Pleco is BLEEDING

[corykitty516]

I have a rubber lip pleco that I bought about a week ago. It was still alone in the 10 gal quarrintine tank. This was a replacement for a rubber lip, bought 3 days previous that only lived 48 hours.

pleco 1
Tank stats:
10 gal cycled
Ammonia 0
NitrIte 0
Nitrate 20ppm
Treated the water with stress coat and Aquarisol in reccomended doses
Dead within 48 hours

pleco 2
tank stats the same
started a default treatment of Maracyn-2 upon bringing this fish home because of the swift and unexplained death of pleco 1. Treated Mon-Friday per directions

pleco2 developed this today. Nothing sharp in tank to do this. Filter intake is protected so its not that .
To me it looks like when I brought home some corys that had hemorragic septicemia. This puzzles me because the Maracyn should have taken care of that.

SO is it going to die?
Should I euthanize?
Should I just return it, its still under garantee?

 

[Snailguy101]

What other fish are in the tank?

 

[corykitty516]

no other fish

it is in quarrantine

 

[Snailguy101]

Hmmm Is their anything that he can cut himself on any ornaments that have sharp or anything?

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Its septicemia yes, septicemia is somtimes inernal bacterial in origin but its main cause is from things like vast temperature changes, adding too cold or hot water into the tank, or jostling the fish around in transport or stress from other similar enviromental causes.
Because septicemia is mostly stress caused in origin, feeding the fish good quality varied diet, keeping the tank lights turned off to lower stress levels and keeping good water quality and good temp and making sure the affected fish is with no other very active or nippy fish is good too for recovery- using a watered down dose of a mild antibiotic like Melafix will be good as well and making sure the tank isn't in a loud or busy enviroment etc- basically try to lower stress levels as much as posible and it should pass. Septicemia looks very bad but many fish easily recover from it given a chance and some time.

 

[platyfreek]

did you maybe add salt to the tank? i know salt burns the skin on plecos. but from the looks of the pictures its not that cause it wouldn't just be all over one fin. sis you but the 2 plecos from the same tank at the pet store? if so, maybe get one from a diferent tank next time or try i different store.

 

[corykitty516]

Nope no salt .... I only use salt on the bettas and only when they are sick. I figured plecos would be the same as corys with the no salt thing.

I did get them from the same tank though... hence the automatic antibiotic treatment. Its a $3 fish so its not like I'm out a bunch... which is why I hesitate to return it while it is still alive. They'd be likely to toss it and I'd rather treat it myself... I alredy have most of the meds out there on hand anyway.

If this one doesnt make it I'm not getting another from this place (its petsmart by the way) I dont usualy get anything but supplies there because they usually dont have anything I want. Normally they do a great job though, friendly, clean tanks, hardly ever any floating dead fish etc.


I'm going to keep him quiet and dark for a few days and see if it doesnt clear up by itself

 

[corykitty516]

THank you all


And nevermind



I took him back to petsmart and a friend of mine was working.... she was like "oh god another one" apparently they've been having somekind of outbreak in their whole system. The new fish manager was a craft store manager before and knows nothing about fish. She put 20 cups of salt in the filtration system which is now burning up all the sensitive and scaleless fish.
I hate that. It was a really good shop before this.
Anyway ... I traded it for a betta.


RIP pleco

 

[WILDER]

Sorry, R.I.P.

 

[hello kitty]

rip pleco, thats awful about the shops hope bettas cool

 

[LadyMinion]

Dear God - I hope you are going to report that shop. That manager needs to be taken away and educated before going within 10 miles of any fish!

 

[Spyderdf]

Wow thats a shame ...


^^yea report it

 

[corykitty516]

I'm hoping my friend that works there can help get it all straightened out. She's not technicaly in the fish dept but she knows a good bit about fish.
I guess I'll write the company ... here in the states they dont care so much about fish welfare as they do furry animals.
Sometimes I feel that I should volunteer to do like a training session for the employees about the fish they are keeping and selling.
The shame is that this used to be really good for a petsmart. They always make sure my tank is big enough when I buy something and they insist on gallon+ tanks for the bettas. I have hardly EVER seen a dead and NEVER a sick fish here. Today they were pulling dead ones out left and right.

 

[IMCL85]

Poor pleco they r hardy fish but if they still cant take the water from ur q tank then u should think of doing a 100% water change to ur q tank and reset it up again.

 

[Briarmoor]

Sorry the hear about your pleco. I haven't bought fish from Petsmart although they have good prices on supplies sometimes. Their tanks are usually dirty (at least at the one here) and the kicker for me is that the whole system is connected. So one sick fish, the whole lot is exposed. No thanks.

Petco's tanks are usually a lot cleaner and the staff seems to know more about the fish overall, that is where I got my lovely Sal gourami and she is my favorite fish. However, like most places Petco doesn't tell you as a newbie that you are overstocking. Sell more fish is the motto at so many places.

The LFS here is where I started getting my fish, but one guy there was a jerk when I called to tell him about the Black Phantom swimming funny and he offered NO help whatsoever, so I am debating who to deal with. Why pay more for fish expecting "product support" and get worse than if you dealt with a chain store?

Again, very sorry about your plecos. I hate losing fishies.

P.