Sick Gourami?

[mhancock]

I have a tank with some that originally had a mixture of fish including one dwarf gourami, I have taken out the mollies and platties so it only has gourami, two algea eaters and a siamese fighter and added more dwarf gourami. It is not over stocked.

One of the new male dwarf gourami died, then the replacement one died, and the current one is not doing too well - seems to be hiding in the corner behind plants, never in the front, looking gaunt and thin with a greyish colour head. I've put him into an isolation/maternity tank so that he can feed.

Could it be that the other male who has been in the tank for a long time is simply scaring the new males (one at a time) into not eating, or have I just been unlucky with rubbish quality new fish? There are 3 females which I hoped would be enough for 2 males.

Would it be worth putting the male that is not doing well into my other tank (much larger and lots of different fish but no gourami) or is there something wrong with him that could effect the new tank?

As always, advice much appreciated!

Thanks,


Mark

 

[mhancock]

I honestly think he is dying - now pretty much on his side and struggling to get upright.

Any thoughts - PLEASE!!!

 

[Ruskull]

Unfortunately it sounds like Dwarf Gourami disease. It's a disease specific to Dwarf Gouramis and you probably introduced it to the tank when you got the additional ones. The pictures show distressed looking Dwarfs in my opinion. Do any of them have dark areas on their sides where it looks as though the scales have died?

Oh, and DGD is highly contagious to other Dwarfs but apparently doesn't have any effect on other fish. My prized Powder Blue Dwarf was doing great for months & then out of nowhere he wouldn't eat for a couple of days & then one morning he was struggling to keep upright in the tank. He died that day. Do not try to replace him with another Dwarf or the new one will more than likely suffer the same fate. It sucks I know, they're one of my favorite fish and I don't have any because all 4 of mine died.

 

[mhancock]

Unfortunately it sounds like Dwarf Gourami disease. It's a disease specific to Dwarf Gouramis and you probably introduced it to the tank when you got the additional ones. The pictures show distressed looking Dwarfs in my opinion. Do any of them have dark areas on their sides where it looks as though the scales have died?

I cannot see any, the male that's always been there looks fine and the female dwarfs and the honeys are fine. The pics are all of the same male.

Oh, and DGD is highly contagious to other Dwarfs but apparently doesn't have any effect on other fish. My prized Powder Blue Dwarf was doing great for months & then out of nowhere he wouldn't eat for a couple of days & then one morning he was struggling to keep upright in the tank. He died that day. Do not try to replace him with another Dwarf or the new one will more than likely suffer the same fate. It sucks I know, they're one of my favorite fish and I don't have any because all 4 of mine died.

How long should I wait before adding another male do you think? As you know, the males are the pretty ones!

PS - the dying male is on his side, hardly moving but breathing heavily. Should I put him out of his misery, or pop him into a bucket so that he can die without effecting the others?

Thanks,



M

 

[mhancock]

Update: the sick male is now on his own on a 4l ice cream tub that I can put in the airing cupboard to keep warm when I go to bed soon. I guess this is better than leaving him in the tank to effect the others when he is dead? Looking seriously weak now, poor thing.....

 

[Ruskull]

Update: the sick male is now on his own on a 4l ice cream tub that I can put in the airing cupboard to keep warm when I go to bed soon. I guess this is better than leaving him in the tank to effect the others when he is dead? Looking seriously weak now, poor thing.....

I feel your pain. Like I said, I lost 4 of them, 3 within a few days of each other. From what I've heard you can't just add another Dwarf because the water is now contaminated. Eventually that will propbably go away but you're free to try another one if you want to risk it. I get far too attached to my fish, especially the Gouramis since they're personalities are all so individual. My Powder Blue was a great fish, he ruled the tank but he never messed with any of the other fish.

 

[mhancock]

g

 

[mhancock]

The sick male has died, however I am concerned that if it is Dwarf Gourami Disease then will it spread to the others. I am considering:

• Moving the other dwarf gourami to my other tank and swapping with platties
• Doing lots of water changes to get rid of the disease
• Emptying and sterilising the tank and media before recycling
• Moving the honey gourami too

Any advice, as always, much appreciated.

Thanks,


Mark