Ich - temperature, light, and feeding

[Menagerie]

I'm sorry to hear the fin rot has taken off. My only experience with fin rot was with a male betta--If he was looked at the wrong way, his fins eroded 8O
I have two QT tanks (5 and 2.5 gal)--usually, they are in storage (well, at least one is). Lately they have been running :? Nothing worse in this hobby than ill fish.

I hope the Melafix works--don't worry about treating your whole tank; this is one med that is fairly safe.

 

[nsx]

Yes, definitely, sick fish are very frustrating. I didn't notice it until last night, but it looks like one of the Albino Tiger Barbs has been stressed out about something for awhile, perhaps the high temperature. He pretty much hides behind a plant all the time now, no longer schools with the other Albino and Regular Tiger Barbs, and is not eating. He looked like he had a single ich spot last night too. He's pretty skinny now, so this must have been going on for at least a few days, while my attention was focused on the Red Platies. :?

 

[Allivymar]

Ain't it always the way? I discovered my flagfish were tearing apart the fins of one of my dwarf gouramis. How do I know? I finally moved the flagfish and the gouramis stopped hiding *sigh*

Btw, if Melafix doesn't make a difference in 4 days or so (the fish should show at least a little improvement), you're going to need to treat it more aggressively with a true antibiotic. One with oxytetracycline would be best, such as Kanacyn.

 

[nsx]

Well, this just got more interesting. Right as I was readying the first dose of Melafix, I noticed that the single healthy Red Platy was dropping fry. I think she was down to her last two before I noticed it, as there haven't been any more since I started watching. I wouldn't have noticed if the Tiger Barbs weren't chasing what I thought was a piece of excrement, but I was thinking, wow, that piece of excrement moves pretty fast. So, I looked closer, and it had eyes! The Tiger Barbs fought the Siamese Algae Eaters for it, and got it about 5 seconds later. I saw the Red Platy drop another fry, and that one lasted about 3 seconds in the presence of a school of Tiger Barbs and Albino Tiger Barbs. I thought of moving the mother to the Cory QT tank, but realized that going from 87.8 to 78.8 degrees would shock and stress her too much. So, the Tiger Barbs had a tasty snack today.

The bad news is that the sick Albino Tiger Barb looks like he's on his last legs. He's so weak that you can tell he is struggling against the current of the filter intake when he gets too close. That's usually the first sign when I'm about to lose a fish. The single white spot that I noticed last night is gone, and he has no visible symptoms other than being very skinny from not eating. The rest of the Tigers and Albino Tigers are fine and schooling/eating normally, and the Red Platy fins don't seem to be getting worse.

 

[Menagerie]

I'm sorry to hear about your Tiger Barb. I just dealt with five fish that basically wasted away in front of me and would not respond to any treatment over the course of 6 weeks. I thought they might be sick when I bought them, but I had no idea.

As for the Platy--she's bound to have fry again in the future.

 

[nsx]

Thanks for the sympathy!

I'm debating whether to go get another QT tank for the sick Albino Tiger, as maybe it's the temperature that is stressing him out. Then again, the others are doing fine, so perhaps he was weaker than a normal Tiger barb to begin with. :?

 

[TankGirl]

I think the tiger barb needs to be removed, and the sooner the better. If he is wasting then I am suspicious of TB, which is very contagious, and it is better to err on the side of caution, in the interest of the other fish. TB will flourish under warmer temps, as it is a bacteria, so that would explain why the temps would bother this fish more. I hope that is not the case, but better safe than sorry.

 

[nsx]

The Tiger didn't make it through the night. Perhaps it was the addition of Melafix that pushed him over the edge. I guess I won't be getting another QT tank today after all.

 

[TankGirl]

Sorry about that tiger barb - I guess it was just too late.

I think you do need a Q-tank if you don't have one. It is nice to have before you actually need it, so if (when) you need it you are good to go.

 

[Menagerie]

I guess I won't be getting another QT tank today after all.

I keep two--just to be safe Currently one is housing the Socolofi because she is mouth brooding and last time she ditched the eggs (due to stress in the main tank--we think).
As for the Melafix, I doubt that had an ill effect. It sounds like the Barb was beyond saving, but you did your best with what you had. I know from another thread that your cories and a new barb are in QT for the next couple of weeks and with any luck, all will be well after that.

 

[nsx]

Sorry about that tiger barb - I guess it was just too late.

I think you do need a Q-tank if you don't have one. It is nice to have before you actually need it, so if (when) you need it you are good to go.

I actually have a spare tank that I set up as QT for the Cories while the main tank is in high temp ich treatment. Since it's occupied now, I couldn't just drop the sick Tiger in, so I was contemplating getting a 3rd tank, but I will make do with 2 for now.

 

[nsx]

I guess I won't be getting another QT tank today after all.

I keep two--just to be safe
I know from another thread that your cories and a new barb are in QT for the next couple of weeks and with any luck, all will be well after that.

Heheh, I'd like to keep the number of tanks to a minimum. My place is pretty small, and the Cory QT tank already occupies my dining table, and I eat at the coffee table.

Hehe, the sacrifices we make for our aquatic friends. I'm trying to hold off any more tanks until I can move to a new larger place, hopefully soon.

No new Tiger yet, because the LFS that's around the corner from my office was closed by the time I got down there. Probably in the next day or two though.

 

[TankGirl]

I agree with Menagerie that the Melafix probably did not contribute to the barb's demise.

 

[Menagerie]

No new Tiger yet

Oh, sorry it must have been someone else
No, it was you, and I misread the message. I thought you already had the new guy! I spend way too much time on this board!

 

[TankGirl]

Sorry about my confusion, too! I guess I need to spend more time on the board!

 

[nsx]

No new Tiger yet

Oh, sorry it must have been someone else
No, it was you, and I misread the message. I thought you already had the new guy! I spend way too much time on this board!

It was me in the other thread, just haven't gotten the new guy yet. Hopefully today!

Edit: Weird, went down to the LFS at lunch hour, and they were closed. I guess they were closed all yesterday too, and not just when I got there. Hope they didn't go under, as it's nice to have an LFS 3 minutes walking distance from the office.

 

[Menagerie]

Hope they didn't go under, as it's nice to have an LFS 3 minutes walking distance from the office.

Sweet! Although, I would be BROKE!!!

 

[nsx]

Hope they didn't go under, as it's nice to have an LFS 3 minutes walking distance from the office.

Sweet! Although, I would be BROKE!!!

Well, you might still go broke here. Within a 1/2 mile radius of my office, there are at least 10 LFS's, and within a 5 mile radius, I'd say there are at least 40 LFS's. Imagine a city block with 5-6 LFS all in a row (It's not uncommon). Makes shopping pretty easy. I discover a new LFS about once every week and I'm not even looking. Huge chain pet stores and selling fish in Wal-Mart type stores hasn't caught on here, which is probably a good thing, as that helps the smaller mom and pop LFS's stay in business.

In fact, it was one of my co-workers whose family owns an LFS that got me back into fish keeping after a 15 year hiatus.

 

[nsx]

Hmmmm, I think things have taken a turn for the worse.

One of the Siamese Algae Eaters, and 2 of the Tiger Barbs are showing 1-2 ich spots each.

The Tiger Barbs, while they still school together, look like they don't eat as much as they used to, and two of them are getting skinnier. I think the temperature may be stressing them out. I guess all I can do is ride it out and see.

As for the Red Platies, after Melafix, the fin rot isn't getting any worse, but it's recovering at a really slow rate. The good thing is that the Cories seem to be doing just fine.

Keeping my fingers crossed for everything.

 

[TankGirl]

I am very suspicious of TB here (skinniness, not eating) and it is extremely contagious, so it will take over the entire tank if that is what it is, unless you can get the affected ones out. High temps will make it flourish, and the ich is a separate issue, unfortunately.