Blue German Ram, looks really sick what can I do?

[jewelaudio]

Just bought a couple new fish on Sun. afternoon. They all seemed fine Sun. night and good Mon. morning. I fed the fish Mon. night and noticed the new ram wasnt really eating very much...but did eat a little. I looked this up and read more than one place that this is very common when the ram is stressed.

I also noticed that it had long white stringy poop. Im not a 100% on this but thought that I had read this not a good thing???? Fish was acting fine for being a new fish. This morning I was checking out my new fish for awhile before work. The ram decided to call the back corner of the tank his home behind a couple plants. He made it known to two other fish they were not welcome there. I am pretty sure this is normal behavior. He wasnt overly aggressive to the other fish but did bump them a little to get them to leave. Wasnt swimming to much just hovering it that corner.

When I got home from work tonight he was in the front of the tank almost laying on the gravel. Not really moving much at all. I thought it was a little odd the way she was acting but I have only had her for a day or so. Left for a few hours and when I came back home still in the same spot. Looking like it is taking everything she has to not completely lay on the floor of the tank. I put my net in the tank to see if she would move and got no reaction even when I scooped her up. When I let her go she dropped right back to the bottom.

Sucks I really like this fish...I dont expect her to make it through the night though. Is there anything I can do? Also is there anyway to know what it is making her sick? I would like to know what is killing the fish. Was it sick when I brought it home? or did I do something wrong....water conditions ect...

Water conditions are good with no ammonia or nitrites and nitrates are low.

 

[KcMopar]

Did you acclimate the fish to your water parameters? Sometimes fish are sensitive to this if the pH between your tank and the pet store are quite different. How long has the tank been set up and what size is it?

 

[jewelaudio]

Tank size is 40 gal. and it has had fish in it for about 4 months. I didnt acclimate the fish really just water temp.

I was correct and the fish did not make it through the night. My big questions now are is there any way to really know why the fish died. It was less than 48 of being in my tank that it started acting really sick and dead shortly after that. Can ph, harness, or other water paramerter kill a fish that quickly? I had the same thing happen to a fancy guppy about the exact same time frame. It was one of the first fish to be put in the tank. It was put in with another fancy guppy and 4 pristella. All of those fish have done great. I just figured that guppy dying was just a bad fish.

Im not 100% on the fish store. They were bought at Aquarium Adventure. Pet co's version of a fish store. Happen to stop by this weekend and all the fish were 50% off. Not sure if this is common or if they just needed to clear out old maybe sick fish??? Not at all trying to blame them just makes me wonder. Like I said my biggest concern is was the fish sick or was it my tank. I would love to have a blue german ram in my tank. I think it is a very cool looking fish. However I dont want to get another one and just keep killing them.

Thanks for any help and advice!

 

[KcMopar]

The pH is the most stressful. Hardness and others are not a huge factor but also play a small role in stress. With any fish you really increase the success of it living by acclimating the fish slowly toward your water conditions. Here is link about acclimation for Saltwater but its the same for Freshwater as well. Acclimation Procedure for Aquatic Life: Welcoming Home New Arrivals . It hard to say how it really died without knowing both water parameters. If its happened a couple times I would say its an acclimation issue IMO.
The pH (means power of hydrogen) difference of 6.8 to 7.8 is TEN times difference in strength so this is why its to stressful to them. Temp and pH are of huge concern to decrease the stress of adding a new fish. I hope this helps, let us know if you have questions.

 

[jewelaudio]

Thanks for the help and info! I will probably wait a while before I try another one but would love to give it a shot again.

Going to be doing some reading on the acclimation and hopfully next time that will solve any issues. Im not sure of the exact number because I am not at home but I do know that my ph is high. I want to say in the 8.2 range which is probably a lot higher than the fish store.

Thanks again...

 

[KcMopar]

NO problem, glad to have helped.
High pH is fine and acclimation takes care of that. Mine is about 8.4 in my African tank and the local fish store is about 7.0-ish most times and I acclimate for about an hour and never have any issues. Let us know how it goes!!