In brief: I am not new to fishkeeping, but it has been 15 years. In the past month I unexpectedly became a full-time homeroom teacher and in the process inherited a relatively new (2 months?) established fish tank populated with some species I have never had before. Thank heavens it wasn't a saltwater!
My issue is the guppy (a species I have never had.) Today I noticed fin diminishment and I don't know if it's fin rot or fin nipping. Here's my response to the standard questions:
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.).
A guppy, male (I think, I'm not used to sexing livebearers!), and his tailfin has been diminishing, starting in the center area. (I will attach some pictures. My photographic skill are somewhat lacking.)
2~What are your tank parameters (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, temp, pH)? Please give exact values.
Unknown. The classroom had no test kit. I bought one today and will test tomorrow. I probably won't be able to post them until Saturday as I'm teaching all day and am hosting a party tomorrow night.
3~ How large is the tank? How long has the tank been set up?
10-15 gallons. It's not as small as my old 5 gallon but not as big as my old 20.
4~What type of filtration are you using? Please give the name and number (i.e. Fluval 304) and amount of gph if known.
AquaClear Power Filter 30. When I arrived it didn't have the media for that filter, though. It had some kind of a plastic frame filter with a clip on top that had a mechanical filter sleeve filled with (I think?) activated carbon and was stuck down inside. I left it and added the sponge part made for the AquaClear a week later. The week after that when cleaning the tank I added the activated carbon layer and removed old filter. Tomorrow I am going to add the third layer for the AquaClear, the BIOmax. Hopefully that will bring it up to snuff.
5~How many fish are in the tank? What kinds of fish are they and what are their current sizes?
There are currently 3 fish in the tank: a male platy, the guppy in question, and an approximately 1-1 1/2 month old platy fry. One week ago there was also two female pregnant platies (or is it platties?) and three weeks ago there was also a betta. (He was removed to a solo tank when the fry was discovered.)
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?
For the last three weeks there have been approximately 25% water changes every week, with thorough gravel vacuuming in the process. The week before that there was a 50% water change (25% one day and 25% the next). It clearly needed it.
7~How long have you had the fish? If the fish is new, how did you acclimate it/them?
I inherited the tank in January. My best guess is that the tank was 1-2 months established. I don't know if it was cycled before or with the fish.
8~Have you added anything new to the tank--decor, new dechlorinator, new substrate, etc.?
I've added nothing new other than the correct filter media for the filter being used, and that was in stages, leaving the old media to populate the new before removing it.
9~What kind of food have you been feeding your fish, have you changed their diet recently?
They had been eating tropical fish flakes. I added bug bites. The student "fishkeeper" tends to overfeed, but I've been going along behind sucking up the remains with a turkey baster and teaching him to feed less.
My best guess: the removal and loss of the female platies has left the male platy restless and perhaps annoyed. I'm wondering if he's taking out his frustration by fin nipping. There seems to have been some chasing.
The other possibility is water parameters and fin rot. I'll add the results of my testing tomorrow or Saturday.
For now, I tried isolating the guppy, but he seemed to be very upset by being the the breeder box and I didn't want him to be more stressed, so in case it was fin nipping, I isolated the platy instead.
My issue is the guppy (a species I have never had.) Today I noticed fin diminishment and I don't know if it's fin rot or fin nipping. Here's my response to the standard questions:
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.).
A guppy, male (I think, I'm not used to sexing livebearers!), and his tailfin has been diminishing, starting in the center area. (I will attach some pictures. My photographic skill are somewhat lacking.)
2~What are your tank parameters (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, temp, pH)? Please give exact values.
Unknown. The classroom had no test kit. I bought one today and will test tomorrow. I probably won't be able to post them until Saturday as I'm teaching all day and am hosting a party tomorrow night.
3~ How large is the tank? How long has the tank been set up?
10-15 gallons. It's not as small as my old 5 gallon but not as big as my old 20.
4~What type of filtration are you using? Please give the name and number (i.e. Fluval 304) and amount of gph if known.
AquaClear Power Filter 30. When I arrived it didn't have the media for that filter, though. It had some kind of a plastic frame filter with a clip on top that had a mechanical filter sleeve filled with (I think?) activated carbon and was stuck down inside. I left it and added the sponge part made for the AquaClear a week later. The week after that when cleaning the tank I added the activated carbon layer and removed old filter. Tomorrow I am going to add the third layer for the AquaClear, the BIOmax. Hopefully that will bring it up to snuff.
5~How many fish are in the tank? What kinds of fish are they and what are their current sizes?
There are currently 3 fish in the tank: a male platy, the guppy in question, and an approximately 1-1 1/2 month old platy fry. One week ago there was also two female pregnant platies (or is it platties?) and three weeks ago there was also a betta. (He was removed to a solo tank when the fry was discovered.)
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?
For the last three weeks there have been approximately 25% water changes every week, with thorough gravel vacuuming in the process. The week before that there was a 50% water change (25% one day and 25% the next). It clearly needed it.
7~How long have you had the fish? If the fish is new, how did you acclimate it/them?
I inherited the tank in January. My best guess is that the tank was 1-2 months established. I don't know if it was cycled before or with the fish.
8~Have you added anything new to the tank--decor, new dechlorinator, new substrate, etc.?
I've added nothing new other than the correct filter media for the filter being used, and that was in stages, leaving the old media to populate the new before removing it.
9~What kind of food have you been feeding your fish, have you changed their diet recently?
They had been eating tropical fish flakes. I added bug bites. The student "fishkeeper" tends to overfeed, but I've been going along behind sucking up the remains with a turkey baster and teaching him to feed less.
My best guess: the removal and loss of the female platies has left the male platy restless and perhaps annoyed. I'm wondering if he's taking out his frustration by fin nipping. There seems to have been some chasing.
The other possibility is water parameters and fin rot. I'll add the results of my testing tomorrow or Saturday.
For now, I tried isolating the guppy, but he seemed to be very upset by being the the breeder box and I didn't want him to be more stressed, so in case it was fin nipping, I isolated the platy instead.
