Help Me With My Unhappy Guppys

[reda9]

tank size: 30 gal
pH:7.5
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 5-20
tank temp:78 degrees F

Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):
Most of my guppys are hiding, staying at the bottom of the tank much of the time, breathing heavily/rapidly. 2 died today. 3 last week.

Volume and Frequency of water changes:
water changes are 1 bucket 1-2X's weekly

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank:
just aquasafe & aq. salt.

Tank inhabitants:
6 guppys
1 algae eater (ugly black thing that stays hidden most of the time.

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration):
lfs guy suggested a bubble wand instead of a rock. put that in yesterday. all the fish seemed to love it right away. they perked up and played in the bubbles. but, as i said, 2 died today and i've been watching 2 or 3 others with some anxiety.

i hate this! i feel like i'm torturing them.

Exposure to chemicals:
none that i know of.

please tell me what to do or what i'm doing wrong & how to fix it.
thanks

 

[WILDER]

Well laboured breathing can be poor water quality, parasites, to bacterial infection, but if a lot are dong it i would go with a parasite, any flicking and rubbing against objects, any small like grain of salt on the fish, or a dusting of talc, or a dusting yelowlish colour on them.
If no viable sign you could be dealing with skin flukes.

http/article.dphnet.com/cat-02/flukes1.shtml

 

[reda9]

Well laboured breathing can be poor water quality, parasites, to bacterial infection, but if a lot are dong it i would go with a parasite, any flicking and rubbing against objects, any small like grain of salt on the fish, or a dusting of talc, or a dusting yelowlish colour on them.
If no viable sign you could be dealing with skin flukes.

http/article.dphnet.com/cat-02/flukes1.shtml

no, no salt like grains, no yellowish color or dust, no rubbing. can you describe 'flicking'? they swim around quickly, play in the bubbles and then go to the bottom, breathing rapidly and heavily. the only other thing i see is 1 has a whispy, transparent white 'thing' hanging from her. i thought it was poop at first. she is very young, small and pregnant.

oh, wait, just a half before the last one died, she released a little puff of blood from her anus, then a wee whispy transparent white bit of something. looks kind of like a little strip of tissue paper.

 

[Boxermom]

What is your ammonia level and how long has the tank been set up?

 

[reda9]

i don't have an ammonia test kit.

tank is nearly 4 months old.

 

[reda9]

2 more dead fish this morning. what's going on? what should i do?

 

[LiveLifeGoJump]

2 more dead fish this morning. what's going on? what should i do?

Buy a test kit & post the results. That will go a long way to helping others help you.

Best of luck.

 

[WILDER]

If the white strip where hanging from the anus it sounds like internal parasites, and they cause alot of demage to the fish inside.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=142441