Pearl Gourami...

[blueflash]

I have a pearl gourami with six neon tetras in the tank. I had the tetras first. When I went to get the gourami, the next day all the neon tetras were dead. All the water parameters were fine. How do I explain this? It is not a disease, or at least I don't think so because there are the gourami is still alive.
What I don't get even further is that the pearl gourami won't take any brine shrimp or flake food. It has been a month and a half and I have completely stopped feeding it because I have tried numerous times and it hasn't eaten. But it is still magically alive? Is it possible that it ate the algae? How do I fix this?
He is very lonely in the tank. What are some smaller companions that I could get him for his ten gallon.

 

[blueflash]

No one?

Help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Kelly-Jo]

Is it possible that the pearl gourami chased/stressed your neon tetras causing them to die? Or that adding the pearl gourami caused an ammonia spike?

 

[Neomeris]

I have no idea what caused this. This should be an episode on the fish version of the twilight zone.

 

[hanny93]

Neon Tetra Disease perhaps?

Maybe they were sort of on the brink of getting it, and then the extra stress caused by the new gourami (which by the way get huge, i had one about an inch long, put it in my OH's brothers 1500 litre tank and boom, bigger than a bala shark!) chasing them and the possibility of an ammonia spike.

How long has the tank been cycled for?
What are your readings (in numbers) for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH?

 

[blueflash]

My tank has been cycled for about 10 months now.
Ammonia: 0
Ph: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate 5
I don't think it was an ammonia spike because I had tested it that day and all the readings were normal. So maybe it was just stress.
But what I really want to know is why the pearl did not starve, and how can I get it to accept the food I give it. He won't even accept frozen brine shrimp!

 

[Kelly-Jo]

I reckon it was just due to the stress.

As far as getting a picky fish to eat, there are a few things you can try. Firstly, try as many different types of flake/frozen foods etc as possible and see if there is a particular type that the fish will take. However, this option can get expensive if the fish won't eat the food. I had an albino black-skirt tetra which refused to eat flakes or bloodworms so I didn't feed them for 2 days and after this time, he took the food straight away. Fish can go up to a week without food if they really have to so a 2 day fast will not hurt.

 

[nurglespuss]

Tetramin granules.

We have a picky male pearl gourmi, its the only thing he will eat (other than algae)

 

[hanny93]

Also garlic extract as an appetite thing?

Fish can lasta fair while without eating, especially bigger ones.

 

[Kelly-Jo]

Also garlic extract as an appetite thing?

Fish can lasta fair while without eating, especially bigger ones.

I've never tried this but I've heard good things about it. You could definately give this one a try.