Is My Parrot Fish Sick?

[Mitch2411]

I have a parrot fish, jack dempsey, snow white cichlid and another whos name escapes me.
The parrot fish has small white specs(about 4-5 in total) on his tail fin... I treated with API SUPER ICK CURE(total of 6 days, adding about 37ML every other day and finally re instating the charcoal filter into my fluval 204 filter when finished. Additionally I did a 25% water change and added a little bit of extra salt at the end of the treatment. It seemed to have done nothing... the parrot fish looked ill(always sitting in the corner of the tank at the top) but was very vigorous when it was feeding time... My temps are around 78F-80F and My ammonia levels are close to, if not 0. It has not spread to any of the other fish(I have looked over them many times) and only seems to be happening to the parrot. He usually runs away when I get close unless food is present so I will attempt to get pictures of him and the other fish.

I have a 37G tank with a fluval 204... and 2 heaters, one is also a fluval and the other is a heater that is locked at 78F.

 

[Wills]

Hi welcome to the forum! How long has the tank been set up? Just curious as you said your ammonia is close to if not 0 - has it been above 0? Even trace elements of it can be particularly bad for the fish.

Is this the orange type of parrot fish?

In a 37g if you have a mix of 4 cichlids including a jack dempsey and 2 other unidentified ones I would think that you have quite a bit of stress in the tank from fighting, territory and flaring. The snow white cichlid there are only three I can think of, one would be an ablino kribensis or Vieja argentea or it could be one of many albino african cichlids.

If you can post a description of the other cichlid that would be helpful as well, a photo might be better though if you can.

I suspect that the reason he is sitting up top is because he inst able to claim any territory as there is non left so the upper corner is the only place he can find away from the other ones. The problem is that I think you have 4 aggressive large fish in your tank which isnt big enough to handle them. Do you have any other fish in the tank and if so what are they and how many?

With regards the white spots, it could be scaring if he gets into fights quite a bit. On the otherhand the spots might still be live on him so you wont be able to cure him just yet.

With ich when they die they burst and spread 100s of eggs all over the tank these latch onto the fish and then the lifecycle starts again but everytime one spot bursts 100s if not 1000s of eggs go into the tank, see the problem? So you need to keep dosing the tank till the spots go at which time the medicine in the water will kill the eggs and the lifecycle of the parasite will end.

Wills

 

[Mitch2411]

Hi welcome to the forum! How long has the tank been set up? Just curious as you said your ammonia is close to if not 0 - has it been above 0? Even trace elements of it can be particularly bad for the fish.

Is this the orange type of parrot fish?

In a 37g if you have a mix of 4 cichlids including a jack dempsey and 2 other unidentified ones I would think that you have quite a bit of stress in the tank from fighting, territory and flaring. The snow white cichlid there are only three I can think of, one would be an ablino kribensis or Vieja argentea or it could be one of many albino african cichlids.

If you can post a description of the other cichlid that would be helpful as well, a photo might be better though if you can.

I suspect that the reason he is sitting up top is because he inst able to claim any territory as there is non left so the upper corner is the only place he can find away from the other ones. The problem is that I think you have 4 aggressive large fish in your tank which isnt big enough to handle them. Do you have any other fish in the tank and if so what are they and how many?

With regards the white spots, it could be scaring if he gets into fights quite a bit. On the otherhand the spots might still be live on him so you wont be able to cure him just yet.

With ich when they die they burst and spread 100s of eggs all over the tank these latch onto the fish and then the lifecycle starts again but everytime one spot bursts 100s if not 1000s of eggs go into the tank, see the problem? So you need to keep dosing the tank till the spots go at which time the medicine in the water will kill the eggs and the lifecycle of the parasite will end.

Wills

Tank was setup for about 3-4 weeks, with water changes when needed and ammonia levels are at 0(it is a new tank) all the fish are small(max 1.5 inches) and they dont really fight at all... actually the parrot fish has now claimed the spot behind the driftwood(at the bottom) and no longer floats at the top. They all hang out in the same area, there really is not any fighting.

As for the spots, they are all now gone... I did a heat treatment, and am currently keeping the temp at 86-88F. I have a small volcano thing that is providing aeration. I see no spots on any of the other fish(nor have I ever) and what was on the parrot fish has been gone for 2-3 days.

As for the fish... The parrot fish is not red(my mom said that they change color to red... is that true?). The jack dempsey... is a jack dempsey and the snow white cichlid is of the african cichlids(looks physically like a yellow lab... but its white). The other one... is blue, with yellow/orange near the tail and blue stripes on it sometimes.

So I have aquarium salt in the water and temps at 86-88F. I see no spots on any of the fish. Is there anything else I can do?

Sorry missed the any other fish question: I have only the 4 fish, which are small... we will be getting a 55 Gallon later on, just did not have the money for it at the time.

 

[Jenste]

is it a genuine parrot fish or a blood parrot cichlid? they need different requirements - - perhaps you could post a picture of him if you are not sure?

 

[Mitch2411]

is it a genuine parrot fish or a blood parrot cichlid? they need different requirements - - perhaps you could post a picture of him if you are not sure?

Its a blood parrot... but its black/green right now.

Yea I am sorry, I realize what I was saying with parrot fish(the ocean/big one?) Its just a pet store blood parrot.

 

[Jenste]

Oh then yes. Blood parrot cichlids' juvenile colors are green/grey/black. As they approach adulthood those colors fade into a lovely reddish orange color. You need a large tank for these fish. The blood parrot alone could be kept in 40 gallons with no tankmates....you need to invest in at LEAST a 75 gallon....better if its over a 100 gallon. You should consider rehoming some of the fish....identify the other two cichlids and then PLAN a suitable stocking.

NEVER stock for a tank you might get....if things fall through it will be the fish, not you, who suffer

 

[Mitch2411]

Oh then yes. Blood parrot cichlids' juvenile colors are green/grey/black. As they approach adulthood those colors fade into a lovely reddish orange color. You need a large tank for these fish. The blood parrot alone could be kept in 40 gallons with no tankmates....you need to invest in at LEAST a 75 gallon....better if its over a 100 gallon. You should consider rehoming some of the fish....identify the other two cichlids and then PLAN a suitable stocking.

NEVER stock for a tank you might get....if things fall through it will be the fish, not you, who suffer

I assure you it will not fall through, as I have money to spare now and am shopping for a 75-90 gallon. I will have 600 bucks to drop into a tank next month... I think they will be fine until then(its a guaranteed 600$(getting 3 paychecks, one goes completely to a new tank). Thanks for all the help guys. My fish seem to be back to normal and I will keep an eye on them and keep you informed.

 

[BethK]

Jack Dempseys are vicious little critters,maybe your parrot (as said before), is claiming the top of the tank as territory.

 

[Jenste]

sounds good...but for your own sanity and for the sake of the fish's health, research before you add different species together - - research their tank size requirements, what water they thrive in (pH, hardness, temp etc), aggression, compatibility, dietary needs etc


I am sorry, but it is obvious that you did little to no research due to the fact that you didn't know that the blood parrot cichlid is only green/black as a baby to juvenile and turns to a reddish orange color when it starts maturing. also due to the fact that you don't know the names for half the fish, and that you had them all in such a small tank - its wonderful that you are going to be buying a bigger one, but you still have to cycle that one. please read up on "fishless" cycling and "seeding" the filter. in my opinion, you should simply have waited to purchase the fish once you researched them, AND had a suitable home set up and filtered for them. mixing the cichlids like you have is just asking for trouble.

post some pictures here in out cichlid section so people can help you identify them to learn what they will need for the tank.



I know it sounds a bit harsh, but really just saying this for both you (your sanity, stress, time and money) and the fish (health, happiness, stress, lifespan)