Help!

[Bex]

We are just watching our fish and I thought the female blue ram's belly looked extra pink, like she was about to spawn, and suddenley she has turned almost black! All her colour has gone, and she is tilted to one side? * she didn't do this last time she laid eggs*

Nitrite 0, Ammonia 0, Nitrate 25, ph 7.2 temp 80! Water stats are fine. Am I just beiing paranoid and is she just about to lay eggs?



Hubby just got home and she died

 

[drango91]

laying on her side, thats usually not good but i never kept blue rams before it may just ber her way of laying keep watch on her

 

[Bex]

Well, she's not really laying on her side, she's floating, just off the gravel, mouth slightly up, behind a bushy plant?

Does anyone know if this is bad?

 

[drango91]

could be laying just watch her, or she has some disease, take a picture it will better help your fish

 

[sussexgirl]

Well, she's not really laying on her side, she's floating, just off the gravel, mouth slightly up, behind a bushy plant?

Does anyone know if this is bad?

Bex I'm sorry to say that my Ram lost his colour on Sunday just the same as what you're described. He was gulping pretty bad and staying in one place at the bottom of the tank. We lost him about 12 hours after we first noticed him. Hope yours doesn't suffer the same fate.

 

[Bex]

Well, she's not really laying on her side, she's floating, just off the gravel, mouth slightly up, behind a bushy plant?

Does anyone know if this is bad?

Bex I'm sorry to say that my Ram lost his colour on Sunday just the same as what you're described. He was gulping pretty bad and staying in one place at the bottom of the tank. We lost him about 12 hours after we first noticed him. Hope yours doesn't suffer the same fate.

Hi sussexgirl

Did you find out what was wrong with him? Are your other fish ok?

 

[sussexgirl]

Bex I'm sorry to say that my Ram lost his colour on Sunday just the same as what you're described. He was gulping pretty bad and staying in one place at the bottom of the tank. We lost him about 12 hours after we first noticed him. Hope yours doesn't suffer the same fate.
[/quote]

Hi sussexgirl

Did you find out what was wrong with him? Are your other fish ok?
[/quote]

Been to LFS this morning and they seem to think that it was a PH problem with the Rams. Mine is 7.6 and they live in much lower PH levels. I was told that they should be ok if I climatized them slowly. I floated the bag for an hour and kept adding tiny amounts of my tank water over that time. Rams are just ultra sensitive fish and need the right conditions for them, unfortunatley my tank can't provide them so I've learned a sad lesson. I lost a platy this morning but my LFS think he was probably dying of old age because my water is at great levels and his death was so prolonged. I won't be re-stocking at all and will be monitoring the tank for a month or two just to rule out a bacterial problem. How is your Ram doing now?

 

[Bex]

We are just watching our fish and I thought the female blue ram's belly looked extra pink, like she was about to spawn, and suddenley she has turned almost black! All her colour has gone, and she is tilted to one side? * she didn't do this last time she laid eggs*

Nitrite 0, Ammonia 0, Nitrate 25, ph 7.2 temp 80! Water stats are fine. Am I just beiing paranoid and is she just about to lay eggs?

Can anyone else shed any light on this?

 

[Bex]

Bex I'm sorry to say that my Ram lost his colour on Sunday just the same as what you're described. He was gulping pretty bad and staying in one place at the bottom of the tank. We lost him about 12 hours after we first noticed him. Hope yours doesn't suffer the same fate.

Hi sussexgirl

Did you find out what was wrong with him? Are your other fish ok?
[/quote]

Been to LFS this morning and they seem to think that it was a PH problem with the Rams. Mine is 7.6 and they live in much lower PH levels. I was told that they should be ok if I climatized them slowly. I floated the bag for an hour and kept adding tiny amounts of my tank water over that time. Rams are just ultra sensitive fish and need the right conditions for them, unfortunatley my tank can't provide them so I've learned a sad lesson. I lost a platy this morning but my LFS think he was probably dying of old age because my water is at great levels and his death was so prolonged. I won't be re-stocking at all and will be monitoring the tank for a month or two just to rule out a bacterial problem. How is your Ram doing now?
[/quote]

Hi sussexgirl

Not sure how she is cos I am at work - kinda expecting a dead fishy when I get in My pH is lower than yours at 7.2 and I did the same when acclimatising them - did it really slowly over an hour adding tiny bits of my tank water in. Had them 3 weeks and they already tried laying eggs so I thought they would be ok. My male Ram still looks great and is really bright. If he survives should I get him another mate? All my water stats are perfect and all other fish seem to be fine.

Hopefully the problem is that they are sensitive and not a bacterial thing. Sorry to hear about your platy this morning

Thanks for your reply - I have been panicking all day about this!

 

[sussexgirl]

Hi sussexgirl

Not sure how she is cos I am at work - kinda expecting a dead fishy when I get in My pH is lower than yours at 7.2 and I did the same when acclimatising them - did it really slowly over an hour adding tiny bits of my tank water in. Had them 3 weeks and they already tried laying eggs so I thought they would be ok. My male Ram still looks great and is really bright. If he survives should I get him another mate? All my water stats are perfect and all other fish seem to be fine.

Hopefully the problem is that they are sensitive and not a bacterial thing. Sorry to hear about your platy this morning

Thanks for your reply - I have been panicking all day about this!

I think I would leave it to the experts as to whether you should get another mate. I have to say that after I lost my first Ram I thought that I would leave things for a couple of weeks to rule out infection. Then less than two weeks later I lost my second ram. I know that they need to be in pairs though so it kind of feels cruel to leave them alone. Let us all know how things are when you get chance.

 

[Bex]

Hi sussexgirl

My hubby just got home and called me to say she is still alive and her colour has come back a bit. Well, that's to say she's not dark anymore. But she is still hovering just above the gravel in the same place where she laid her eggs last time. *but differen to where she was this morning*

I might PM Wilder when I get in see if she has any ideas. I wouldn't get another Ram straight away for the same reasons as you, but I also would feel bad if the big guy ends up alone.

Thanks for all you advice so far though - it's frustrating when you don't know what's wrong.

 

[sussexgirl]

Hi sussexgirl

My hubby just got home and called me to say she is still alive and her colour has come back a bit. Well, that's to say she's not dark anymore. But she is still hovering just above the gravel in the same place where she laid her eggs last time. *but differen to where she was this morning*

I might PM Wilder when I get in see if she has any ideas. I wouldn't get another Ram straight away for the same reasons as you, but I also would feel bad if the big guy ends up alone.

Thanks for all you advice so far though - it's frustrating when you don't know what's wrong.

No problem Bex, I really hope your Ram makes it. Wilder has told me to go in with an anti bacterial med because of the darkening of colour in my previous two rams who died. My platy didn't really lose colour and all my other fish all look fine and are happily swimming about. Any idea which one we should use? (Wilder if you're reading this can you recommend anything?) Keep me updated Bex, I'm intregued to know how you get on with your ram.

 

[Bex]

Hi sussexgirl

My hubby just got home and called me to say she is still alive and her colour has come back a bit. Well, that's to say she's not dark anymore. But she is still hovering just above the gravel in the same place where she laid her eggs last time. *but differen to where she was this morning*

I might PM Wilder when I get in see if she has any ideas. I wouldn't get another Ram straight away for the same reasons as you, but I also would feel bad if the big guy ends up alone.

Thanks for all you advice so far though - it's frustrating when you don't know what's wrong.

No problem Bex, I really hope your Ram makes it. Wilder has told me to go in with an anti bacterial med because of the darkening of colour in my previous two rams who died. My platy didn't really lose colour and all my other fish all look fine and are happily swimming about. Any idea which one we should use? (Wilder if you're reading this can you recommend anything?) Keep me updated Bex, I'm intregued to know how you get on with your ram.

Hi sussexgirl

Well, she's still alive this morning but just kinda floating in one of the plants. Going to LFS at lunch to get the meds that Wilder recommended (sorry for hijacking your post by the way!) Frustrating being at work cos I want to treat her asap.

I don't think she will make it, even with treatment now but hopefull I can save the male. All my other fish are fine also, it does seem strange as water stats are all perfect. I will let you know how we get on.

 

[sussexgirl]

Hi Bex

Yeah I've just been to the LFS this lunchtime and picked up the Myaxzin. Going to give the first dose in 10 mins. I've noticed this morning that another of my platys has slight deterioration to his dorsal fin so I really do think that Wilder is right and that I have a bacterial infection among my fish. I'm really hoping the med will get to work and that there won't be any more fatalities. Let me know who you get on.

 

[RadaR]

Rams are very sensetive to water conditions. You are keeping them in soft water right? (GH 3)