LauraFrog
Fish Gatherer
This stuff always seems to happen to me lol... the cat knocked my airpump over and the hoses fell off it. (They're old, I should probably replace them but I've got to order in some new airline.) The hoses were running the risers on the undergravel filter in my 22 gal brackish community. It's pretty overstocked, so I run an undergravel plus a power filter rated for that size tank or one a little larger. (Other than nitrates going up fast and requiring weekly 50% water changes, the overstocking doesn't seem to bother anyone.) The power filter was still running but the undergravel was dead for a couple of hours at least. The ammonia was a little over .25 when I caught it, nitrites almost 0.5. So I did an immediate 80% WC, dosed the tank with ammo-lock, and fired the undergravel back up. That fixed it and I haven't had any further problems with the tank, ammonia and nitrite have been back to zero for 3 days.
There were 2 casualties. A rainbowfish (a local one, they're fine with brackish water) with gills on both sides hanging out like a frillneck lizard's frill, brick red gills, gasping, thrashing around in great distress. I didn't think there was anything I could do, or any realistic hope of recovery so I put it down. No idea why it was like that, because the other rainbows were exactly the same as the other fish, motionless at the surface and breathing a bit fast.
The other one, one of my sailfin mollies. One of my big breeder females and I really don't want to lose her. White lips, white patch on the top of the head with white stringy stuff coming off it and drooping all over her face. No signs of finrot or dropsy, so I thanked my lucky stars and shoved her straight in a bath of tetracycline.
Three days later, all the white is gone, she's swimming and eating normally (BIG improvement from lying motionless on the bottom with clamped fins) and I can't really see her too clearly because the tetracycline has turned the water red. There's no white on her and her lips have healed up but the top of her head where the white patch was looks black and scabby. Should I re-treat with tetracycline (fresh batch) or leave her or put her back in the tank or what? I can probably get a photo if that would help.
There were 2 casualties. A rainbowfish (a local one, they're fine with brackish water) with gills on both sides hanging out like a frillneck lizard's frill, brick red gills, gasping, thrashing around in great distress. I didn't think there was anything I could do, or any realistic hope of recovery so I put it down. No idea why it was like that, because the other rainbows were exactly the same as the other fish, motionless at the surface and breathing a bit fast.
The other one, one of my sailfin mollies. One of my big breeder females and I really don't want to lose her. White lips, white patch on the top of the head with white stringy stuff coming off it and drooping all over her face. No signs of finrot or dropsy, so I thanked my lucky stars and shoved her straight in a bath of tetracycline.
Three days later, all the white is gone, she's swimming and eating normally (BIG improvement from lying motionless on the bottom with clamped fins) and I can't really see her too clearly because the tetracycline has turned the water red. There's no white on her and her lips have healed up but the top of her head where the white patch was looks black and scabby. Should I re-treat with tetracycline (fresh batch) or leave her or put her back in the tank or what? I can probably get a photo if that would help.
