Something in my water doesn't agree with rubberlip plecos...

[Hrafnkel]

I've tried twice with rubberlip plecostomus, now. The first one I got died in about 2 days, and I replaced him with another that I've had for a week and a half or so, now. I was feeding bloodworms tonight and this guy was laying on the bottom, turned over dead. My ammonia/nitrites are at 0, my nitrates are at about 5 (just did a water change last night). Anyone know what the problem is? Before now he was eating his algae wafers and his lettuce and happily sucking on the side of the tank all day...

 

[rubysoho]

do you use any salt in your tank? It is somewhat of a common practice, but I've read that it can have bad consequences on plecos and other armored fish.

 

[Hrafnkel]

Nope. Always thought it was pointless to add salt when there's no need for it and no diseases or anything.

 

[rubysoho]

hmmm... if it turns out there is nothing in your tank, it *could* be the supplier. I had a horrible time with cories about a year and a half ago. It wasn't until my LFS switched suppliers that I was able to successfully keep cories in my tank. All other fish were fine and my tank perameters were pristine.

Did you notice any aggression from other fish toward the pleco? Usually plecos seem to go below the radar of other fish so I doubt this would be a cause, but it is something to consider.

 

[Hrafnkel]

Completely below the radar, I don't think my other fish even knew the little guy existed. My guess is that you're right, it may be the supplier, the girl who works there (and she's actually an experienced fish keeper) said she's had a few die on here before, from there.

 

[rubysoho]

hmmm, then I am willing to bet that is where the problem is coming from. :? Maybe you can find a local fish/aquarium club with a member who breeds them. Usually those types of people will have excellent fish.

 

[Scottm]

I had the same problem with corys that I got from them too. I think you are right on the stock though. It could be parasites as well. Was the fish breathing hard at all?

 

[rubysoho]

Good point Scott, and I'm glad to see I wasn't the only one in town with problems

 

[Hrafnkel]

Nah, neither fish was acting odd until they just up and died. I'll probably just try another sort of fish, I'm not set on a pleco.

 

[rubysoho]

unfortunatly the nature of internal parasites doesn't always show external signs until right before death. This is a huge problem with German Blue Rams and it seems to always be a gamble when buying them (hence the huge thread on them that spans about 45 pages). Perhaps this supplier also has a problem with parasites or bacteria of some sort. Who knows.

So what type of fish are you thinking about now?

 

[Hrafnkel]

Completely undecided. No clue whatsoever. Any suggestions?

 

[rubysoho]

haha, hmmm.... check out liveaquaria.com and see if anything appeals to you

 

[Hrafnkel]

I've checked but didn't really see much.

 

[megladonsharky]

Which tank were they in???

What is the filtration in tank and do you have any air stones or oxegen adding or ciulating devices... I kept loosing plecos and it turned out to be not enough o2 in the h2o... My pitbull is a tuffy

 

[Devilishturtles]

Does the striped raphael and the pleco share the same space in the tank? Do they have seperate territories? When you feed the pleco, do you do it after lights out?

The most common death for plecos is starvation, because they often have to outcompete the other fish for food. When you by one at the LFS, always make sure you buy one with a full belly (not flush, but plump and sticking out a little), and not caved in. The difference is obvious. If you are buying fish that are not well fed and malnourished, the transport, and stress that comes with it, might not be well handled by the pleco and might cause it's early deaths.

Just my 2 pennies. HTH.

 

[rubysoho]

megladon, did you notice any signs in the rest of your fish when you discovered the lack of oxygen?


Hrafnkel, you sound like me sometimes. So, lets try to narrow down the spectrum of fish. Are you looking for another pleco? A center piece or schooling fish? Small, big, slow, active? Which tank will this be for?

 

[megladonsharky]

megladon, did you notice any signs in the rest of your fish when you discovered the lack of oxygen?


?

No but I had dwarf cories and a male beta so they got air from the surface... It was a really experieced aquarium keeper who figured it out..

 

[Hrafnkel]

Which tank were they in???

The 55. They weren't in at the same time, one died, I replaced it with a new one. There's plenty of surface disturbance to facilitate the exchange of gases.

Does the striped raphael and the pleco share the same space in the tank? Do they have seperate territories? When you feed the pleco, do you do it after lights out?

My raphael hangs out with the knife fish, my pleco spent most of his time in the slate cave on the other end of the tank. I fed him at night, yes. Algae wafers and lettuce and zucchini.

Hrafnkel, you sound like me sometimes. So, lets try to narrow down the spectrum of fish. Are you looking for another pleco? A center piece or schooling fish? Small, big, slow, active? Which tank will this be for?

No clue really. I'm up for anything, but the bottom of my tank has been looking particularly empty since the death of an eel a week or two ago (unrelated, he choked, I believe.), and the death of the pleco. Probably not a schooling fish (if I go schooling I'd want serpae tetras). Small or big. Relatively active. I was thinking about a pair of clown loaches or something, since I'll be getting a much larger tank for graduation next year, and they shouldn't outgrow a 55 before then.

 

[rubysoho]

I'd actually suggest Yoyo Loaches (3) or if that raphael cat is a schooling cat, add to them.

 

[Hrafnkel]

Raphaels don't school from anything I've heard. I'll look into the yo-yos.