Help with my pleco mouth fungus...

[Jpb1216]

Well I only ever see one at a time. And they are moving around and sucking on the driftwood and glass when I get home at 11pm and the lights are off.

 

[Jpb1216]

I had a cory develop that on an injury to one fin. I caught him and dabbed a little hydrogen peroxide on it with a q tip. No more fungus.

I'm sure you know to check your parameters and do water changes.

Did you dab the peroxide on him and just put him back in the tank?

 

[clearancepuppy]

Just now getting back here... yes, that is exactly what I did. For whatever reason, it didn't fight very much. I had a small bowl of tank water to slip it into and then transferred it back home.

It is doing great now, and is getting huge.

 

[Jpb1216]

Both of my plecos have the fuzzy white stuff on their noses

 

[Jpb1216]

I'm not sure if you can see the discoloration on this pleco but I can see it on my phone.

 

[Cactuspixie]

I'm not sure if you can see the discoloration on this pleco but I can see it on my phone.

I have no idea what the scary anemone-looking thing is, but the discoloration is normal. It is usually due to stress- either lighting/water quality/tank dynamics etc. are they both sailfin plecos?

 

[Jpb1216]

Yes they are

 

[Cactuspixie]

Yes they are

Unless you have a very large tank with lots of caves etc, they will cause you problems because they don't get along with their own kind or anyone who looks like them. I had two together in a 650L tank- I bought them when they were 3 inches, and by the time they were 6 inches they started showing signs of aggression toward one another. I separated them, putting one with a 10 inch common pleco. He was nasty to him too, especially around food, to the point where one night I had to pull him out and put him in with my 2 comets. Not ideal, but he seems happier there.

They have a very large bio load, even when young, so you'll need to keep fairly rigorous gravel clean and water change regimen. When I had the 2 sailfins together I did pwc twice weekly and vacuumed the gravel daily. This helps prevent infection of any injuries incurred during their little territorial disputes. (Now I have to do pwc on the comet tank daily! aargh)

Sailfins are such great fish- if you're able to separate them, they'll really come into their own and you'll see their real personalities.

 

[Jpb1216]

Dang. Should I bring one back to the pet store? I didn't know that they were aggressive to each other. Would a male and female be aggressive?

 

[Cactuspixie]

Dang. Should I bring one back to the pet store? I didn't know that they were aggressive to each other. Would a male and female be aggressive?

Unless, like me, you are prepared to end up with more tanks than you have rooms where you live, I'd suggest rehoming one before you get too attached.

 

[Jpb1216]

The only home is back at the store.

 

[Cactuspixie]

The only home is back at the store.

Yeah, that would be a good idea- they live a long time. A long time in which to give you grief if the dynamics aren't right. You may as well sort it out now and have a happy tank that you can relax and enjoy for years to come. Or become a fish tank hoarder. Lol

 

[Jpb1216]

Would it be wise to replace him with a different pleco species or should leave the one with free roam?

 

[Oohitsae]

Leave it with free roam...
A female might work, but then you'll end up with babies eventually and they take a while to grow to sellable size, meaning a while of a TON of water changes.
If you were to get a different species you'd still end up with aggression.

 

[Cactuspixie]

Would it be wise to replace him with a different pleco species or should leave the one with free roam?

Sailfins are happier when they are the only pleco in the tank.

 

[Jpb1216]

Ok gotta put it on Craigslist or ask the LFS will take it back

 

[Jpb1216]

I did notice that the pleco that has the stress related discoloration has more white fuzzy stuff so maybe they did get into a fight. I saw them this morning like violently flapping and waving their fins.

 

[Cactuspixie]

I did notice that the pleco that has the stress related discoloration has more white fuzzy stuff so maybe they did get into a fight. I saw them this morning like violently flapping and waving their fins.

Yeah, and the stoushes can become quite nasty since the weaker one can't flee to another territory. The dominant one can end up killing the weaker- mostly through its infected wounds and stress. The dominant one won't stop this behavior until one way or another he is the only pleco in his domain.

 

[Jpb1216]

Gotcha LFS it is

 

[Jpb1216]

Took one pleco back to the store and I can definitely see a behavior change in the other one.