ramlover26
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- Sep 8, 2009
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Hey guys ..new to this forum ..any forum for that matter. Just have a couple of questions.
I have some blue rams in my 45 gallon aquarium right now. Three males and three females. The tank is long enough that territory has never been an issue. A couple of days ago, I saw one of my male rams gasping at the bottom of the tank, discoloured, with his fins tattered. I scooped him up a while later when he died. At the same time, my baby swordtails (4 months old ish) seemed to be scratching their bodies on the substrate, and other items in my tank. I'm aware this is typically a sign of a parasite, causing an "itch" on the fish. I isolated my swordtails in my other tank, and they have since stopped scratching.
No other fish in my tank were showing symptoms at that time...
So I was down to two males, three females.
Last night, BOTH of my females laid eggs ..at the same time (pretty neat) ..one male actively participating (actually, EATING the eggs) ..while the other laid around near the female, not chasing off other fish, looking pale and bloated. I'm not sure if he even fertilized the eggs. I just got home from work to find him dead on the bottom of my tank. No other fish are showing signs of disease. I had been double dosing with Flourish Excel for three days, in an attempt to win a war against black hair algae (which I believe I won) .....
My questions are....
1. What do you think is causing my rams to pass away one at a time? CO2 poisoning? Or something else I should be looking for. I find it weird that NO other fish are showing signs of infection, if this is an outbreak or disease process. As a side note, while dosing with the CO2, I Have an air pump running on high, and the water lowered to increase oxygenation.
2. If the eggs WERENT fertilized (the mother is still guarding them ..she's hardcore ) ..WHEN would they turn white and fungusy? It has been about 24 hours now since she laid them.
3. IF i were to purchase another male, what is the likelihood it would bond with that female ..since her true husband has died?
Thanks so much in advance
I have some blue rams in my 45 gallon aquarium right now. Three males and three females. The tank is long enough that territory has never been an issue. A couple of days ago, I saw one of my male rams gasping at the bottom of the tank, discoloured, with his fins tattered. I scooped him up a while later when he died. At the same time, my baby swordtails (4 months old ish) seemed to be scratching their bodies on the substrate, and other items in my tank. I'm aware this is typically a sign of a parasite, causing an "itch" on the fish. I isolated my swordtails in my other tank, and they have since stopped scratching.
No other fish in my tank were showing symptoms at that time...
So I was down to two males, three females.
Last night, BOTH of my females laid eggs ..at the same time (pretty neat) ..one male actively participating (actually, EATING the eggs) ..while the other laid around near the female, not chasing off other fish, looking pale and bloated. I'm not sure if he even fertilized the eggs. I just got home from work to find him dead on the bottom of my tank. No other fish are showing signs of disease. I had been double dosing with Flourish Excel for three days, in an attempt to win a war against black hair algae (which I believe I won) .....
My questions are....
1. What do you think is causing my rams to pass away one at a time? CO2 poisoning? Or something else I should be looking for. I find it weird that NO other fish are showing signs of infection, if this is an outbreak or disease process. As a side note, while dosing with the CO2, I Have an air pump running on high, and the water lowered to increase oxygenation.
2. If the eggs WERENT fertilized (the mother is still guarding them ..she's hardcore ) ..WHEN would they turn white and fungusy? It has been about 24 hours now since she laid them.
3. IF i were to purchase another male, what is the likelihood it would bond with that female ..since her true husband has died?
Thanks so much in advance
