Paroon Shark (Sick) Help!

[Tansterr]

Hi ! I am new to this forum ><. Im not an expert in fishes. currently i am very worried about my paroon shark dying because ever since I have treated them with the medication to cure Ich on them, they started to have red streaks appearing on their pelvic fins (correct me if I am wrong) which is their fin at the bottom part of their body, the one with the black tips. Are they sick? Or infected with something? Because I'm still treating them with the cure for Ich medication and they seem fine. Just that their bottom part of the fins are showing some red streaks. the medication I used to cure the Ich says that it Is harmful to all fishes so I am not really suspecting that it is the medication fault, however last time I've kept a pagasius catfish and after I've used the same medication to cure the Ich it has gotten red streaks on it, after awhile it died. So I'm really scared that my paroon shark dies as well .
I meant not harmful to all fishes** ><

 

[Sophie]

Can you provide a name for the medication you are using?
Also:
What size is the tank? Dimensions and volume.
How long has it been running for?
How long has the Paroon Shark been in there?
Is it filtered?
Did you cycle the filter at all before you added the shark?
 
I noticed you are from Singapore, so things can be quite different in the world of Aquaria as it is over this way.
The more information you can give the better.
 
The first thing that would come to mind is Ammonia poisoning - would you be able to post a picture of the tank/fish also?
Is there any rapid breathing coming from the gills?
Are the gills red?
What is the behaviour like?
 
Also do you know what type of Paroon Shark it is? Are you aware that most get to about 160cm in size?
The Paroon Shark is part of the sub species of Pangasius but there are many different types as far as I've read.

 

[Tansterr]

Hi!!
The name of the medication is from Qian Hu products -Ocean Free Medication, Super slime, white spot & velvet away.
The dimensions of my tank is 45cm x 30 cm x 30cm. Volume of the water now is 30litres
My tank has been running for four months now and it is those kind of filters around 20cm tall and 7cm wide, able to be fully submerged in the aquarium itself.
My paroon shark has only been in my tank for about two to three weeks!
Sorry I'm not very good at these aquarium stuffs, may I know what does it mean by to cycle the filter before I've added the shark?
After I bought them the shop owner placed them in a oxygnated plastic bag with water for them to be brought home, so I placed the plastic bag in my tank and let it float for about an hour and afterwards I scoop them out and release them into my tank.
I realized that my fish tank have frequent outbreaks of Ich, as my other 4 scat fishes in the tank which is about 1"-2" long also have gotten Ich too! My paroon shark right now is only about 3.5" long. I've been feeding them blood worms (hikari) so far and they're eating well the thing that I am concern now is that why do they have red streaks on them ? And how to cure them properly?
They are fine at the gills and their gills movement is constant. They are very active, keeps on swimming non stop but sometimes when they are scared they bump their heads onto the glass wall of the tank.
I can't seem to upload pictures as they say the file is too big /: they look like this http/www.flickriver.com/photos/cyprinoid/3136249876/

 

[DrRob]

OK, I was worried that this was a pangasius.
 
What you're describing is ammonia poisoning from a system where the biological filter can't cope with the waste being produced by the fish in the tank.
 
It happens with sudden changes in stock or if the stock is too large for the filter to be able to cope with.
 
The treatment has two aspects to it, one to do regular water changes and to make sure that the filter is healthy and clearing ammonia correctly through the nitrogen cycle (which is what we mean by cycled, having a healthy colony of bacteria in the filter to do this). The second is to make sure that the fish are in the right sized tank and have a suitable filter.
 
Sadly you're going to struggle to provide the correct tank conditions for a pangasius. They're monsters of the catfish world and produce the huge amounts of waste that go with it, even as relatively small fish, so that's probably what you've got going wrong. It's a fish that will grow to 3m in length and has a growth based metabolism to suit. That's what has kicked things off for you. The scats themselves may well be an issue too, as a shoal of those is more suited to a 75 gallon brackish tank than to a 30 litre tank.
 
So my first suggestion is to get over to the beginners section and have a read of the advice there. My second is to get some fresh water into that tank with a good sized water change and sadly my third suggestion is to either get your hands on a goodly sized tank for the scats and take the paroon back to the fish shop or to go into commercially sized tanks if you're considering keeping it. You're really talking about public aquarium type set ups for these things. The problem is that, as babies, they're cute, but they're truly baby monsters. If you can't get a good sized tank for the scats then you may well be better off swapping them for something a fair amount smaller. If you go that way then check out the nano-fish thread, it has some great suggestions for some fascinating fish for 30 litre tanks.

 

[Sophie]

If you need anymore help after the above post by DrRob please do ask but we cannot stress enough how big this fish grows to and how inadequate your current tank size is my dear.

 

[Tansterr]

Oh okay! Thanks. Would it be better if I get a 36 x 18 x 18 inch aquarium for my paroon shark and scat ? And after my scat grows bigger ill separate them ?

 

[DrRob]

Really the answer is no.
 
Unless you have room for a several thousand litre tank than you're not going to be able to keep the paroon for all that long sensibly.
 
The 36x18x18 may be OK for the scats.

 

[Sophie]

Do you have something big enough to keep this in?

 
Ok ok.. Maybe not that big.

More around that size, but still - dependent on specie of Pangasius.

 

[BamBeckham]

Hi Tanster,
 
I'm from Malaysia, & also new in this hobby. I've join this group last 3 weeks. I also don't know much about this hobby until I'm joining this forum. I've gone through as you experience. The important is, we need to keep the tank safe & healthy for our fish. There have some to check especially ammonia, Nitrite, pH, temperature, Nitrate. All this checking like pre-flight before proceeding your hobby. This is call Cycling your tank. It is better you cycling your tank before put it any fish (Fishless Cycling), but as like me, I have to do Fish In Cycling(Cycling with fish inside).
 
You may follow this thread "http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/224306-fish-in-cycling/"
 

You need spend some money to buy test kits to check your water ammonia, Nitrite, pH, etc. (I'm using API test kits). Buy thermometer as well to kepp your water in good degree because in our region normally we not using heater but possibilly we need cooler tools. (I'm using cooler fans to keep the temperature 26-29'C. Without cooler fans, my temperature around 30-32'C)
 
Normally we need regularly change the water(WC) to keep the ammonia & Nitrite low, & pH in healthy mark during Cycling. Sometimes you need to WC 2-3 times a day.
 
Your cycling will be finish when your ammonia & Nitrite in 0 ppm. If you doing Fish In Cycling, it is could be taking a bit of time cause while your cycling, you still need to keep your water in healthy condition for your fish. If you use Fishless Cycling method, then maybe more faster.
 
You may buy another tank(the bigger the better) & do it the Fishless Cycling method before transfer your fish. At the same time you can do the cycling for your current tank using Fish In Cycling method to keep your fish safe.
 
#I'm still doing the cycling & today is the third week

 

[Tansterr]

DrRob & Sophie - I've searched and read other forums on more about the paroon shark and most of them says that it takes a very long time for the paroon shark to grow big by the way, how many times should I feed my fish blood worms in a day? They are frozen in a cube and the cube is about 2cm long, 1cm wide and 1 cm tall. I don't know whether I've been over feeding them because I've been feeding them about 2 cubes a day. Thanks !

Bambekham - hi!! Thanks for your advice ! im considering whether to do fish less cycling or fish cycling in my new tank. may I ask if fish less cycling is more easier than fish cycling? oh and what kind of API do you use ? Is it reusable ? And does it come in a set to measure the ammonia and nitrate and pH levels ? Thanks

 

[BamBeckham]

may I ask if fish less cycling is more easier than fish cycling?

oh and what kind of API do you use ? Is it reusable ? And does it come in a set to measure the ammonia and nitrate and pH levels ? Thanks

 
From what I read & the expert told me, better you cycling use Fishless cycling method. First u totally can safe your fish from bacteria, 2nd it is probably more faster than Fish In Cycling method.
 
There are many test kits outside, but I know & found 2 types of it that nearby, API & SERA brands. And here, API a bit cheaper than SERA, so I decided using API test kits. You can keep these test kits for 2 years(The shop seller told me). You just use a few drops for each test. Perhaps there are in set kits, I'm not sure but here I bought 1 each.

 

[Tansterr]

Bambeckham- oh ! I see! Haha, how long does a fish less cycling takes to complete?

 

[BamBeckham]

Bambeckham- oh ! I see! Haha, how long does a fish less cycling takes to complete?

 
From what was told by experienced people 4-6 weeks.. But there are a way to make it faster, such as adding bacteria to your tank like Stress Zyme.
 

 
But some said, it is better let it naturally cycling.