Help!

[Debbie T]

Please, please help.
I've got a 5ft tank with various sucky fish IE: plecs, featherfins, upside down fish, silver loaches also 3 small silver sharks & 1 angel fish. I had a beautiful shoal of rainbow fish which have been in the tank for a couple of months now & were a beautiful red & blue. Now in just the last week all 8 have died. I first thought it was fin rot, a couple had bits missing of their noses & it was all white, then over night 1 would lose a fin & would look like their scales had been flayed off their poor bodies.I tried treating them but nothing helped & they all died. I also thought the feather fins were attacking them. If it is some kind of disease why are no other fish affected?? I am at my wits end

Debbie T

 

[WILDER]

How many gallons or litres is a 5ft tank.
Can you post water stats please in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.


Was there mouths also rotting away.
Any patches of cotton wool on the fish.
Any signs of flicking and rubbing.

It sounds like columnaris but need to make sure.

 

[Debbie T]

How many gallons or litres is a 5ft tank.
Can you post water stats please in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.


Was there mouths also rotting away.
Any patches of cotton wool on the fish.
Any signs of flicking and rubbing.

It sounds like columnaris but need to make sure.

 

[Debbie T]

How many gallons or litres is a 5ft tank.
Can you post water stats please in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.


Was there mouths also rotting away.
Any patches of cotton wool on the fish.
Any signs of flicking and rubbing.

It sounds like columnaris but need to make sure.

Hi
Theres 500 litres in the tank.
All i can say is that according to my test kit all the water results are bang on except the nitrate is showing a very very pale pink so i've been doing regular water changes. I've also noticed it takes them ages to die & they go upside down then right themselves & swim ok. I wouldnt say it looks like cotton wool but 2 did look like their mouths had either rotted or been nibbled on, but no signs of flicking & rubbing. I dont know if it has any bearing what so ever but the 2 feather fins have gone mental & seem to be really aggresive all of a sudden & have bald patches on their heads where they have started head butting each other?
Debbie T

 

[WILDER]

It's rare to have nitrate reading of 0 anyway. Only ammonia and nitrite have to be 0.

It sounds like they died of columnaris. A bad strain can wipe a tank out in less than aday.

Water changes on your tank.
If no other fish are affected I would just do water changes for now.

Never kept feather fins so I would post about them in the right part of the forum.

http/www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/hdcolumn.htm

 

[WILDER]

http/www.articledepot.co.uk/article-29320.htm

 

[Debbie T]

Hi
Thanks for the help & info.
I googled columnaris & it did seem to fit with whats happened to my fish.
What i dont understand is why has it just wiped out the whole shoal of rainbow fish but not affected anything else?
It wasnt as if the rainbows were new fish & stressed out, they've been in the tank a couple of months & were the most beautiful red & blue & would all group together & come right up to the glass when i went near the tank. I really am gutted & feel like i've done something wrong & let them down. It has dampened my enthusiasm for fish keeping a little bit!
Thanks
Debbie T

 

[WILDER]

Sounds like the other fish in the tank had a strong immune system to fight off desease.
Were you keeping them at the right temp.

Columnaris can be caused by stress, over crowding, bad water quality, unstable temp, dirty tanks.

Never kept rainbow fish so don't know much about them.

 

[Debbie T]

I just dont know what to think?
I've actually become quite obsessive about this tank because its only a few months old, i upgraded from a coffee table fish tank because i wanted to give the fish more room. I do water changes twice a week i bought the proper water testing kit & i've got 2 thermometers, 1 inside the tank & 1 outside. I've got sand instead of gravel because i thought it wouldnt be as dirty & theres plenty of plants in there which have rooted & growing well. I honestly dont think there much else i can do?
Its all a bit depressing to be honest.
Thanks again for the advice
Debbie T

 

[WILDER]

I know. Fish keeping not easy till you know what you are doing.
There plenty to learn and you never stop learning.

Research the fish before you buy. That's the best advice I could offer.

Always best to quarantine new fish for up to 4 to 6 weeks after purchase.
Find a good lfs who are helpful and care about the fish they sell.