Pleco related problem

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lily123

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
May 7, 2015
Messages
4
1~What type of fish is afflicted? In addition, please describe what is wrong with the fish to the best of your ability (i.e. cotton like growth, bloated, etc.).
pleco, was doing great a while ago really active and everything (whether with the lights on and off) but suddenly it stopped moving as much got to the point where it stays still at the same spot for hours and its colour from the tail part is fading and I checked a few minutes ago to find the fin at the end of it's tail is cut in half. I don't know if it's eating or not but I make sure to put a little bit extra food for my other fish so the pleco could get what remains and I tried to feed it cucumber but it didn't even acknowledge it and was left for my fintail goldfish to eat it.
I attached photos for you to judge the one where itstill has colour on it's tail is when I started to notice the strange behaviour

2~What are your tank parameters (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, temp, pH)? Please give exact values.
where I live they don't sell the tank kits stuff so I don't really know what the tank parameters are and whenever I ask for the pleco food they just dismiss it saying that this kind of fish lives on the waste of other fish. (awful I know) I'm trying to make the best of a really bad situation here since I don't have the means to get the proper equipments

3~ How large is the tank? How long has the tank been set up?
I have a 50 gallon tank and I've had it for almost year now

4~What type of filtration are you using? Please give the name and number (i.e. Fluval 304) and amount of gph if known.
I'm using RS electrical -400a for filtration

5~How many fish are in the tank? What kinds of fish are they and what are their current sizes?
I've attached a picture but they've been living together ok

6~When is the last time you did a water change and vacuum the gravel? How often do you do this? How much water do you remove at a time?
I change the water every month but this time (like 3 or 4 days ago) I wasn't home so my mother did the cleaning and she changed the whole water in the tank :facepalm:

7~How long have you had the fish? If the fish is new, how did you acclimate it/them?
I had this fish for more than three month and it was ok until mum changed the water of the tank

8~Have you added anything new to the tank--decor, new dechlorinator, new substrate, etc.?
nothing at all!

9~What kind of food have you been feeding your fish, have you changed their diet recently?
as I stated I don't have any pleco food so I'm counting on the normal fish food

please tell me what is wrong I really love this fish :cry: should I change the water again? or should I just let it be
 

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Wow!
Pardon me if I am all wrong(not first time),
BUT it looks like you have kio/goldfish along with your pleco in a fairly small tank for all those fish(50 g or not!)
You need to change water weekly or lose at least 1/2 of the stocking
Step up to 50% water changes WEEKLY!
Plecos need driftwood to aid in digestion and didn't notice any in pics?
Get some!
Mostly hope the bump helps.
 
Looks like koi. I hope you have a pond and are prepared they can get 30 inches in their life time.


Caleb
 
Hi,

Welcome to AA. Congrats on yourself and your mum being keen on looking after your fish.

I would suspect water conditions or perhaps fin rot triggered by water conditions. Could be other things but generally water conditions are the place to start.

A water test kit (cheaper online) is imo a good piece of equipment to have. Sometimes just better water conditions (changing water more often) is all that is needed.

Most on here will do around 20 to 50% water change each week. It's best to do regular changes rather than let it go and then do a big change as the fish get stressed adapting to new water conditions and this can open them up to infection.

As above moving to more regular water changes will be the first to try.


Freshwater test kit

http://www.guppysaquariumproducts.c...est-kit.html?gclid=CMuV8sO6s8UCFZGWvQodSWEALw

Stocking guide

http://www.aqadvisor.com


Other useful links

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...ou-get-started-with-your-aquarium-154837.html
 
Wow!
Pardon me if I am all wrong(not first time),
BUT it looks like you have kio/goldfish along with your pleco in a fairly small tank for all those fish(50 g or not!)
You need to change water weekly or lose at least 1/2 of the stocking
Step up to 50% water changes WEEKLY!
Plecos need driftwood to aid in digestion and didn't notice any in pics?
Get some!
Mostly hope the bump helps.
thank you for replying I try to change 50% of the water as frequently as I can and I never let it get so dirty but is having a koi and gold fish bad for the pleco?? the guy I got the fish from said they wouldn't hurt it
 
Looks like koi. I hope you have a pond and are prepared they can get 30 inches in their life time.


Caleb
they do? I've had this one for more than a year and it's still relatively the same size :D
 
Hi,

Welcome to AA. Congrats on yourself and your mum being keen on looking after your fish.

I would suspect water conditions or perhaps fin rot triggered by water conditions. Could be other things but generally water conditions are the place to start.

A water test kit (cheaper online) is imo a good piece of equipment to have. Sometimes just better water conditions (changing water more often) is all that is needed.

Most on here will do around 20 to 50% water change each week. It's best to do regular changes rather than let it go and then do a big change as the fish get stressed adapting to new water conditions and this can open them up to infection.

As above moving to more regular water changes will be the first to try.


Freshwater test kit

Freshwater Master Test Kit | Guppy's Aquarium Products Online

Stocking guide

AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor


Other useful links

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...ou-get-started-with-your-aquarium-154837.html
thank you for replying and for the links I'll make sure to check them out. I'm starting to be sure that it's the water at fault here (and I feel bad that it took me so long to realize)because my goldfish's tail is ever so slightly burned so I'm going to change the water as soon as I can. but I was wondering since the water is causing all this should I just change it all this time and then go back to removing 50% of the water? I'm really starting to worry because I have two different fish in a smaller tank and I think the water is making their fin-rot too.
 
Imo it is best to gradually increase up to the weekly water change size.

This is so the fish can adjust to the new water chemistry. So better off doing some 50% changes to start with. Also water changes should roughly be of the same temperature as tank.

Regular water changes can cure fin rot and other fish troubles all by itself as the fish are in a better environment. (Equivalent to us living from a smog filled town to country fresh air).

A pet shop may test your water for free as well.

I would do some 50% partial water changes and look into getting a water test kit (liquid based not cardboard strips).

The lfs owner I know rarely does a water change. It's very likely the ph has dropped as the tank becomes more acidic over time as the bacterial activity uses buffers and elements. A 100% water change probably rapidly increases the ph (reflecting other water chemistry changes) so it is a bit like one second you are used to winter and the next second it's summer.

Strong, stress free fish are ok with 100% water changes (otherwise discus keepers would be in trouble) but ime best to work up to these high levels of water changes.

What water conditioner are you using?
 
I see 3 koi and 2 goldfish. They are likely stunted or will be stunted soon from having too small of a tank.


Caleb
 
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