Is It Normal To Lose 24 Fish Since March?

[Sasha]

Is it normal to lose 24 fish since March?

I added the first fish into my 46 gallon tank on March 7th (the tank cycled for about 2 months with teh Fishless Cycle), and since then I have lost 24 fish and all of the water tests were normal.

 

[Jebus]

that's alot of fish...doesn't seem normal

 

[Cheese Specialist]

I wouldn't say that is a normal loss rate. People can lose a lot of fish within a time, but that is more likely when it's over a few tanks.

It also comes down to what kind of fish you have lost. Fior instance, cardinal tetra are fairly sensitive and many find them difficult to keep. So, a whole school of those could die making the number higher.

Are there no signs of disease etc?

 

[Jess]

I lost all the fish in my ten gal except for 2 (then Baby) swordtails in about 3 days! That was due to disease though! As a "present" ( ) my friend bought me two dwarf gourami from Pets at Home, which wiped out my tank within a week of them arriving. I'd only had tropical fish for about couple of months so hadnt got a quarentine tank or anything like i have now! I was annoyed though, id had some REALLy nice fish in that tank... Including my first ever betta, Arnie 1

If you've added any fish recently it could be due to disease like mine was! If its not anything like that then sorry, i have no idea!lol I would add some melafix as a precaution though, and see how it goes!!

Sorry about all your fishies though

Jess

 

[smithrc]

nope - definatly not normal...

What have you tested the water for?
it might be something you havent tested for...

 

[yhbae]

Looks like you have a tank full of livebearers in that tank... Have you tried to get them from an alternative LFS? Sometimes livebearers are badly overbreed at the cost of their health.

Strangely enough, although platies are supposed to be hardy, I too have lost more platies than any other species that I have owned in the past...

 

[Sasha]

I didn't think it was normal to lose that many fish.

I have lost:
5 guppies
6 platies
8 mollies (Balloon, Black, Marble and Dalmatian)
2 ottos
2 Gouramis

I test the Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite and pH weekly and everything is normal and safe. The last new fish that I added into the tank was in June. I have 9 more fish in my 1 gallon hospital tank (that's the only available tank that I have) because they're looking very thin. I treated the whole tank with Jungle Parasite Clear a few times since some of the fish were thin before they died. I really have no idea why my fish are dying at these incredible rates!

 

[David]

I didn't think it was normal to lose that many fish.

I have lost:
5 guppies
6 platies
8 mollies (Balloon, Black, Marble and Dalmatian)
2 ottos
2 Gouramis

I test the Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite and pH weekly and everything is normal and safe. The last new fish that I added into the tank was in June. I have 9 more fish in my 1 gallon hospital tank (that's the only available tank that I have) because they're looking very thin. I treated the whole tank with Jungle Parasite Clear a few times since some of the fish were thin before they died. I really have no idea why my fish are dying at these incredible rates!

Did the fish die before or after you put them in the hospital tank? You really shouldn't keep 9 fish in a 1 gallon tank. Even 2 fish is pushing it. If you have a tank full of sick fish, why not treat them all in the main tank? Other than that, I think you need to change the LFS you shop from. Also did the fish show any other obvious signs of disease besides the apparent malnutrition?

 

[Sasha]

The fish died in the main tank over a span of 4 months. I got them from a fish breeder, and they were very healthy when I got them but about a month after I brought them home some started dying. The fish didn't show any signs of disease, but some of them were a little thin so I thought that the problem was an internal parasite. I treated the whole tank multiple times with Jungle Parasite Clear, but it didn't help.

I know 9 fish in a 1 gallon isn't good, buit it's the only tank I have avialible! The fish in the mian tank look healthy, so I don't what the disease to spread! The only problem is that I can't find any medication (Zeemax or Jungle Parasite Gurd) in my area.

 

[David]

Until you can identify and confirm the source of your problem, it isn't worth it to go out and buy random medications for your fish. More often than not, they will not only not treat your fish, but will do more harm than good.

 

[Jess]

Use melafix until you know for sure what it is. Its a natural treatment so it wont hurt them, and it may at least keep them alive until you can work out whats causing it... If its something that melafix is able to cure you might not need to buy any more medications too!

 

[Eve]

Use melafix until you know for sure what it is. Its a natural treatment so it wont hurt them, and it may at least keep them alive until you can work out whats causing it... If its something that melafix is able to cure you might not need to buy any more medications too!

I agree, I keep this stuff on hand all the time for moments like these.
Is there anything else in the larger tank? If not why keep them in the 1g?

 

[Sasha]

Thanks everyone. I have Melafix and used half a bottle (not all at once) but that hasn't helped. The fish in the hospital tank are really thin, so I'm almost certain that the problem is an internal parasite. They're eating normally, but they're just losing weight and getting thinner.

I have 28 fish in the larger tank (I haven't updated my signature) and I don't want them to get affected, so that's why I moved all of the sick ones into the 1 gallon tank. I did some research and found out that Zeemax or Jungle Internal Parasite Guard might help, but no pet store in my area has it. I really don't know what to do!

 

[AquaSeaFoam]

I didn't think it was normal to lose that many fish.

I have lost:
5 guppies
6 platies
8 mollies (Balloon, Black, Marble and Dalmatian)
2 ottos
2 Gouramis

I test the Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite and pH weekly and everything is normal and safe. The last new fish that I added into the tank was in June. I have 9 more fish in my 1 gallon hospital tank (that's the only available tank that I have) because they're looking very thin. I treated the whole tank with Jungle Parasite Clear a few times since some of the fish were thin before they died. I really have no idea why my fish are dying at these incredible rates!

What do you mean by normal and safe?
could you tell us the exact readings please?

 

[Sasha]

Sorry about that.

Here's the aquarium water tests:
Ammonia - 0
Nitrate - 5.0
Nitrite - 0
pH - 7.0

My tap water comes from the well and I was curious to see what the pH was. I tested the tap water and it was around 6.0