Red Nosed Tetras

[lizjamie]

Hi,

I have a 58litre tank with 6 rednose tetras and 3 lemon tetras. I had 3 of each until sunday, when I went to top up my stocks as I thought they would be miserable in such a small shoal. (No lemons in). I don't have a quarantine tank and added them in using the prescribed method.

The new 3 rednoses were very pale to begin with, however I thought they were just stressed by the move, and their red noses were slowly coming back. They did not integrate with the group however and tended to keep to themselves and were a bit shy.

I have now come home to find 1 of the new ones missing, and the other 2 on the floor of the tank looking sick. They are breathing heavily with clamped fins but no other signs of issues. Their red noses are still back a little but their bodies are currently VERY dark. Everyone else is fine and feeding happily.

ammonia and nitrites are 0, so no mini cycle.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

 

[Davo86]

I would increase aeration and do a small water change
what is your nitrate level? Rummynose are extremely sensitive so water needs to be in top condition

 

[lizjamie]

The nitrate is also zero - the tank is definitely cycled (it has been up and running for 4 months now with a fishless cycle before). I think I have such a low reading as I have quite a few plants and the tank is quite over filtered. I also did a water change on monday night as I was worried about any mini cycles.

I saw underneath a sick one and his gills look very red and inflammed. I have done a 1/3 water change in case of any poisoning, but I dont know of what. I have been checking the water stats daily since I added them.

One is starting to lose his balance, it is horrible.

(Note I doubt I can handle euthanising).

I am also worried as 2 of the 3 old ones are now also looking a bit off, although it could be paranoia. THe lemons (who up until now I had had far more trouble keeping alive) are as happy as larry!

 

[Colin_T]

Do a 50% water change and gravel clean the tank each day for a few days. Make sure the new water has a similar temperature & PH to the tank. Clean the filter if you haven't done that in the last month. Wash the filter materials out in a bucket of tank water. Tip the dirty water onto the garden. Increase surface turbulence to maximise oxygen levels in the water.

 

[lizjamie]

Ok so have done the water changes, now all of the new rummys are dead and 2 of the old ones are on their way out.

Water is still coming out perfect, and there are 3 healthy lemons and one seemingly fine rummynose.

Were the new ones diseased? I just have no idea what happened.......

 

[Colin_T]

Do any of them have tiny white dots on their fins? If so they have whitespot and will need treating.
If they have red bellies or red patching on them then they are affected by a bacterial infection.
Do you have a picture of any of them/ It might help identify a disease.

 

[lizjamie]

There is not a mark on them - the new ones went very dark in body colour but the old ones that are now gone stayed their usual pale grey.

Not ich, not columnaris, just obvious organ failure type twisting that came on suddenly - I would have guessed the water got a poison (that was not ammonia or nitrite) if it wasn't for the fact that all the others are fine.......

 

[Colin_T]

did you use a water confitioner in the new water to get rid of the chlorine? I assume you do but I am just checking.

maybe contact the shop you bought them from and see if they have had any problems. It could be the fish were just a bad batch and the shop might have lost them as well. They might offer to replace them if they have had problems at their end. If they do wait for a new batch to come in and don't buy any of the ones that are still there from the current batch.

 

[lizjamie]

Well I am now thinking some sort of parasite? THere are quite a few long twirly kind of poos around taht look far too big for any of my fish.....

Also - I know I have a dead one in the tank - I cant find it anywhere, I've checked the filters, the other dead one was a little munched when I came back from work, but could it actually disappear without a trace?

I really want to go for a massive cleanout but don't want to decycle as that will just cause even more problems.....

 

[Colin_T]

Big parasites that affect fish can be easily seen attached to the fish. If there are thin white wormlike things in the water they could be from the gravel. Most aquatic worms are harmless and hide in the gravel. If there is an excess of food in the tank, or the water quality deteriorates, the worms often come out and swim around.

If you have snails in the tank they will eat a tetra quite rapidly. Otherwise it is probably stuck under a rock or plant somewhere. You can do a 50-75% water change as long as the new water going into the tank is free of chlorine and has a similar temperature & PH to the tank. If possible make up the new water in a clean bucket (one that hasn't been used for anything but the fish), add the dechlorinator and mix it up. Get the temp correct and then add it to the tank.
As long as you use dechlorinated water and don't wash the filter materials out under tap water, or replace all the materials at once, the filters should be fine.

 

[lizjamie]

Yeah I am just paranoid as last time I washed out my fileters (yes in teh old tap water) I caused a mini cycle.

I have no snails and have taken out all the plants....

I am utterly at a loss.