Sarg Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 What could cause this? Before Ray gets all upset I have asked him and he thinks the tank maybe to hot it sits at about 30 I do have alot of suface spray happening but its not making to much difference. I do have hydra in the tank and i'm currently treating that with a bit of multi cure after reading the other thread. There are 8 tapas, lost the smallest one yesterday arvo , some black neons and 3 smaller pepps. The tapas are the only ones that look unhappy at the moment. Any help would be good. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Posted December 10, 2009 Report Share Posted December 10, 2009 I would be double checking I used the right dosage of multicure with the sort of fish I have. I would be adding several air stones and increasing the surface agitation even more as multicure will reduce oxygen levels big time - the lack of oxygen rather than temp is your problem although I suspect the meds plus high temps are the primary causes of the lack of oxygen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 Meds are half dose and they were breathing heavy before hand anyway. I put in an extra little internal with a spray bar that is sitting above the water so it's really getting churned up at the moment. I'm trying to get an old canister with a leaking problem fixed and put that in there too for more water movement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
japes Posted December 11, 2009 Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 My Araguaia appear to breath heavily but it's quite normal, mind you it's not an alarming heavy appearance - if your fish are constantly gasping for air you have a problem. [yt:23bokvsf]-ThKq5eCL04[/yt:23bokvsf] Can see it in parts of this video, 1:26-1:30ish is perfect. 30-32 is perfectly normal for South Americans, especially species from northern Brazil. It sounds like you've got agitation covered. Is the multicure within its use-by date? pH/gH of water? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 They are breathing a bit heavier than yours ryan and it must be the heat. It has been getting up to 31 in the tank but today I have managed it around 28o and they are still breathing heavy but moving around alot more so fingers crossed. Can't tell you any parameters as I don't have a test kit atm since my last ran out. All the readings have been good since the tank was set up so it shouldn't have changed to much I wouldn't think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
col Posted December 11, 2009 Report Share Posted December 11, 2009 with the recent heat ,i would be thinking ammonia spike if thats the case do a big water change Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Will try that today clear out some of the meds too. GH seems to be 60ppm, kh 0, ph 7.0 -7.5, nitrite 0, nitrate between 0 and 20ppm Could only afford some test strips atm so not the most accurate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raycam01_au Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Sarg if u want to drop by my place tomozz, let me know first, i have a few spare test kits u can have for nuthin, juss so u can get the tank right let me know dude have a good night at the roar, i am going to partake in a drinksey or 2 myself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grainsburger Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Hi Sarg - Temp should be fine. I keep most of my Geos around 30 deg. You are right to check the parameters. Might pay to make the water slightly more acidic - try 6.7 -7. Aeration/water movement is vital. I know it sounds crazy but are you watching them after feeding ? I find that some geo species ( and indivduals ) can become lethargic after gorging themselves. Maybe cut the feed to once a day or skip a day and see how that goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 I really don't know what is the matter with them . I did a big water change last night and not much has changed really. The other fish in the tank are fin no issues at all. Ray I might take you up on that and try to pop out at some stage. Glen I will leave the food till this arvo and see what happens. They have been fine and eating well but just taken a turn over the last week Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Could gill flukes be the problem and could they only affect the geos and not the rest of the fish in the tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wetpetz Posted December 13, 2009 Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 It could well be gill flukes. Different species have different susceptibility to flukes. Bassleer's book on disease gives a good idea of what to expect to find in a wide range of fish. I wouldn't use any trichlorfon based treatment for the flukes, you can't be sure if they work. Levamisole is probably your best choice. I also wouldn't use any medicine off the shelf that says it contains formalin (or formaldehyde). Formalin forms a very toxic molecule (paraformaldehyde) with time. I keep fresh formalin, so if you find you need it and can be bothered coming this far, you can have some. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 Thanks for the offer quasi but it might be a bit far as i'd have to drag my young along as well. Were does one get fresh formalin.... chemist? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wetpetz Posted December 13, 2009 Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 I get my formalin from Deltrex, but the lab checks the batch number to make sure it's not old. It's a stuff around and the smallest size is 20L. I've killed tens of thousands of fish with a bad batch of formalin so I'm paranoid. If you think formalin is necessary, I'll drop it off next time I come to Bris. (prob Tues night). You should research it a bit first though. I'd recommend two treatments @ 50ppm three days apart. Keep an eye on airation as formalin takes oxygen from the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 I just re treated the tank with multi cure as I read the the M. Green that it in there is a part cure so I will see how that goes. The article I read says to treat with M.green and formalin to rid them of it. ATM I seem to be losing a fish every 2 days so I've got to try something Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2009 Some of them, probably all just didn't notice it, had what looked like burst blood vessels around the nose area has anybody seen that before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussie123 Posted December 19, 2009 Report Share Posted December 19, 2009 That sounds like your fish have suffered from Nitrite poisoning. You should get a full set of tests done on your water and best treatment for Nitrite poisoning is salt added to the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarg Posted December 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2009 Nitrites were reading 0 though and the other 11 fish in the tank tetras and pepps weren't affected at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cichlidae Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 This sounds like a nightmare, have you seen any of the fish die, cut open (autopsy) any dead looking for parasites or abnornalities, Personally I hate multicure, I use salt bath then quarantine in melafix pimafix and prime, with high oxygenation. this technique has given me great sucess and is not using harsh chemicals to treat the fish. I believe that this may help surviving fish by promoting their natural imunesystem thus reducing chances of the disease reoccuoring. I have no idea what might be causing your issue but hope that my suggestion may help, if not this time then maybe in the future. Regards, Cichlidae. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
