Hi folks
My new fish keeping hobby has resulted in my first dalliance with the extremely useful vehicle of forums on the net. However after receiving so much helpful advice a few weeks back, I suddenly find myself reluctant to bother you with yet another problem.
It is as though I feel guilty for not having stayed in touch these past few weeks to tell you that everything has been going relatively well and am only back pestering you the moment I have a problem
However I am not going to let my reluctance to take advantage of your good nature and superior knowledge, prevent me asking for help, because at the end of the day, it is my fish that need your assistance and I am their only voice
I mentioned the fact that I started having a brown algae problem and along with the fact that I have been told that I have too many tiddlers in my @15 gallon tank, I have been doing regular water changes (about 66%) and gravel cleaning once a week and currently have a more powerful filter than is recommended running in parralel with my piddly filter (I've had the new one about a month and the literature recommends running both for 8 weeks)
On Friday we first noticed what looks like a cell of the brown algae on the long flowing tail of the fish we originally adopted. I think it is a Veil Tail, it is about four inches long but has lost its gold colour and is completely silver/salmon coloured with a gorgeous gossamer tail of about a similar length.
I guess that it might not be the brown algae on its tail (it looks like a single brown transparent cell stuck on one side of the fishes tail fin, with a darker brown dot - more of a dash than a dot as it is narrow but a couple of mm long - running from the centre to the perimeter, if the cell is a circle, the darker brown dash looks like a line measuring the radius) but a parasite and on enquiring at the pet shop, it was suggested that I try to detach it with a fingernail.
Following his advice, I did begin to attempt this, by cornering Ridley with the net when she had nowhere to run as I changed the water yesterday. However I am far too squeamish and couldn't bear to traumatize the poor fish by handling it and although I managed to get her sort of in my hand, there was no way I was going to hang onto her long enough to try and flick the offending object off with a finger nail.
It was far too distressing for the both of us and so before even thinking about giving it another go and freaking the fish out completely, I thought I should seek some more informed advice first, both to find out what it is and how best to get rid of it? 
I certainly wouldn't look forward to the thought of trying again to get it off with my fingernail but it is so obviously attached to one side of her tail that in spite of my cowardice, I cannot look at her in the tank without being tempted to stick my hands in and give it another go
Further to the advice received here when I had an outbreak of Ich, the addition of salt appeared to work so effectively that I was tempted to see if would destroy whatever it is on RIdley's tail but I thought I had better seek your advice before doing anything further. I guess I would also have to remove all the live plants again because I assume that an increased concentration of salt would kill them off?
And I am hoping that one of you kind souls will get back to me fairly soon, or else with my obsessive nature and my inability to stop worrying about it, I will undoubtedly end up down the pet shop soon enough, with the store owner talking me into buying more chemicals to put in my tank (and it would seem unfair having to inflict more chemicals on the other fish just to treat the one)
Once again my utmost thanks in advance for any advice that you can offer to assist me (and Ridley of course) and my apologies for not showing my face anywhere here (I've never been the most sociable sort) in the meantime - unlike at the footie match, I am afraid I am guilty as charged because I "only sing when I'm losing"! Or my cry for help is like the postcard from the long lost son to his folks with the message "weather great, send more money"
Peace & Love
Bernard
My new fish keeping hobby has resulted in my first dalliance with the extremely useful vehicle of forums on the net. However after receiving so much helpful advice a few weeks back, I suddenly find myself reluctant to bother you with yet another problem.
It is as though I feel guilty for not having stayed in touch these past few weeks to tell you that everything has been going relatively well and am only back pestering you the moment I have a problem
However I am not going to let my reluctance to take advantage of your good nature and superior knowledge, prevent me asking for help, because at the end of the day, it is my fish that need your assistance and I am their only voice
I mentioned the fact that I started having a brown algae problem and along with the fact that I have been told that I have too many tiddlers in my @15 gallon tank, I have been doing regular water changes (about 66%) and gravel cleaning once a week and currently have a more powerful filter than is recommended running in parralel with my piddly filter (I've had the new one about a month and the literature recommends running both for 8 weeks)
On Friday we first noticed what looks like a cell of the brown algae on the long flowing tail of the fish we originally adopted. I think it is a Veil Tail, it is about four inches long but has lost its gold colour and is completely silver/salmon coloured with a gorgeous gossamer tail of about a similar length.
I guess that it might not be the brown algae on its tail (it looks like a single brown transparent cell stuck on one side of the fishes tail fin, with a darker brown dot - more of a dash than a dot as it is narrow but a couple of mm long - running from the centre to the perimeter, if the cell is a circle, the darker brown dash looks like a line measuring the radius) but a parasite and on enquiring at the pet shop, it was suggested that I try to detach it with a fingernail.
Following his advice, I did begin to attempt this, by cornering Ridley with the net when she had nowhere to run as I changed the water yesterday. However I am far too squeamish and couldn't bear to traumatize the poor fish by handling it and although I managed to get her sort of in my hand, there was no way I was going to hang onto her long enough to try and flick the offending object off with a finger nail.
It was far too distressing for the both of us and so before even thinking about giving it another go and freaking the fish out completely, I thought I should seek some more informed advice first, both to find out what it is and how best to get rid of it? I certainly wouldn't look forward to the thought of trying again to get it off with my fingernail but it is so obviously attached to one side of her tail that in spite of my cowardice, I cannot look at her in the tank without being tempted to stick my hands in and give it another go
Further to the advice received here when I had an outbreak of Ich, the addition of salt appeared to work so effectively that I was tempted to see if would destroy whatever it is on RIdley's tail but I thought I had better seek your advice before doing anything further. I guess I would also have to remove all the live plants again because I assume that an increased concentration of salt would kill them off?
And I am hoping that one of you kind souls will get back to me fairly soon, or else with my obsessive nature and my inability to stop worrying about it, I will undoubtedly end up down the pet shop soon enough, with the store owner talking me into buying more chemicals to put in my tank (and it would seem unfair having to inflict more chemicals on the other fish just to treat the one)
Once again my utmost thanks in advance for any advice that you can offer to assist me (and Ridley of course) and my apologies for not showing my face anywhere here (I've never been the most sociable sort) in the meantime - unlike at the footie match, I am afraid I am guilty as charged because I "only sing when I'm losing"! Or my cry for help is like the postcard from the long lost son to his folks with the message "weather great, send more money"
Peace & Love
Bernard
