like that to harden the water naturally, or a bit of crushed coral in your filters? that way itll be kept on more of an even keel and you wont have to worry so much about the ph fluctuations. the ph up could be the cause, maybe you overdosed, mixed it wrong or its just plain faulty? i dont like using snail rid personally, something that can kill snails i assume wouldnt be too good for the fish... snails can be a good thing and some aquarists even use them as a water quality indicator, snails are alot more sensitive and if they all of a sudden die off you know somethings up. but if you have too many they will make alot of waste. i have snails in my tank (much to my disgust, i hate them) but i only pick out the ones i see. turn the light off, come back in half an hour and they should be all over the glass. or you could add a piece of zhucinni (sp?) and collect them later once they have all come to feed? did you recently add any new decor that came from tanks? if so maybe that carried something in? sorry this was so long :oops: hows your fighter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
me love fishy Posted January 26, 2006 Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 How are your fish today Morgie? Did you worm them? I have seen that sunken belly look in some of my fish before and wormed them with worming treatements from the LFS. I have had mixed results, but had a plec survive this. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted January 26, 2006 Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 How's the fishy? Are you doing regular water changes? Just a suggestion, but one of the things that was said here that it was probably not a good idea to get a fish that didn't look well to begin with...just keep that in mind next time your shopping for fishy... try to get a good look, I know not always easy, and even the healthy looking ones can die once you get them home...but try to watch for anything that might indicate a problem not swimming much, physical signs like missing parts of fins, eyes not clear, mishapen body...if you know what I mean! Test your water...water changes....don't feed too much...and know that sometimes, no mattter what we do...sometimes our fishy will die and sometimes we just don't know why Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morgie Posted January 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2006 being honest i am absolutely destroyed and feel completely miserable, i have a very good feeling its the decor because the smell coming off it stinks and is the same smell my fish brought into another tank after i caonverted them when about 10 of my neons died overnight!! and i changed them to another tank then another 4 neons, 1 molly, my lovely fighter (favourite fish) and 1 platy died...i feel like an idiot for letting this happen but i couldnt do anything else, i only have 5 out of the 20 something fish i had left and even then they may still be infected, i am going to try and get some melifix but the store wasnt open sunday or today for long weekend. i am not shore what i should do with my filter if thats still got the parasite in it morgie ..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted January 30, 2006 Report Share Posted January 30, 2006 i dont think theres much parasites that smell, the main thing that causes smell would be a ammonia spike it sort of smells like eggs. also when i was feeding shrimp pellets my tanks would smell, what food are you feeding? or are you meaning the decor itself stinks? whats the decor? im sorry for your losses, it really sucks to lose fish. i cried for hours when my angel died, she was my first ever tropical so i know how ya feel. giidy up though, things will get better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
me love fishy Posted January 30, 2006 Report Share Posted January 30, 2006 I feel your pain Morgie, when I first started with my little tank I had lots of fish deaths and felt like a failure, but you learn through experience and it will get better, it is the best way to learn in a way (shame about the fish that die though) cos then you know what to do/not to do next time. Sharn sounds right about the ammonia spike with the smell if that is the kind of smell you are getting. If it is then I would do a couple of small water changes say 20% for the next few days and test your water to make sure the ammonia is gone. If not and you are worried about the decor take it out and replace it, or soak it in boiling water to kill any bacteria on it (if you know it is decor that is okay to have in your tank). Is the decor from your LFS? Cos you have to be careful putting things in your tank that aren't, they may not be safe for your fishies. All the best, I hope your fishies are getting better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morgie Posted January 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2006 thanx for the sympathy, the ammonia is fine because i bought that when i bought the decor and the colour of the test is yellow which means 0 ammonia, it was the decor but i have a feeling that whatever was on the decor is now in my filter sponge cause that reaks of the smell too, i may have to replace that, boil the stones, but i have soaked the decor (which i bought from the LFS). can i you plz give me some feedback on what sort of medicine would be good for this type of bacteria? thanx again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
me love fishy Posted January 31, 2006 Report Share Posted January 31, 2006 i have a very good feeling its the decor because the smell coming off it stinks and is the same smell my fish brought into another tank after i caonverted them when about 10 of my neons died overnight!! How old is the decor? Do you think it could be breaking down? If you really think it is the decor I would remove it and also replace your filter sponge if you think that is also infected with the smell. I wouldn't like to suggest any particular products to use to get rid of bacteria, as you aren't completely sure what it is that is causing the problem, the only thing I would otherwise suggest is to do a partial water change once you have removed the decor and filter sponge and put in some melafix. I hope that helps and your fishies get better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted January 31, 2006 Report Share Posted January 31, 2006 if its your decor id say it was leaching something that is poisoning them. if you feel its really got through your whole tank and will only keep causing havoc i suggest you break down the whole tank, however your tank will need to re-cycle and the fish will need to be housed else where in the mean time unless you can do approx 30%+ water changes daily. if you think the problem can be remidied by less drastic ways take out what you think is the problem, stuff with the smell on it. then do alot of partial water changes to get rid of any traces. if i was you id go back to your LFS and tell them what their decor did and get them to refund you the price, and the price of your dead fish. their decorations are supposed be safe for aquarium use (have to sink their driftwood obviously). HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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