Jelly Daphnia Affecting Water?

[CageUK]

I fed the fishes tonight and for a treat gave them some 'Tetra Fresh Delica Daphnia', you know the type that comes in a little sachet that doesn't need refrigeration etc.

It states on the box that it does not cloud the water. As I squeezed it into the water there were milky clouds coming from the sachet along with the food. The fish didn't go as mad for it as I expected but did for the most part eat it.

When I returned to the tank later (1 hour or so), the water had turned cloudy. The fishes behaviour had changed as well. The mid water fishes(Gourami, Rainbows and Angel) were hovering towards the surface, the pims seem to be breathing 9 to the dozen. They do breathe rapidly anyway but now seem to be much faster. The two albino long finned BN catfish are making occasional dashes to the surface to apparently gulp air. Just before they do this they seem to expel a couple of bubbles.

None of the fishes actually seem to be in distress (no clamped fins or anything) but are more or less just hovering in position with an occasional flit to the middle then back again.

My stats immediately prior to this (I had just tested the water):

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 30ish
GH: 13dh
Temp: 27c

My first reaction was to 25% water change and turn up the filter power
I thought that maybe the water had got polluted and was stifling the oxygen. I did and oxygen test and got between 5 and 8 mg/ltr difficult to see for sure but I think it was the lower end of this estimate

The food box says that it does not cloud the water. I also noticed that the food is 5 days out of date but I wouldn't have thought that would have been an issue, but who knows.
It could be something else but it's just too much of a coincidence that this all happened just after I fed them.
It's going in the bin regardless!

I may just be paranoid but I'd rather be safe than sorry.

 

[WILDER]

Immediate water change, add some new filter floss.Increase aeration sounds like the daphnia was off.So you have preformed a water change, how the fish acting now.If still the same I would do a gravel vac with the water change.

 

[CageUK]

Well since the light went out (on a timer) some of the midwater fish have started swimming almost like normal. The pims are acting like plecos and are swimming head up agains the glass. My last balloon Molly is swimming just above the sand. Not quite shimmying but not her usual self.

No spare filter medium but I could try sticking some carbon in there from a different filter that I have!

Thanks for the reply!

Why do these things always happen at night? tut.

 

[WILDER]

Take the filter floss out and throw it away, and get some new.
Black carbon would be good if the tank its coming from has no desease in it.
If they start acting odd again I would do a gravel vac to make sure the daphnia it out of the tank.
Keep an eye on the fish as fish do get food poisoning.

 

[CageUK]

If you are still awake Wilder, you shouldn't be

But if you are, I've done another water change and put the charcoal filter in. I've sort of jimmied it into my fluval 304 (its a juwel filter carbon sponge) but hopefully it will help with any toxins in the water if that is what the problem is.

My pims seem to have been hardest hit for some reason. One is on his side but will move when I touch him and I keep placing him right way up on the sand. I don't expect to see him alive in the morning but fingers crossed. The jury's out on the other one. One minute he is swimming fine, the next he is swimming up the glass and he doesn't usually do that.
They were due to go to their new home this weekend as well!

I was in two minds whether to dose with Melafix, but as it's not a bacterial problem I'm not sure how much good it would do, particularly as I now have carbon in the filter!

Don't think anymore can be done tonight though.

Thanks for your advice anyway.

 

[WILDER]

Sorry the one on it side sounds like it has food poisong will find you some info.
As the tummy bloated up.
Up late always am lol.

 

[WILDER]

Can't be able to find any info on food poisoning in fish.
All you can do is wait and see now, so sorry bless them.
Never use food thats out of date.

 

[CageUK]

Just a quick update on this.

I lost the Pim that was struggling very shortly after my last post on here. The other one looked like he was starting to struggle as well.

Got up this morning expecting to see bodies in the tank, but thankfully it seems to have settled down tremendously.

Pim looks like he's breathing and swimming more or less normally and the only two that I am remaining concerned about are the B Molly as she is staying up at the top of the tank and Mrs Whiskers (female LFABN catfish) who has attached herself to the filter tube sucker and not moved. This is slightly unusual behaviour for her but we'll see. I know we are not out of the woods yet but looking much more promising.

Thanks very much for your help wilder.

P.S. Meant to say. When I fed them I hadn't noticed that the food was out of date. I thought as well that manufactures normally built in a 'safe' period to cover themselves in case a product went bad 'in date' which would allow for some leniency. I find it a little concerning that a food would go so bad so quickly. I have a box of Bloodworm from the same manufacturer which will be going in the bin. Interestingly this has been fed to my other tank out of date (as I have just realised) with no problems...win some lose some I guess.

 

[WILDER]

Glad there doing better, sorry about the one that died. R.I.P.
I have bought that product once but my fish didn't seem to like it.
I would do a gravel vac just to make sure it all out.

 

[CageUK]

Yep I did another belt n braces water change this morning. Was out for the rest of the day and when I got back tonight was very relieved to find that everyone seems to have recovered from their ordeal, even the other pim (Hope I haven't spoken too soon).

Along with the water change I did a thorough bottom vacuum.

I can breathe again at last...phew

 

[WILDER]

Bless them, well done.
Panic over, just have to watch now.
Good luck.