My female gourami is not well...

[elliott_001]

I have just this evening found my female gourami on the bottom of the tank, not looking too great. I have moved her into a hospital tank.

I think she has been being picked on by my rainbow shark. When she was sitting on the bottom i saw the rainbow shark attack her, so i immediately moved her out of there.

She sinks to the bottom of the tank, but can move, she evaded the rainbows attacks. I cant see any marks/scars/nips, but i think she has fin damage or something. Should i treat with melafix for now?

Other than being bullied i cant think of anything else that could have happened to her. All my other fish are fine, including the male gourami.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[TCTFish]

It's natural for fish to pick on weaker and sick fish so the rainbow shark bothering her after she's been 'down' doesn't mean the shark made her sick. Go ahead and treat with Melafix, but do a full water test too...ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH. Post results please

 

[elliott_001]

ammonia 0ppm
nitrite 0ppm
nitrate 10-20ppm
pH 8.0
My water is always like this.

I did treat with melafix
She passed away over night, i couldn't see her at first, then i found her lying next to a rock in the hospital tank. She didnt have any wounds on her, but seemed maybe a bit thin.
The rainbow shark used to chase her a lot anyway, he might have upset her leading up to her being 'down'.

She was a pretty small gourami. I went to the lfs and got my male a new friend earlier tonight, this one is a fair bit bigger.
Thanks anyway for your help tct.

 

[TCTFish]

Your pH is a bit on the high side. Try to maintain pH at about 7.4 for the fish you have. The otos and pleco certainly would appreciate it Lower it slowly over time.

Being chased constantly can add stress. If she was thinned out some, it is possible she didn't get enough food or harbored an intestinal parasite. Keep an eye on the other fish for any signs of intestinal parasites (poop will be white or red and stringy like and loss of weight and appetite are other symptoms). In addition to regular feeding during the day, offer an algae wafer or two around early evening time. You can break a wafer up into little pieces, but offer a little veggie flake too at the same time. The rainbow shark is more likely to go after the wafers at the bottom, than the flakes in mid and upper areas where the gouramis are at. This may help lessen confrontation over food and result in less chasing and everyone gets to eat what they need.

Good luck with the new fish.