Platies dying one by one

[Innesfan26 10]

Typically platies and platy/swordtail hybrids with the mickey mouse pattern or the wagtail mutation do not develop melanomas.

 

[10 Tanks]

So I should keep doing frequent water changes even though my parameters check out?

Hi Violet. Even if your water chemistry checks out, you still need to remove and replace the tank water regularly. The fish and plants are constantly using up the nutrients in the tank water. So, the water is in a constant state of change. As we all know, changes in the water chemistry isn't good for the fish. I have a 55 gallon tank that gets roughly 60 to 70 percent of the water changed weekly. This keeps the nitrogen from the dissolving fish and plant waste out of the water and keeps the nutrients that the fish and plants need for sustained good health in it. If you're not replacing a lot of tank water regularly, whatever is living in it isn't at its healthiest.

10

 

[VioletThePurple]

Hi Violet. Even if your water chemistry checks out, you still need to remove and replace the tank water regularly. The fish and plants are constantly using up the nutrients in the tank water. So, the water is in a constant state of change. As we all know, changes in the water chemistry isn't good for the fish. I have a 55 gallon tank that gets roughly 60 to 70 percent of the water changed weekly. This keeps the nitrogen from the dissolving fish and plant waste out of the water and keeps the nutrients that the fish and plants need for sustained good health in it. If you're not replacing a lot of tank water regularly, whatever is living in it isn't at its healthiest.

10

Tell that to all the people with self sustaining ecosystems

 

[CaptainBarnicles4 2]

You should absolutely keep doing frequent water changes even though your parameters check out and that's regardless of what people with a self sustaining ecosystem do...your fish are dying so you're nowhere near self sustaining, to be blunt although we can't tell you exactly why your fish are dying, if you haven't been doing large regular water changes as part of your maintainance then I would argue that poor water quality could very well be the reason

 

[Innesfan26 10]

An ad for this t-shirt and others like it popped up on my instagram feed. Seemed timely given this thread.

 

[VioletThePurple]

Still doesn't explain why I lost another fish even after doing a water change

 

[CaptainBarnicles4 2]

Most likely because the damage had unfortunately already been done...a smoker dying of cancer wont magically recover just because they stopped smoking the week before if you get what I'm trying to say? Water changes are just part of the hobby, just like cleaning out the cat's litter tray and picking up the dog's turds

 

[bgarthe28 46]

I am not trying to be insulting, but
just to be thorough……plz tell us the exact parameters of your tank water and tap water (temperature, pH, GH, and KH). How do you do your WCs? Is your new water absolutely free of chlorine and choramine?

Sadly in these recent years, I have noticed the quality of platies at LFSs has really gone down hill. Many of the platies I see in shops that have not sold right away look similar to yours. These should be culled, but inexperienced workers don’t notice the poor condition. When new varieties show up, I think they have been super fast sloppily bred for…..you guessed it……..a quick fast buck. The degree of inbreeding with a new strain seems to be overdone and done wrecklessly.
I would suggest you buy any future platies from dedicated platy breeders or quality sellers online. Platies were for many years my favorite fish, especially the wagtails. Another fish that appears to going along a similar path is the Fancy Guppy.

 

[VioletThePurple]

Most likely because the damage had unfortunately already been done...a smoker dying of cancer wont magically recover just because they stopped smoking the week before if you get what I'm trying to say? Water changes are just part of the hobby, just like cleaning out the cat's litter tray and picking up the dog's turds

I guess that makes sense, they'll unfortunately still die off because the damage has already been done

 

[CaptainBarnicles4 2]

Moving forward then, pick whichever day of the week is best for you and make that water change day, the bigger the better (I like to do between 50-70%) be consistent and you'll soon notice a difference in how your tank looks, especially the health of whatever fish you decide to add next