What’s wrong with my Oto?

[lilsd]

First time keeping Otos. I was on the fence about getting them because of the ethical issues with them being wild caught and treated horrible in transport. But I couldn’t find another tiny nano catfish that’s as good at algae control, so I went for it. I regret that choice and won’t be buying any more in the future. Out of the 4 I bought, 1 of them died immediately the first time I did a small water change. The other 3 are still alive but they are extremely skittish whenever I do anything at all as far as tank maintenance.

I noticed this one today with a white blotch on his head. Is this some kind of disease? Or maybe an injury from bashing into something in a panic? Poor things. They’re eating well but they seem stressed. I wish I hadn’t bought them….

Right now they’re sharing the tank with 2 Amano shrimp and a bunch of small snails. I was planning to add either a betta or a small group of CPDs in the near future.

 

[Innesfan]

It could be any of several things--an injury or something opportunistic. Could you provide some more info? What size tank, what's the temperature, what are the water parameters, and what is your water change regimen?

To my knowledge, virtually all Otocinclus are wild caught. Many of us prefer wild caught fo whatever species we're interested in. The difference in terms of stress for the fish between being shipped from the wild or from an Asian fish farm is minimal if non-existent. And wild fish won't be bringing in incurable viruses that are spreading among many species being farmed in Asia. Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. Just find a more reliable supplier. There are many excellent ones.

 

[lilsd]

thanks. I hadn’t thought about that angle as far as shipping from a farm overseas. But I’ve also read from several sources that otos in particular are starved nearly to death during transport and that they have a notoriously low survival rate because of this.

It’s a 10 gallon planted tank with aqua soil substrate, capped with sand and rocks. It’s fairly new but has been cycling for about 9 weeks now. I added the shrimp and otos nearly 2 weeks ago. The snails hitchhiked in on the plants and have been slowly multiplying. Ph is around 7.1-7.2, ammonia/nitrate/nitrite are all 0. I have a heater in the tank that keeps it around 76-77F.

There was a lot of algae in the tank before I put the shrimp and otos in. But they made quick work of it and it’s very clean now. I’ve been giving them some sinking algae pellets to make sure they have enough to eat. But that’s also causing the snails to multiply faster. Probably going to get some assassin snails soon to balance that out….

When I did the one water change (and generally when I do water changes) I siphoned out the dirtiest bits at the bottom of the tank, and then topped the tank off with fresh water. probably 10-15% water change when all is said and done. I made sure the temperature was exactly the same as the tank, and added water conditioner and fertilizer to the fresh water from my tap. For the first water change I only added 1/2 the amount of fertilizer I normally would, out of an abundance of caution. Even though I’ve used the exact same bottle of the same thing in my previous tank and never had an issue, I wasn’t sure if these fish and shrimp would be sensitive to it and just wanted to be careful. Still one of the otos died instantly, like less than 30 seconds after I added the new water he just went belly up and sank. The others were swimming around frantically and acting stressed. Yesterday I trimmed a couple of dead leaves off of the plants (literally like 2 or 3 leaves, nothing drastic) and got the same kind of frantic panic reaction from them. I normally would do a small water change once a week, but I skipped it this week because the water tested clean and I don’t want to keep stressing them out. But that isn’t going to be sustainable long term…..

 

[Gertrudae]

Probably going to get some assassin snails soon to balance that out….

I would not. They will kill all the other snails, but they won't fulfil their purpose – removing algae, food residues, etc.

I would add some catappa leaves. They have an antibacterial effect and serve as food for the otos, snails and shrimp as they gradually decompose. They also provide places to hide.

Could you please post a photo of the entire aquarium?

 

[lilsd]

I would not. They will kill all the other snails, but they won't fulfil their purpose – removing algae, food residues, etc.

I would add some catappa leaves. They have an antibacterial effect and serve as food for the otos, snails and shrimp as they gradually decompose. They also provide places to hide.

Could you please post a photo of the entire aquarium?

Here is the whole tank

 

[fishorama]

Otos can often have a hard time getting used to foods we offer them once they run out of the right types of algae. I use Repashy Soilent Green gel food for my auf wuchs grazers (not otos).

You might try leaving your lights on for a few extra hours to grow algae for them, your tank seems very "clean". It's a pretty new set up so there isn't as much biofilm or algae for the otos.

Have you seen them actually try to eat the algae wafer food or anything else? They may not recognize it as food yet.

Good luck!

 

[Gertrudae]

It looks very bright and open. I would cover the rear and a side pane with a dark foil or paper. And I would add more plants, higher stem plants in the background and some floating plants.
Could you get some small, dry branches with lichen on it? This provides extra food and cover from above.

I took this picture at night so it's very dark but I hope you can get the idea.

 

[Gertrudae]

to grow algae for them

You can put some flat stones in extra fertilized tank water at a sunny place to grow algae and aufwuchs.

 

[lilsd]

Thanks everyone. I do plan to add more plants, a few of the original plants melted while the tank was cycling and didn’t survive. I also had a TON of red root floaters that were growing and multiplying very fast. So fast that they were blocking the light from getting to the rest of the tank. I recently removed most of them and just left a few, to let more light get through. Maybe I should have left more, but theyll grow back fast.

There was actually a lot of algae in the tank before I added the shrimp and otos. I was really surprised how fast and how thoroughly they cleaned it up. And yes I do see the otos eating the algae pellets. But I’m trying to find a balance with that because the zillions of tiny snails also swarm the pellets, and there are already snail eggs everywhere

 

[fishorama]

Work on removing some snails & their eggs. You can scrape off jelly-like egg masses with a fingernail & vacuum them out. You won't find them all but can put a dent in their (over) population. Small pond or ramshorn snails can be killed by smushing them against glass or other surfaces. Vacuum out the "leftovers", it can raise your ammonia faster than your beneficial bacteria & plants can work enough to be effective. Plus snail shells can raise your GH. If you have MTS (trumpet snails) you'll have to trap them or pick them out by hand after tank lights are out. Their shells are very hard & they're livebearers...

I don't mind a few snails, they can be useful & even cute (ramshorns to me). But they compete with your otos for food. It's very good your otos eat algae wafers. Try to find another food they will eat. It's best to have a back-up food.

 

[Gertrudae]

10 gallon planted tank

2 Amano shrimp

IMHO the tank is too small for Amanos. They grow up to 5 cm in size, swim fast when courting, and should be kept in larger groups. Like Otos, they feed on aufwuchs, whereas the small snails also eat dying plant material.
Amanos are also must faster in artificial food and can outcompete the otos. I would rehome them.
But I think your problem right now ist not feeding them but the bright open tank. I would work on this so that they can feel more comfortable. And you'r adding more surfaces that means more food.

 

[lilsd]

Appreciate the advice. This thread has gotten a bit off topic, but to update my original post: the Oto with the strange spot on his head now has a white furry looking growth on that spot, and is struggling to swim upright. I had originally thought it was an injury, but now I’m wondering if he has some kind of fungal infection? I have never seen anything like this before. Any ideas? He’s so small it was hard to get a decent picture.

 

[lilsd]

Update: he did not make it. After some googling it looks like it was saprolengia, and could have possibly been a secondary infection. Never seen this before. Trying to look at this now as a learning opportunity to understand what I could have or should have done differently to prevent this, if anything.