Silver Dollar Question

[Cougar Guy]

Hello,

My Silver Dollars appear to have fin rot but I am unsure if this is actually what it is. NO other fish in the tank are affected or have ANY signs of damaged fins . . . just the Silver Dollars. There are 2 of them in particular that exhibit this. Both are on the Tail Fin. Basically the bottom tip of the Tail is starting to wear away.

I have been treating with Melafix but haven't noticed any change. Is it possible that this is from nipping? I do have a Gourami in the tank that has been know to chase his tankmates . . . it just looks too clean to be a nip and I would suspect that would heal fairly quickly.

Are you aware of anything specific to Silver Dollars that may be an issue?

I have 4 in a 33 along with the one Gourami, an algae eater and a handful of Neon's. The are eating perfectly fine and quite active within the tank. Temp is 79 and water good as nitrates go. Tank has been cycled for well over a year with no water/algae problems.

Help?

[Bobs]

I have 3 silver dollars and the fins on occasion do the same thing. It seems to happen if I haven't kept up on my water changes, so I think it's related to water quality. If I keep my Nitrates under 20ppm, they eventually grow back, but it takes several months.

[Cougar Guy]

Thanks Bobs,

I usually do weekly changes but maybe I'll step up the quantity of the water change a little more. The last time I tested the Nitrates they were fine but perhaps they are just really sensitive.

Thanks for the input.

[DrDeath]

I have 2 silver dollars in my tank with 5 Tiger barbs, 1 red tail shark, 1 Leporinus, 1 gold Gourami. The silver dollars are chased and nipped at constantly by every single fish in my tank.

If none of your other fish are affected, I would guess it is nipping and not water quality. You also said they are eating fine and act normal. I would go with nipping.

Just my opinion.

DrD

[Cougar Guy]

Thanx for your opinion DrDeath,

I did a nice large water change today and really vaccumed the gravel. I did a nitrate test and they were a little high but nothing that would freak me out.

I'll monitor for the next couple of weeks and continue with the Melafix treatment. I suspect you may be right about the nipping. I have a Gold Gourami who can be quite the agressor sometimes :)