New angelfish dead after not eating for 3 weeks

[elizae]

So I posted this on a separate website but after days there was no response and now my fish is dead but I’d like to know what might have happened.

I got a new angelfish, and while quarantining it it continuously paced the back panel of the aquarium and did not eat. I know angelfish are social so I introduced one of my older established angels after 2 weeks to ease some stress. The new one still did not eat. Water parameters were perfect. It is a planted 75 gallon tank with no other inhabitants. My old angel ate just fine. I figured it was from the tank being in a high traffic area so I wrapped the tank in Christmas wrap to block any disturbance. Not eating. Turned off the lights so that it was only ambient light from the house. Not eating. It would sit at the surface with his mouth towards the surface. Food would blow past it, and it would just stare at it. There were no other signs of distress besides lethargy and not eating. It would alternate between an upper corner of the tank or hiding in a rock formation. There was no aggression between the angels, either. My established angel would give space to the new one when there was food.

Yesterday the angel’s energy picked up, and I had a bad feeling. He swam the entire upper portion of the aquarium but mostly remaining at the surface. This is the beginning of week 4. This morning he died. I do not understand how or why as there was no external damage to the fish. No bloating, no pineconing. Everything was normal except for it’s behavior.

If it was a parasite should I watch my existing angel now? I do not know what went wrong. At first I thought it had been fed something different but it never ate.

Please help me figure out why my fish died and if there was anything else I could have done. I tried water changes, darkening the tank, lots of different foods, a tank mate, hiding places. N02-0 NH3-0 NO3-10. I don’t know what more I could have done. I didn’t want to treat for parasites if I couldn’t even tell what kind it was.

 

[SaraB]

I would watch your existing angelfish for a while just to be safe. Was the new fish wild caught or tank bred? I know wild caught fish are fussy and prefer live foods.
It doesn't sound like it was an issue from your tank or its parameters. Did you see it poop? Was it white and stringy? Did you order the fish online or pick it up in the store? If you picked it up in the store how was he acting? How were his tankmates?

 

[elizae]

The fish was a captive bred- supposedly a panda but was either a really crappy koi or a weird marble (light yellow on the head you could sometimes see).

I never saw it poop and it was from the store. It seemed a little aloof in the tank but I just figured it was because it was stressed.

I actually asked the employees to order some for me, and they offered two pandas on the next shipment that they would keep in the bag that I could pick up. I never got the call so I came in and they were obviously out of the bag and one had been sold.

There were no other angels in the aquarium, just some small fish that I can’t quite remember. Tetras maybe. There were other angels in another tank but they were much smaller. They seemed more friendly but they were black and I was looking for lighter colored angels.

He ate 3 tiny particles (extremely small) that I saw that had been floating through the water. I’m talking smaller than an ant head, hence my suspicion he had been fed brine shrimp or something but he would not take those either.

 

[Delapool]

Sounds odd.

I could imagine parasites - depends if eating in store I guess.

Some sort of intestinal blockage (which I guess could include parasites like large worms) would be a guess.

 

[elizae]

It had some weird stuff on its fins but it was gone within a few hours. It looked like mix of snot and cotton and just weird in general. I could not identify what it was. Disappeared as quick as it appeared. I just brushed it off thinking it was some sort of weird occurrence. Would that have anything to do with it? It was like cobwebs hanging off of its fins.

 

[Delapool]

Don’t think so unless it was viral but fish seems to have survived for some time

 

[elizae]

Slime has occurred onto my angel’s fins and I saw what appeared to be his slime coat wearing away?

0,0, 10

He still eats and greets me at the glass

I hope it is not whatever the other angel had

You can see that pale patch in front of his dorsal fin and the spot that’s worn away. It looks like a peeling sunburn. No other weird physical things that I’ve seen so far

 

[elizae]

I saw him flash. I am wondering if it is flukes? I would love a second opinion.

He is still eating and still friendly. I am doing a large water change today on the tank to see if it helps

Now seeing heavy breathing before water change.

If I were to treat for flukes, how should I go about it with plants and cories in the tank?