Sick corys

D

Devs

Small Fish
#1
Mar 27, 2004
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Pgh.,Pa.
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#1
A couple weeks ago I had two corys die on me,which really put me in a panic,because they're usually tough little guys. I knew it had to be water quality (which it was) so right away I start water changes.This is a heavily planted tank,so I clean gravel as well as I can.Each day I tested water,it was still reading high,so I kept up the water changes and gravel cleaning. By 4th day I'm starting to become aggravated cause now I'm thinking Maybe I wasn't changing out enough water(each day,levels were reading lower,but not enough) I then decided to pull out every plant in tank so I can do a better gravel clean,and once again I change out water. Well, the end of last week,it finally started reading out normal for ammonia/nitrates ,and even though I was doing all this,I lost 3 more corys in the Process. Well,5 days have gone past, this morning I get up,and theres one of my biggest corys dead! Now I know he was one of my older fish,and I'm not seeing anything wrong with him so I'm thinking maybe,he was just old---But just in case,I do a water test,and all my levels are going up again!!!!:mad: What the H*** is going on now??? Now I'm wondering if I did too much cleaning,to much water changing?Did I just cause myself a mini cycle???? To make things even worse,right before this all started I noticed one of my old albino corys in another tank had barbells all worn down,so I moved her and two others into this tank..Her nose area seems to be a hole forming now(right above barbells) what med do I need to start treating her with,and did I just introduce infection to this whole other tank,which is now having these water problems?????HELP!!!! Sorry so long but I'm starting to panic!!!I'm losing way too many corys
 

Purple

Purple

Superstar Fish
#8
Oct 31, 2003
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As mini-cycles go, that one registers on the Richter scale - even allowing for substrate disturbance.

Have you been cleaning the filter (and if so....how).

That's a lot of fish loss in a short time (sorry to hear it), for it to be down to a mini-cycle. And in a heavily planted tank most unusual indeed.
 

D

Devs

Small Fish
#9
Mar 27, 2004
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The tank has been up a couple of years.Three or four weeks ago I started having problems with nitrite levels being high-to try and bring them down I started doing water changes every day and cleaning the gravel. Being that it was my 80hr. work week,and I had little time it took longer to get the tank reading normal levels again.I thought I had everything reading normal again,and boom-up they went. The only other thing that happened during this period,was that I had to seperate a female gourmai from a male in another tank,so I had to put her in this tank-I did add melafix to the tank because the male shredded up her fins pretty good. I have to be honest,I did pull my filter and rinse the muck off in the sink-up until a couple of days ago,when I joined this forum-I didn't know you were supposed to rinse it in tank water.All I know is that through this all,I've done alot of water changes and gravel cleaning,my corys are dropping like flies,and now its bringing on other problems-I swear I just saw a little white cory with a tattered tail!--It's so hard to see them when tank is planted out!!!I think I'm gonna lose a lot more corys before this is over,,,,,, Devastating.......they're my favorites...
 

D

Devs

Small Fish
#11
Mar 27, 2004
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What about the fin on the cory,it's lookling like fin and tail rot-Should I use something for that or focus only on getting my readings correct? I'm just worried that it will spread-Don't want to lose any more fish. Another fish seems to have the beginnings of a white spot near his throat area.
 

Purple

Purple

Superstar Fish
#12
Oct 31, 2003
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#12
The melafix will help the cory's fins a bit - but the best cure is clean water - sort that out and you don't have a worry. Besides, not a good time to challenge the cycle bacteria.

As Clothahump says, ease up on the food - it'll produce less waste and give the filter a chance to catch up again.
 

S

steakaphagus

Large Fish
#13
Apr 7, 2004
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Not familiar with Melafix....is that based on Malachite green?
If so, careful!!!! I treated a tank with malachite green, and got a nasty shock. Within 2 days I lost a neon, the other 8 had ragged fins, and my 2 peppered Corys looked on death's door. They were only taking air from the surface, had gone off their food, and had ragged fins! After a prompt water change and adding fresh carbon to the filter....hey presto. Happy fish, fins grew back quick, all OK.
I have no idea what went wrong with the treatment, but guess I could have used too much dosage (but if it was it wasn't a huge amount). Only a few days ago, though, I read in a disease book that Malachite green can cause toxic symptoms in a variety of fish, and can be lethal. Anyone else had these probs?
If Melafix isn't based on Malachite, then - ummm - just ignore me.
By the way, how's the cory with the worn barbels? Is there sharp gravel in the tank?
 

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