I was going to place this thread on the forum for newbies but I felt I'd probably get a more definitive answer here since German Blue Rams (GBR) should be familiar to people on the New World Cichlids forum.
I think most people will agree that GBR's are quite sensitive to less toxic parameters such as nitrates at very low levels and keeping them in water which has a soft hardness level is most suitable since it reflects their natural habitat.
Well, I live in a hard water area which means my general hardness level is around 9 dH. I've completely cycled my aquarium which means many toxins (ammonia and nitrite) are non-existant and my nitrate level never goes above 10 ppm. My PH level is around 7.4.
Based on the water parameters given above, would it be reasonable to think that a GBR would thrive in those kind of conditions or would it encounter problems like skin sensitivity to the water?
The reason I ask is because one of my GBR's (the female) passed away about 4 weeks ago. During the weeks before she died she would constantly rub herself on aquarium objects to relieve irritation and at some point her gill rate increased massively.
At present, my male GBR rubs himself on objects, does a yawning expression and always looks like something is agitating him. Here is the video URL showing his behaviour
http
/www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEJMX4ElvuY . You may notice that he has a red sore on his body; this has occurred due to the constant rubbing.
I'm starting to feel the water itself is the problem rather than a skin/gill parasite being the issue because I've treated the aquarium water with anti-fluke (Sterazin), and anti-velvet (Protozin used twice) treatments and it hasn't improved the problem.
In summary, do I need to change my water parameters to correct this problem or do I just have a very relentless parasite that can resist strong treatments?
edit: Can certain fish react to liquid fertilizer treatments by rubbing/flicking?
Thanks,
Mark.
I think most people will agree that GBR's are quite sensitive to less toxic parameters such as nitrates at very low levels and keeping them in water which has a soft hardness level is most suitable since it reflects their natural habitat.
Well, I live in a hard water area which means my general hardness level is around 9 dH. I've completely cycled my aquarium which means many toxins (ammonia and nitrite) are non-existant and my nitrate level never goes above 10 ppm. My PH level is around 7.4.
Based on the water parameters given above, would it be reasonable to think that a GBR would thrive in those kind of conditions or would it encounter problems like skin sensitivity to the water?
The reason I ask is because one of my GBR's (the female) passed away about 4 weeks ago. During the weeks before she died she would constantly rub herself on aquarium objects to relieve irritation and at some point her gill rate increased massively.
At present, my male GBR rubs himself on objects, does a yawning expression and always looks like something is agitating him. Here is the video URL showing his behaviour
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEJMX4ElvuY . You may notice that he has a red sore on his body; this has occurred due to the constant rubbing.I'm starting to feel the water itself is the problem rather than a skin/gill parasite being the issue because I've treated the aquarium water with anti-fluke (Sterazin), and anti-velvet (Protozin used twice) treatments and it hasn't improved the problem.
In summary, do I need to change my water parameters to correct this problem or do I just have a very relentless parasite that can resist strong treatments?
edit: Can certain fish react to liquid fertilizer treatments by rubbing/flicking?
Thanks,
Mark.
