Cherry Barbs Dying

[catfishkid]

Yesterday I bought 10 cherry barbs that all looked perfectly healthy (although 2 look pregnant) and this evening I discovered one was dead! I waved it off as some freak thing but then a few minutes ago another was lying still and upside down on the pebbles. Just before I called my dad to scoop him out, he flipped up and swam in a circle, still upside down, like he was having a seizure. He then dropped back to the bottom and lay still. After that he stopped moving all but a slight twitch of a fin. Once that stopped we scooped him out.
(here's a pic of the two if it helps)


Is this something I should worry about?

 

[Dallascowboys16]

What happened to your two fish is most likley a freak accident. I have heard stories on this site almost identical to that and the other fish were completly fine. Just keep an eye on the other fish and you should be fine.

 

[rmiller]

I wouldn't call it a freak accident. Some fish don't handle the stress of moving very well. Be sure to check your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels, then do a water change. Most stores will replace the fish within a certain time period. Some require you to bring in the dead fish, others just a water sample, and some require both. Check with the shop to see what their rules are.

 

[catfishkid]

I did a water test and everythings fine. although right now this is happening to another one



He's flopping around and his eyes are bulged out like crazy.

 

[rmiller]

What are you using to test your water? What are the readings for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate?

 

[catfishkid]

What are you using to test your water? What are the readings for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate?

I'm using the API Freshwater Master Kit Test ans my readings are:

Ammonia - 0 ppm
Nitrite - 0 ppm
Nitrate - 0 ppm

 

[rmiller]

First check to make sure your kit hasn't expired. A cycled tank will have 0 ammonia and nitrite, but should have some nitrates.

What type of filter do you have and how do you clean your media?

 

[dwayne.aycock]

Cherry Barbs like Neons and other fish are quite hearty fish. I had similar problems with Neons a while back but was able to solve the problem. Since then I have been able to add 10-20 neons at a time and zero losses.
Here is what I do. Throw out that method of floating the fish for 30 minutes and adding to the tank. This is too stressful for these fish. Try this...Put the fish in a pail or bucket once you get them home. Take a piece of airline tubing and pot a gang valve on the end. Start a siphon going from thur aquarium, using the gang valve as a drip controller. If the fish came in a bag with about 1/2 a quart of water, you will want to drip in about a 1/2 quart of water, then remove about 1/2 quart of water with a cup etc. Do this 3 to 4 times, or about a 300 to 400% water turnover. This accomplishes several things: 1. I acclimates the fish to the PH of your aquarium. 2. It acclimates the fish to the temp of your aquarium. 3. It acclimates the fish to the hardness, TDS and conductivity of your aquarium, and finally, it reduces stress and shock to the fish. It is called the "drip method". Sounds elementary, but with these fishes it as proven very effective. Of note however, you will need to add about a cap of ammonia neutralizer when you add the Barbs to the drip pail. They produce ammonia quite rapidly in the bag, so it is best to nip this in the bud right away. I usually add the cap directly to the bag before I put them in the drip pail. Since I started doing this I have had great success and zero losses. If the room you are in is cooler than the pail water, you will want to find a way to heat the pail water. You can use a heating pad, turn it on high and add the water from the bag. This keeps the temperature up and further reduces shock to the fish. Try to avoid using a glass jar as it loses heat too quickly. I use a tupperwear bowl (Psssst don't tell my Wife !).
Good Luck!
D

 

[dwayne.aycock]

On another note...how old is the charcoal in your filter? If it is more than 3-4 weeks old, it could be saturated and thus leaking toxins back into your tank. If it is old, discard it immediately, do a LWC and test again. In either case, increase your O2 saturation, as what I hear sounds like a reaction to a toxin.
D

 

[catfishkid]

First check to make sure your kit hasn't expired. A cycled tank will have 0 ammonia and nitrite, but should have some nitrates. What type of filter do you have and how do you clean your media?

I checked the kit and it luckily doesn't expire for another 4 years. This is the filter i use

As for cleaning the media, I replace the filter cartridge every month or so. These cartridges

 

[catfishkid]

On another note...how old is the charcoal in your filter? If it is more than 3-4 weeks old, it could be saturated and thus leaking toxins back into your tank. If it is old, discard it immediately, do a LWC and test again. In either case, increase your O2 saturation, as what I hear sounds like a reaction to a toxin. D

The charcoal? I wasn't aware there was charcoal in the filter. And thanks for the advice on acclimating new fish into the tank.

 

[rmiller]

My guess would be he is referring to the activated carbon that is likely in that cartridge. Do you know about beneficial bacteria?

 

[catfishkid]

Nope I don't. I'm a pretty new beginner at this.

 

[rmiller]

OK, you have some reading to do. Check out these articles and let me know if you have any questions.

I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice

Fish-in Cycling: Step over into the dark side - Aquarium Advice

 

[catfishkid]

OK, you have some reading to do. Check out these articles and let me know if you have any questions. I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice Fish-in Cycling: Step over into the dark side - Aquarium Advice

My tank is already fully cycled though, it has been for a few months.

 

[rmiller]

I'm using the API Freshwater Master Kit Test ans my readings are:

Ammonia - 0 ppm
Nitrite - 0 ppm
Nitrate - 0 ppm

Just a guess, the person at the pet store told you that all you needed to do was run your tank with just water for a few days and that would cycle your tank? If so you are not alone.

A cycled tank will have nitrate. The waste your fish produce is ammonia. bacteria essentially eat the ammonia and their waste is the nitrite. More bacteria eat the nitrite, their waste is nitrate. If you have no nitrate you have no bacteria and your tank is not cycled. What is likely happening is that you change that cartridge once a month and throw away any bacteria that has started to build in your tank.

 

[catfishkid]

Just a guess, the person at the pet store told you that all you needed to do was run your tank with just water for a few days and that would cycle your tank? If so you are not alone. A cycled tank will have nitrate. The waste your fish produce is ammonia. bacteria essentially eat the ammonia and their waste is the nitrite. More bacteria eat the nitrite, their waste is nitrate. If you have no nitrate you have no bacteria and your tank is not cycled. What is likely happening is that you change that cartridge once a month and throw away any bacteria that has started to build in your tank.

No, I did the research and cycled it fully months ago.

 

[rmiller]

That's strange. You should have a reading for nitrate. How long do you shake the #2 bottle before testing? The solids in that bottle tend to settle and cause false readings.

 

[catfishkid]

That's strange. You should have a reading for nitrate. How long do you shake the #2 bottle before testing? The solids in that bottle tend to settle and cause false readings.

I think I just found my problem. I didn't shake the bottle at all. Well now I feel dumb, i'll do a re-test tomorrow.

 

[rmiller]

According to the api, you need to shake the bottle for 2 minutes minimum. Set a timer, your arm will feel like its going to fall off, but keep shaking til the full 2 minutes has passed.