jiba Posted August 15, 2003 Report Share Posted August 15, 2003 hi there, I have 4 zebra danios and 2 bristle nose's in a 60 litre tank. i do regular water changes around 15 - 20% a fortnight and siphon the gravel every 3 weeks. 1 of the danios has really deep red colouring around the gills and a growth on the underside of its body that is partly open. It is still really active and still has it's normal appetite. Im not sure if it is stress related or what. The largest danio is a real bully and chases the others around 24/7 as soon as they get within an inch it!!! :evil: I dont know if this is normal activity or not?? any help appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted August 15, 2003 Report Share Posted August 15, 2003 Danios are a schooling fish and the biggest is usually the leader who bullies the others. If you have a group of them it doesn't matter because, even if he is bullying 24/7 he has lots to bully so all of them get a rest at some point. I wonder if your sick danio has had more than his fair share of bullying and in an attempt to get away may have damaged his underside on a rock or other sharp object. The colouring around the gills indicates a problem. I would separate the sick danio so you can keep a close eye on it and check for secondary infections starting. It will also give him recovery time. Perhaps you might consider getting a few more danios to keep the bully occupied. 6 or more is best for schooling fishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted August 15, 2003 Report Share Posted August 15, 2003 Is your tank well planted??? Plenty of plants for them to escape into may help. Agree with Caryl re getting more danios if possible. Have you tested the water for the PH levels and Nitrate/Nitrite levels recently?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiba Posted August 25, 2003 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2003 hi. thanks for the reply, sorry i havent had a chance to reply sooner, been a bit busy. The tank is fairly new and it only has about 4 plants at the moment. I have been meaning to get some more danios but i decided against it at the moment till i can work out what is going on with the problem one. I dont have a second tank to isolate the sick one at the moment. And no i havent done any tests apart from ph lately. The ph is sitting at 6.7 - 6.8. This morning when i woke up the smallest danio was dead (not the injured/sick one) along with one of the bristlenose catfish (which had been stripped by the other bristlenose of it's top layer) I had performed a water change by my normal procedure the afternoon before. would it be best to perform a little euthenaisa on the injured danio?? Although it seems happy enough, eating normally and as active as usual. It doesnt appear to be upset. The wound seems to be more open than it was before, and the red coulouring around the gills has extended to around one of the eyes and changed to a purple/reddish colour I am not sure what to do??? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted August 25, 2003 Report Share Posted August 25, 2003 Since it appears to be worsening I would euthanase the danio. More plants would help calm the fish and make them feel more secure as they must be feeling rather exposed at the moment with few hiding places. Have you checked your nitrate and ammonia levels? There could be a water problem although you are not overstocked and do regular maintenance. What physical size is the tank? I know it is 60 litres but is it short and wide or tall and narrow? Just curious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiba Posted August 26, 2003 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2003 yeah, that sounds like a good idea. I'll get onto some more plants over the next couple of days. are there test kits you can get that do the tests for everything??? the tank dimensions are 24" x 12" x 12" roughly around 60 litres i think. thanks for the help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted August 26, 2003 Report Share Posted August 26, 2003 There is a wide variety of test kits available from one test to lots. Mine tests for 10 different things but I don't use most of them - we won it. Start with pH, nitrAtes and ammonia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted August 26, 2003 Report Share Posted August 26, 2003 The gills and eyes don't really support this statement, but I noticed when my leopard danios bred the female looked like she had been eaten in her underbelly. that may be something to look at Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aqua Posted August 27, 2003 Report Share Posted August 27, 2003 jiba - from memory - your tank holds about 56L... I had one the same size My bf's son now owns it lol - I thought it was cruel keeping a goldfish in a bowl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted August 29, 2003 Report Share Posted August 29, 2003 How did the water tests go jiba???? Since it is a new tank it may be that the cycling is still finishing perhaps. The first two test kits I got were the PH and nitrate one followed by the ammonia and nitrite ones. I have never regretted it and still use them even though I have been keeping fish for five years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiba Posted August 30, 2003 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2003 hi After doing the tests the Ph is 6.8, both ammonia and nitrites are just below 1 , all seems to be in order there. The tank seems to fine now, i put the sick/injured looking danio into the freezer the other day Then i read what Matthew had posted on here, and i thought about it and maybe that was what had happened?? but it didn't explain why the others had died. I added about 5 more plants the other day, some java fern, babies tears and some blue ma(something or other) so there is a nice cover for the danios to hide! and the remaining bristle nose loves them!! Thanks for all your help! it is greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted August 31, 2003 Report Share Posted August 31, 2003 If ammonia and nitrites are just below 1 then everything is definitely not in order. Your tank must still be cycling, because those won't be in order until they're 0. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted August 31, 2003 Report Share Posted August 31, 2003 And, in my opinion, that would help explain the trouble you are having. I found that after my tank had cycled and the nitrates/nitrites had 'spiked' and as Ira said come down to 0 the worst of my troubles ceased. Now I just need to be careful not to add too many fish at one time - even after five years of stable tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiba Posted August 31, 2003 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2003 Oh. so is it just a natural process? after awhile they will balance out? just a matter of time? I dont want to have to add artificial additives if i can avoid it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted August 31, 2003 Report Share Posted August 31, 2003 How long has the tank been set up? I thought from when you said how often you did the water changes and siphoning that it was a well established tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiba Posted September 1, 2003 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2003 The tank has been set up for about 2 and a 1/2 months, so it probably should have finished cycling awhile ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted September 2, 2003 Report Share Posted September 2, 2003 mmmmmmm It took my first tank approximately 6 weeks to cycle fully and then I found that it fluctuated at times. It took really quite awhile to settle and stabilize. I suggest you get the test kits and test weekly and every water change for awhile. do be careful not to add too many fish at once, that also can throw out a tanks eco system. How is everything going for you now??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted September 2, 2003 Report Share Posted September 2, 2003 mmmmmmm It took my first tank approximately 6 weeks to cycle fully and then I found that it fluctuated at times. It took really quite awhile to settle and stabilize. I suggest you get the test kits and test weekly and every water change for awhile. do be careful not to add too many fish at once, that also can throw out a tanks eco system. How is everything going for you now??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiba Posted September 2, 2003 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2003 everything seems really settled at the moment, the new plants are taking well, and the remaining bristlenose is doing fine, and the 2 remaining danios seem to be in high spirits. I'll keep an eye on all the levels for a few more weeks before getting a few more danios, just to see if things settle down. Will keep ya posted! Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted September 3, 2003 Report Share Posted September 3, 2003 glad to hear it here's to many fish......................a couple at a time LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie Posted September 3, 2003 Report Share Posted September 3, 2003 glad to hear it here's to many fish......................a couple at a time LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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