Another Of My Poor Fishes Is Sick :(

[katiej]

Had 1 of my guppies die this am & now another is basically floating round not eatng n looking really sad & slow?? Overstocked uncycled tank & not sure wat 2 do???


Just moved this off emergency forum so u can c my full dilema!




hello just wondering if any1 can hep me, new 2 all things fish & have been very foolish! Bought a new tank rekford 96? got 4fish a week later 2black platy, 2 5lined barbs, got some more fish a week later 1 red tailed black shark, 2 oddessa barbs, 4 guppys, 2 sunset platy, 2 red serpae tetra, all settled in niceley then went 2 a friends was offered some more fish & greedily took them now we have tail rot n poor fish bein chased around & i dont know where 2 start, have no spare tank & am really worried they will all die! Im not even sure wat type of fish we were given mostly orange some with black on tails, some shimmery silver with orangey red tails? Please help me if u can!! I did put some pebbles in the tank yest that my daughter got off the beach a yr ago???
IM NOT SURE IF IV DONE THIS RIGHT EITHER SO PLEASE 4GIVE ME IF IT ENDS UP SOMEWHERE ITS NOT MEANT 2 BE!!

 

[*Fishkies*]

Do you have water stats that you could post?

Floating around is usually not a good sign. Also if he is not eating then there may be very little hop for him. Also if you can I'd try to take some of the fish back to the LFS then you do not have to worry about being overstocked if you can. However if you cannot. Try putting another filter in the tank. This would help by providing more filtration you are giving you fish some more help by removing all their waste.

 

[Jozlyn]

BIG water changes, 50% daily until your tank is cycled, this will probably take about 6 weeks. Vaccum your gravel to remove waste. Feed less to reduce waste production.

Post water test results - Ph, Amonia, Nitrite and Nitrate. Post all 4 they are very important. Do NOT say, my water is ok, or the tests were ok, post the numbers. If you take your water to the LFS to test for you, make sure you write down the numbers they give you or ask for them.

Post a full list of the fish in the tank, you say "got 4fish a week later 2black platy" what are the 4 fish?

Re-home the red tailed black shark immediately he's going to grow too big for your tank.

Re-home some of the other fish as well. You're overstocked.

Post pictures of the unknown fish so that they can be identified for you.

Read the pinned topics on tank cycling in the Beginners forum so that you have some idea of what is going on with your water and what to expect in the coming weeks.

The fin rot is most likely due to poor water quality, check the pinned topics in the Emergency section for specific treatments for fin rot.

Add an air stone to add extra oxygen to the tank, oxygen levels will be lowered while the tank is cycling.

 

[katiej]

Hiya, im doin 40% water changes every day wiv gravel vac, feedin less 2 as less waste, im waitin on delivery 4 API fresh water master test kit as only have test strips that dont test 4 ammonia hence big water changes!! Other stats are
Nitrate..1
nitrite..10
GH...>10 d
KH..3 d
PH..7.2
Post a full list of the fish in the tank, you say "got 4fish a week later 2black platy" what are the 4 fish?
got 4fish a week later 2black platy, 2 5lined barbs,
We have been & bought an air stone 2 increase airiation in the tank, this am my guppy is lookin much better he is swimmin about now & has had a little food!!
Pics of fish given 2 us du know wat they are?? Thinkin platys but not sure?

Orangy 1 at the top with black bits on his tail

This fish is bout 2inches darker orange

The smaller silvery orange 1 swimmin off 2 the right

all of these?

 

[Jozlyn]

Hi Katie, glad to hear you guppy is doing better

Ok, your nitrIte is way too high, it needs to be 0 or as close to 0 as you can get it at the moment. NitrAte at 1 is ok as your tank is cycling, that number will slowly rise over the coming weeks, you need to keep that under 40ppm.

To be honest, with your nitrItes at 10 I'd be doing more than 40% per day via gravel vac', I'd up it to 50% or if possible do 25 - 30% twice a day, your fish will really thank you for it

The top picture definately looks like a platy. The others look like molly's, but I'm not sure. Molly's are generally longer in the body and slimmer than platy's and grow bigger. Platy's are shorter and are broader in the body.

You've got a mix of males and females there too, watch out here come the fry!!! Have a read of this, it will help you sex your fish. http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=13664 You need to keep the male to female ratio at 1 male to every 3+ females, otherwise the boys will breed them to death!

Good luck, keep us posted on your water stat's and on how your guppy is doing

 

[katiej]

Hey jozlyn, thats the highest my nitrite has been, iv just done it again & its still at 10? i did a massive water change yest & will do another in a bit, im hoping the master test kit will arrive 2 day so i can get some better readings!!!!
My guppy still ok, seems 2b swimming ok now & faster, still staying at the top of the tank tho not gasping or anything just staying up top? my other guppy was being really vicious yest kept attacking 1 of my black platy, in the end had 2 put the platy in a breeding net just 2 keep her safe, thought guppies were placid??? Thanx again 4 ur help!! Katie x

 

[Jozlyn]

No, guppies are not what I would call placid, they're very active and intent on breeding, you really need to have a group of around 5 males together, they way they will tend to mess around together and hopefully leave your platy alone. Or alternatively, re-home the platy if you can.

By the sounds of things you're doing the right thing, keep it up. Let us know what your test results are when you get your new kit.

What normally happens is you get high amonia, then this starts to drop and the nitrites go up, then they start to drop and then your nitrates will go up they will drop and then stabalise, when your tank is fully cycled you should get 0 amonia and nitrite and up to 40ppm nitrates.

Also, I forgot to mention never to wash your filter under the tap, only ever rinse it in used tank water. Rinsing it under the tap will kill your bacteria colony and you'll have to start all over again.