Corys Rolling, Betta Shivering

[Richie Hell]

We have just done a 10% water change. Just after, we noticed that several of our corys were rolling like little dogs in the gravel. They sort of rolled to rub one shoulder on the ground and then righted themselves again. We also noticed that our betta, Steve, was what looked like shivering.

Is this the water change affected our fish because of the chilly temperature (its about 22 degrees C and is usually between 24 and 26) or could it be a parasite infection or itch or something? We've seen one of our corys rolling like this before. And earlier today Steve was displaying alot so it may be down to stress.

Please help us out, as if it is an illness we need to sort it sharpish!

 

[xxBarneyxx]

Dont know about the Betta but sounds like the Cory's are "flashing" they do this a lot what they get things like white spot. Have a very close look at the fins of all the fish and the scales for anything different.

I got whitespot in a tank once which was introduced with some new fish, just treated with protozyne(sp) and it went away fairly quickly.

 

[J.H]

Sounds like something has got into the water and is irritating them I would do another water change now and another tomorrow, do you treat the water before you put it into the tank?

is there anything visual on the fish?

Good luck


edit: too late

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Richie Hell

What kind of water dechlorinator are you using?

It's not ich (whitespot) if the corys have it because they don't get it. A temperature drop, even a large one like this shouldn't bother them too much, unless they are a species that prefers much warmer water. It might not do your betta any good though.

Please give us your water parameters and test the water right out of your tap too.

 

[Richie Hell]

Dechlorinator is TetraAqua AquaSafe. Was planning on a full set of water tests in the morning, so will post then. Fancy going to bed now...

It doesn't seem like regular behaviour. Happened right after water change. Don't remember if the previous time was after a water change or not. Also ony has affected 2 out of 7 cories, that we've seen.

Cheers for the help

 

[Richie Hell]

Ok, Tank Water stats:

pH: 6.4
Ammonia: 0.50 ppm
Nitrite: 5.0 ppm
Nitrate: 7.0ppm
General Hardness: 286.4 ppm
Carbonate Hardness: 89.5 ppm

Water seems a bit hard. Last time I tested the water was 15th October, and Ammonia and Nitrite were zero, Nitrate was 5.0 ppm, and pH was 6.6.

Tap water stats:

pH: 7.0
Carbonate Hardness: 214.8 ppm
General Hardness: 393.8 ppm
Ammonia: 0.25 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 5.0 ppm

 

[Kevstir]

i think your going to have to do a much bigger water change than 10% with ammonia and nitrite reading like that m8 , i would do 50% right away and continue with daily water changes until those levels come right down , with you having Cory's you wont be able to add salt to help them deal with the high nitrite.

 

[Richie Hell]

Ok, cheers.

Any idea why the Ammonia and Nitrite went back up? Have added 3 Corys (2 quite large), and 2 African Dwarf Frogs in the past week so might that be responsible?

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Richie Hell

It looks like your tank is cycling again so I'm going to move your thread into the Beginners section. You might get more help there.

Three corys and two ADFs are a lot to add all at once to a new tank. That could well be the reason for the ammonia rise. You will have to go back to water changes until it gets under control. Did you vacuum the bottom when you did your last one? If not, please do that too. The corys need a clean substrate. If you have gravel rather than sand, it's especially important to vacuum.

African Dwarf Frogs are heavy waste producers for their small size and you can immediately reduce the bio-load in your tank by moving them out. They will live well in any covered container that's a gallon or more in volume and actually prefer to have no filtration. The container can be cleaned and refilled weekly and they will do fine. My two live in a gallon mayonnaise jar.

While we're on the subject of frogs, please be sure that they are actually African Dwarf Frogs and not African Clawed Frogs. Lfs often confuse them and sell one as the other. Here's a link you might find helpful:

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=18252

 

[Richie Hell]

Ok, thanks.

And they're definitely Dwarf frogs. Read that thread before buying them! Fish store had the dwarf frogs, and Albino Clawed Frogs, both just labelled as "Aquatic Frogs"

 

[Richie Hell]

Have done bigger water changes and a gravel hoover since last posting. Fish seem happier now, we think they're only doing it after water changes, so they were either objecting to the dechlorinator or the cooler water. Does that sound plausible to you lot?

Have changed dechlorinator now anyway, and am making sure the water we add isn't icy cold, or too cold at all.