Sick plecos????

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Hi, remember me???

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77664

Anyway, now our pleco is acting bizarre. He's just kinda floating, tail towards the top, not attached to anything. He also swims upside down and is just generally acting weird. I thought it may have something to do with our water problem, so I was going to just put him in a big tupperware bowl of fresh water, but when I went to get him with the net, he started swimming around pretty briskly. Now, it looks like he's "panting" or breathing heavily, I don't know what to do with him. He's by far our favorite fish, and we don't want to lose him. We have nothing we can use as a hospital tank and we, again, are out of our depth.

Any advice? Help? Anything?

Last water change was 50% the day of my thread above, so what, 4 days ago, and we're heading out to get a water test kit right now. We're also going to do another water change today, even though the water is much more clear than before. He's in a 55 gallon tank with 4 small neon tetras and 1 kissing pink gourami.
 
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Star_Rider

Star_Rider

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It appears that the problem you may have had was OTS(old tank syndrome)

usually the nitrates are high any new fish you add would probably not adjust.
the other fish may have adjusted..
it appears you may have also had a bacterial bloom..generally not fatal..however, if you were not maintaining your tank anddoing weekly vac's you may get a build up of toxic bacteriain the rocks/gravel.

the general suggestion would be to start increasing water changes..however, you need to proceed with caution as you could cause issues if you lower the nitrates and tds too quickly(causing stress)

generally doing water changes every other day of 25% or so to slowly decrease the counts.

there are different opinions of this.

the big thing it to avoid this in the future..get the test kit and start a ritual on your cleaning/water changes.

do the best you can..cross your fingers and hang in there. :joe:
 
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Well, we just ran to Wal-Mart and got a 10 gallon starter tank so we can get the fish the hell outta the old crap. Here's hoping.
 
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TheZoo

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wait, youre going to put your 11 inch pleco in a 10 gallon tank? I read your other thread, and I think thats how big you said your pleco is. If so, thats not gonna work...
from the description of your plecos problem, it doesnt sound good. If you do have OTS, the best you can do is periodic small water changes using a siphon to stir up the substrate. If you do replace too much too soon in a tank thats not used to it, the fish can go into osmotic shock.
Can you describe, step by step, what you do when you change out water? And anything else, water parameters, filter, decor, etc that may help.
 
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It's moot, he didn't make it. RIP, Nu-nu.


We're going to test the water in the big aquarium anyway just to see what's going on, then we're draining it, taking it outside and bleaching it. We bought all new rocks for the bottom, and we're probably going to "fishless" cycle it. From what symptoms we've had in the tank and the symptoms of the fish, we're 99% sure we had a bacterial problem.
 
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TheZoo

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:sad: so sorry he died!!

What are your plans for the other fish still in the tank? Dont want to loose them as well...
 
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TheZoo said:
:sad: so sorry he died!!

What are your plans for the other fish still in the tank? Dont want to loose them as well...
Click to expand...
They are in the new 10 gallon aquarium, doing well at this point.
 
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TheZoo

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be very diligent about water changes and watching your water parameters in the little tank, since they are now cycling it from scratch. Your gourami can potentially grow very large, so hopefully you can get him back int he large tank soon.
 
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Well, as of this morning, everyone is fine and the water in the little tank is absolutely perfect, basically the way the old tank was a year ago. We're draining the 55 gallon tank today. We tested last night, nitrates zero, nitrites zero, ammonia zero. It must be a bacterial problem... Nothing bleach can't cure.
 
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