Overcrowded?

[FishieMomma]

No dead fishes today!

May the plague be over. Doing another vacuum and 50% pwc. For a long time I just did wc's without vacuuming deeply because the RCS's seemed to be getting the poo pretty well. I think that perhaps that's why my Cories lost their barbells-they got infections from the crap in the gravel.

Thanks so much for the compliments and help on this thread!

 

[BillD]

There are a few things that could be happening here. The cory's barbels could have been damaged by sharp gravel. The tank is not overstocked, but it would appear that you added a pathogen with the new fish. Adding that number of fish wouldn't cause the problem either.

 

[ejaramillo01]

Ahhh, that makes sense! In addition to too many fish at once, maybe I messed up the chemistry with salt water! Hopefully the mega water change and now-decreased population will end the fatalities.

Just a question, trying to understand better and learn at the same time... What do you mean with "added live brine shrimp" and "added salt water" ?
Where did you get the brine shrimp?
Thanks and I really liked your tank also..... Hope no more deaths.

 

[corinne118s]

This is a freshwater tank but brine shrimp are saltwater creatures. Therefore when sold live they are in saltwater. Most people use a eye dropper that sucks in shrimp and the salt water (which is probably dirty) and just squeeze it in the water. Enough saltwater in a freshwater tank is
Hazardous

 

[FishieMomma]

Yep, I got mine from my LFS which is pretty good at stocking healthy and a large variety of fish. If a consumer is new to fishkeeping, however, there is little guidance.

I bought a little cup's worth and just dumped the whole thing in as they instructed.

 

[ejaramillo01]

I understand. In my opinion, the cause of the fish dying is as a result of something introduced in the water with the brine shrimp, but not the salt . I don't think that a cup of salt water added to a 55G tank will have enough salt to kill the corys or the guppies...

Keep watching for symptoms.

 

[FishieMomma]

Thanks for chiming in! The moral of this story is to use a quarantine tank.

 

[Coupe47]

I had the same problem
I have a community tank and all of a sudden my fish population was
Depleting it was my angle fish mad about something and took out about 30dollars of fish in 3 days

 

[FishieMomma]

Now a red platy (female) has the white around the mouth like the male swordtail did just before he died. I don't have a QT tank ready but I'll put her in a fresh, water only, bucket with a heater and keep her comfy, I hope, until the end. Any ideas?

 

[absolutangel04]

Its hard to tell from this angle. Try googling cotton mouth to see if thats what it looks like to you. Also, google columnaris.

 

[FishieMomma]

I googled cotton mouth as suggested. The description fits the Cory that died with its head looking funky and the death of the swordtail.

It may be the only problem or one of several including adding too many fish at once and not using a QT.

Sigh. I'll keep checking and remove fish as I see signs of cotton mouth or any other problems. I hope I don't lose my whole tank.

Thanks everyone for supporting me and being detectives with me.

 

[FishieMomma]

Um , would twice daily PWc's help?

 

[ejaramillo01]

Um , would twice daily PWc's help?

I think that twice a day is to much, if your readings (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates) are good, IMO with a daily PWC should be enough to keep the water clean. But if this is cotton mouth, you need to treat agains the bacteria. This is what I found in the net that maybe can help you:

" Mouth Fungus is so called because it looks like a fungus attack of the mouth. It is actually caused from the bacterium Chondrococcus columnaris. It shows up first as a gray or white line around the lips and later as short tufts sprouting from the mouth like fungus. The toxins produced and the inability to eat will be fatal unless treated at an early stage. This bacteria is often accompanied by a second infection of an Aeromonas bacteria.
Penicillin at 10,000 units per liter is a very effective treatment. Treat with a second dose in two days. Or use chloromycetin, 10 to 20 mg per liter, with a second dose in two days. Other antibiotics can also be effective. Kanacyn (kanamycin) will treat both bacteria at once. Maracyn (erythromycin) is effective against C. columnaris, and using Maracyn 2 (minocycline) in conjuntion with it will treat the Aeromonas bacteria as well."

Good luck

 

[Coupe47]

I think it could be Cotten mouth
Try a fungus treatment
And follow the directions closely

 

[Hobgob]

So first off I was thinking gas saturation from all the pwc and seeingg as it's winter here it's more likely to occur. But by the last picture, it looks like a fungus. Doesn't matter what but a fungus. I would treat with some anti fungus. I use erythromycin and on the box it says it treats fungus in general and has cotton mouth as an example. Another thing is the angels... They could be getting territorial and picking on the fish sick seeing as they are weaker.

 

[FishieMomma]

Just lost another albino Cory and my female angel is now showing signs of cotton mouth. I did a 40% pwc and added Triple Sulfa anti-bacterial medicine to the whole tank ad directed. It's a four day course of treatment.

 

[ocminpin]

Oh no!! :-( I hope meds work!

 

[Hobgob]

Yep, I got mine from my LFS which is pretty good at stocking healthy and a large variety of fish. If a consumer is new to fishkeeping, however, there is little guidance.

I bought a little cup's worth and just dumped the whole thing in as they instructed.

Do you know if they sell eggs? That way you can hatch them yourself.

 

[FishieMomma]

Great question. I'll find out!

In the meantime I added the second dose of anti-bacterial meds to my tank. Since this may kill all my good bacteria, I just ordered seeded filters from Angelsplus so that I can rebuild in a hurry. I am aware I may have to do the equivalent of cycling with fish.

No one ever said fishkeeping was cheap.

 

[ejaramillo01]

Great question. I'll find out!

In the meantime I added the second dose of anti-bacterial meds to my tank. Since this may kill all my good bacteria, I just ordered seeded filters from Angelsplus so that I can rebuild in a hurry. I am aware I may have to do the equivalent of cycling with fish.

No one ever said fishkeeping was cheap.

$$$$$$ So true..