squidsquiggle
Aquarium Advice Regular
I mentioned on here a few days ago that I was putting a little rubberlip pleco in a 3 gallon quarantine. I have a small problem with high ammonia in my tap water, but the 10gal filter was from a well established tank and seemed to be handling things well.
She worried me a little at first by not taking any food I was offering (sunk in the evening and left over night), but I was super excited to find her munching on a piece of blanched cucumber yesterday (and she was pooping a ton even before that - so eating the wood, maybe).
I last checked the parameters day before yesterday, and everything was great. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 5-10 nitrates, I didn't check the pH. I suck out any poop or food debris I see pretty much every time I pass the tank, and did 30% water changes every day. Today I had to change the filter pad, it was so full the water started flowing around it, but was falling apart too much to rinse. I replaced it with a pad that had been in my other tank for several days, and stuck the old pad in a filter sock in the corner by the air pump.
I left a piece of blanched spinach and a couple of frozen bloodworms in the tank earlier this evening, and she was chewing enthusiastically on the leaf when I last looked, around 4 hours ago.
But now I walked in to find her upside down in the middle of the tank. She lost most of her color, had dark stains on her back fin, and a big dark spot on the top of her head.
What the heck happened? I immediately ran tests, but of course now they're horrible. 6 or lower pH, .50 ammonia, .50 nitrites, still only 10 nitrates. But I can't tell if the readings are the cause of death, or the death is the cause of the readings.
Did I leave the spinach in there too long? Was the water too warm (75 - though the store had them at 78)? I had seen no signs of illness, no odd behavior (she got a little frantic the first time I turned lights on in the tank, but calmed down as soon as I turned them off). Were my filter changing precautions not enough and I caused a deadly mini-cycle? Was the tank just too darn small?
The only other thing I can think of is that the fish guy did drop her straight on her head when trying to bag her - but I'm afraid that might be wishful thinking and I just screwed up somehow.
I just feel so sick about the whole thing. I hardly ever try to get new fish, I have such bad luck with them, but this seemed to be going so well.
She worried me a little at first by not taking any food I was offering (sunk in the evening and left over night), but I was super excited to find her munching on a piece of blanched cucumber yesterday (and she was pooping a ton even before that - so eating the wood, maybe).
I last checked the parameters day before yesterday, and everything was great. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 5-10 nitrates, I didn't check the pH. I suck out any poop or food debris I see pretty much every time I pass the tank, and did 30% water changes every day. Today I had to change the filter pad, it was so full the water started flowing around it, but was falling apart too much to rinse. I replaced it with a pad that had been in my other tank for several days, and stuck the old pad in a filter sock in the corner by the air pump.
I left a piece of blanched spinach and a couple of frozen bloodworms in the tank earlier this evening, and she was chewing enthusiastically on the leaf when I last looked, around 4 hours ago.
But now I walked in to find her upside down in the middle of the tank. She lost most of her color, had dark stains on her back fin, and a big dark spot on the top of her head.
What the heck happened? I immediately ran tests, but of course now they're horrible. 6 or lower pH, .50 ammonia, .50 nitrites, still only 10 nitrates. But I can't tell if the readings are the cause of death, or the death is the cause of the readings.
Did I leave the spinach in there too long? Was the water too warm (75 - though the store had them at 78)? I had seen no signs of illness, no odd behavior (she got a little frantic the first time I turned lights on in the tank, but calmed down as soon as I turned them off). Were my filter changing precautions not enough and I caused a deadly mini-cycle? Was the tank just too darn small?
The only other thing I can think of is that the fish guy did drop her straight on her head when trying to bag her - but I'm afraid that might be wishful thinking and I just screwed up somehow.
I just feel so sick about the whole thing. I hardly ever try to get new fish, I have such bad luck with them, but this seemed to be going so well.