Panda Cories

[KateW]

Hi Everyone

I am quite gutted to be posting this but really need your help. I have a fairly new 185 litre aquarium. I have just finished a full fishless cycles (over 50 days, with 6 consecutive double 0 days) and yesterday I got my first fish: 5 panda cories (withe intention of increasing numbers), 10 harlequin rasboras and one tiny bristlenose plec. All were acclimated for over an hour before being let loose in the tank.

Today I transferred 9 neon tetras from my other smaller tank, at about 6 pm this evening.

I am sure that before we went out at 3 pm this afternoon, all the cories were fine. Shortly after adding the neons, I noticed that one cory was missing almost all of his tail., and his dorsal fin was a little ragged. It is now 10 pm and I have just removed his body.

I have just done a head count and check, and another cory has lost part of his tail - from the bit where it splits to about half a centimetre from the base of his body. His dorsal fin is ragged and he looks a little bit sideways, as if he is leaning against the glass.

Water parameters are good - ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 40 - 80 (tap water is 40), temperature is about 27, but it is very warm here today, and this is a warm room. pH is stead at 7.4.

What have I overlooked? What can I do? Please help, I don't think I can stand to lose any more of them

 

[juggernuts]

Well first of all sorry for your loss, does your bristle have somewhere to hide? is there enough room that the panda's dont want to go in there too? it could be the bristle that is defending its turf and is therefore messing them up?

only thing i could see being the problem, harlequins wont do a thing and if your stats are fine its all i can think off.

 

[KateW]

Thanks for the reply. The bn seems to be enjoying the 3d background - there are lots of overhangs in it to hide in, and two ceramic caves, but they are quite big. Bu the bn is really tiny - barely an inch long.

I looked at the all a moment ago and a third cory has little White edges to his tail - does that give any clues?

 

[notg2009]

Just wanted to say that I have 5 peppered cories in my tank with rasboras and neons and have never had a problem with them. I'm not sure if a tiny pleco can cause so much, but just wanted to share my experience with you.


PS. Even my 2-inch gold gourami doesn't attack cories.

 

[This Old Spouse]

It sounds like fin rot. The fish most likely were stressed and possibly had the beginnings when you put them in their new home. I'd start large water changes of 50-70% and if possible add Melafix according to directions.

There are some on the forum that believe that no medications are necessary if the water quality is perfect. So the Melafix would be up to you.

 

[KateW]

Thanks all. I agree it seems unlikely that the plec would attack the cories, he just minds his own business.

The cory with part of his tail missing (and the rest with large white patches) is alive this morning, although looking a bit sorry for himself.

Four harlequins, however, were dead, and another missing in action. No outward signs of disease or injury.

Test just completed show ammonia 0 nitrite 0 Temperature is now 26.

Apart from water changes I don't know what to do for them at all, gutted.

 

[Tizer]

How did you transfer them to the tank? did you leave them in the bag they came in and float them in the water or just dump them straight in?

Quite a few Aquatic shops keep their fish in RO water and it takes a while for them to adjust.

 

[kevinjames]

for it to be that quick it sounds like ammonia burns, how are you testing the water. how small are the pandas? they are possibly the most sensitive cory aswell and are known not to acclimatise very well. also if they are poor quality fish from your lfs going into a new setup wont help. id just do water changes and keep an eye on things. the best cure for ragged fins is fresh water. just look out for infections the fish may pick up as a result of the ragged fins. hope it all works out well. oh and i very much doubt it would be ur baby bn plec.

 

[KateW]

Update: eight harlequins now dead, one alive, one missing. two more cories dead I have just done a 25% water change with temp matched dechlorinated water.

Tizer: I floated them in the bags for about 30 minutes. Then opened up the bags and added 5 ml of water to each bag (using the syringe used to draw water for testing - should be clean) every five minutes, for another 30 minutes or so. Then they were released in to the tank. They all seemed fine for the first 36 hours. Should i have asked what kind of water they were in? The journey from LFS to floating at home was no more than ten minutes.


Kevin: It is strange you say burns, because the one of the two remaining harlequins has a white patch on the top of his body that does look like a blister. Scrub that, he has just been found dead on the bottom, after swimming around five minutes ago.

Ammonia is testing 0 with an API master test kit. Just for the avoidance of doubt I am going to test a sample alongside a tap water sample to see if there is any difference. EDIT: Have just done side by side tests for ammonia and nitrite. Both samples are 0 for both ammonia and nitrite. If anything there is very slight positive reading from the tap water, but not enough to be called 0.25 (and no, I didn't get them mixed up!). I use seachem prime to dechlorinate, so that should take care of any positive readings in the tap water source.

Note on LFS: It occured to me this morning that a while ago I had nine cardinals from the same shop die over night, for no apparent reason. Other fishes form there have also died in a less dramatic manner. I will go elsewhere in future, if there is a future.

 

[This Old Spouse]

So, so sorry about your losses.

I'd do at least an 80% water change to see if you can save the survivors. Also, make sure you give the testing bottles from your test kit a whack on the table and then shake a bit before using, and check the expiration date.

I'd say you did everything correctly when bringing your fish home, except once you're ready to release them into your tank, reach in with a net to get them out rather than letting any of the LFS water into your tank. I'm reasonably sure I introduced some fin rot that way and will never do it again!

What are you using to dechlor the water before putting it in the tank?

 

[kevinjames]

kate im sorry your having so many problems but i think it comes from a bad stock from your lfs. i recently started a tank up at my parents, all was well till i bought some guppys from a local lfs against my better judgement, then one week later the tank was pretty much wiped out. this was a fully cycled tank that had been running without any problems.

i honestly think the combination of poor quality stock and a poorly run lfs is the problem. if i were you i would name and shame tbh. u said they advised you when you started: what exactly was this advice

id just weather the storm you are in now and see which fish pull through. dont give up hope though as this is the most rewarding hobby when all is well, good luck.

 

[notg2009]

What the... Looks like you did everything right! I agree with kevinjames; I think the fish you got had a disease or were super stressed. In such cases I go back to the LFS, and let them know and they take the dead ones off my hands and give me new ones (PetSmart). By the way your tank might now be contaminated with a parasite of some sort (you mentioned white spots, right?) I would treat the tank with the right med and get some hardy fish later. Ask the experts about a med that kills most parasites but not your biofilter. I have used API's Melafix before; says on the bottle that it does not kill the biofilter bacteria. Good luck.

 

[KateW]

Thanks again for the helpful comments. After the water change the remaining fish do look lively for now. I'll do another 25% or so before bed and the same in the morning. Thorough sand vac with each change in case there are any nasties lurking on the bottom.

Yes, there is one small white spot on teh nose of the remaining harlequin, but his fins look intact and no sign of blistering/white patches so far. Any suggestions of the appropriate medication?

When I had the last lot of cardinals from the LFS I did call them to tell them about it and they basically suggested it was all my fault, and they couldn't do anything about it without bodies and a water sample. So I think I will just steer clear from now on, and look elsewhere.

Thanks for the tips on scooping the fish out in to the tank, i will make sure I do that next time. On another thread somewhere I read about a technique for drip aclimatising using airline, so I might try that next time.

If all the survivors continue surviving, I may thing about replacing the cories in a week or so - I know the remaining pandas won't be happy just the two of them. Any ideas for a species a little less fragile than pandas?

unfortunately there is a very limited range of LFS around here - I might use this story as a way to convince my mate to get on with renovating and opening his own shop, which has been empty for over 5 years now...

 

[This Old Spouse]

Good news then! And yes, excellent fuel for a good argument for your mate to get his shop up and running again!

 

[Tizer]

It certainly sounds a bit fishy

The only answer i could think of is a short sharp ammonia spike after adding the fish which disapeared prior to testing the water. Although it does seem very very unlikely!

One thing i avoid are fish that are kept in low tanks, children often knock on the glass and stress them out, school holidays are the worst time to buy fish imo. again, unlikely cause.

Did you have your lights on when you put them in the tank? Normally its good practice to keep them off while your fish settle in. But again, i dont think this would cause so many deaths.

I suppose the only answer is poor decor, do you have really bad wallpaper in your house or some nasty colour choices that might have shocked your fish?