Barb Erosion

[R3GG]

Hi, as some might already know i have recently gained possesion of a 39gallon tank containing the fish in my sig. The 2 corys have quite serious barb erosion, they dont actually have any barbs left at all, this is due to the tank containing gravel which i intend on replacing with sand (I'm not getting into the gravel/sand argument here). I'm sure the corys will benefit from their new substrate but do you think their barbs will grow back or is this not possible?
Thanks for the info.

 

[noelberg]

was it rough gravel? if u have fine, smooth gravel, then there shouldn't be any problems with barb erosion. my gravel is probably slightly too rough for cories, but my big peppered has a nice long "moustache". if it was inherited the tank conditions may have helped wear the barbs down too

 

[R3GG]

Its round, smooth gravel, cant really understand why its got so bad. They are constantly shuffling around in it and have been in the tank for a while. Still, i would like to know if they will grow the barbs back.
cheers

 

[CFC]

If you keep the water quality good and feed pleanty of live food the barbels will grow back within a few weeks. Nitrogen pollution is the most common cause of barbel errosion, if the tank is a inherited one it may have been neglected for the last few weeks before it came into your possesion which could have allowed the nitrates to reach dangerous levels, when keeping catfish always try to keep the nitrate level bellow 40ppm.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi R3GG

I agree with CFC and hope your little corys will get well soon.

Their barbels are delicate sensory organs that they use to find food. Corys have poor eyesight and depend on their barbels, so you might want to pay extra attention to be sure they eat.

I recommend lots of live blackworms or even tubifex worms for them. Since I just explained to another member how to care for them so that they are safe for the fish, I'll post a link for you here:

http/fish.orbust.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=39873

Good luck, and please let us know how they do.

 

[R3GG]

Hi, I've been watching the ammonia and ph levels and there is no ammonia and p.h approx 7. I may have a nitrogen test kit around somewhere so i'll see if i can find it. The tank was a little dirty when i got it but i had been testing ammonia and p.h and they were fine. i will post pics of the tank this week detailing the changes i have made, its looking much better with the sand in it and all i need now is the temperature to sort itself out and plants will be arriving on thursday.
Thanks a lot for your help!

Some pics here

 

[Inchworm]

Hi R3GG

I doubt if the gravel in that tank was the cause of the barbel damage on your fish. I use the same thing in my tanks and recommend it for anyone with corys.

It could also have been caused by bacterial infection. Are your corys healthy otherwise? Any sign of damage to their fins or tails, or white stuff on their mouth area or other parts of them?

I'm not sure if fishkeeping is new to you with this tank, or if you're an old hand at it, so let me just ask if you understand about cycling and what you will have to do to monitor the recycling now that you've changed the substrate.

In the event that this is new to you, here's an article that will help:

http/fish.orbust.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=10099

 

[CFC]

Hi, I've been watching the ammonia and ph levels and there is no ammonia and p.h approx 7. I may have a nitrogen test kit around somewhere so i'll see if i can find it. The tank was a little dirty when i got it but i had been testing ammonia and p.h and they were fine.

From this i feel you may not have a full understanding of the nitrogen cycle, after ammonia you also need to test for nitrite and nitrate. Even if there is no ammonia present the nitrite levels could be at dangerous levels and nitrate is always present in a tank. A nitrite level of just 0.5 will start to cause barbel erosion and anything higher can be deadly, nitrate can only be removed by water changes or by using things that absorb nitrate like plants or scavenger resin medias, catfish do not tolerate nitrate levels over 50ppm well. I wouldnt worry about pH unless you are planning to breed your corys or have been trying to alter it for some other reason, unless your tapwater is in the real extremes then it will be fine for your fish.