impossible
11-05-2005, 1:11 PM
One of my bolivian rams has lost his bright colors, he doesnt appear to be sick,swimming, eating,no visible signs of disease. Can anyone help explaining what this is all about???
wataugachicken
11-05-2005, 1:26 PM
tank size, tankmates? what are you feeding? have you tested the water for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates? post those numbers if you have them. added any other fish lately? do you do water changes? how often/how much?
a water quality issue may be causing the problem, answers to those questions can help us get a better idea of what could be causing the color loss and give you solutions.
impossible
11-05-2005, 5:49 PM
ammonia=0,,,nitrite=0,,,,nitrateo.75ppm,,,all acceptable,,,,,29 gallon,,,,last new tank mate was a clown loach 1 week ago,,,,he is fine,,,,I do a 20 % water change every week to insure good water quality for the rams,,,,,tank mates are 2 gold rams,,,2 clown loaches,,,1 cory,,,4 neons,,,4 tiger barbs,,,4 bleeding heart tetras,,,2 other bolivians,,,3 ottos,,,1 swordtail,,,
mooman
11-07-2005, 7:58 AM
He is probably stressed out. You have a lot of fish in that tank. If the other rams have paired up it's possible they are harrasing him. IMO that is too many dwarf cichlids (and too many fish) for a 29g. If you aren't willing to get rid of a few, I would up the water changes to 50% weekly. 75 ppm nitrate is not really enough to harm fish, but the disolved organics that come with that nitrate reading are probably enought to stress out the fish, and cause some stunted growth.
Suggestions to reduce bioload:
Get rid of the cory cat, they aren't happy by themselves
Get rid of swordtail, livebearers are messy fish and swordtails get big
Get rid of the barbs. Small schools of barbs can really pester other fish.
You have to think of your tank as a 20g long because thats the surface area you have available for gas exchange and territory.
Good Luck
sully1255
11-07-2005, 12:43 PM
and get rid of the clown loaches. while a slow growing fish they do need sufficient space to avoid stunting. a 29 just does not provide it. they will--over time--get to be 12"+. With an expected life span of 30+ years. Growth will take time, but it does happen. a 29 gallon tank assures that they will stunt and lead a short life.
rams--microgeophagus altispinosa or ramirezi really need about 2.5-3 sq ft. per pair. under that and you will stress them.