I don't quite know what the problem is (hence this message, huh?!?!?). This is my third marine tank and my first time with unexplained casualties. I've only been set up for about a month or so and I used some special bacteria that comes in a metal pouch for about $30 dollars this time, which was supposed o cycle my tank virtually instantly, instead of traditional cycling lasting weeks. All my reading are good according to my home test kit, no ammonia, no nitrite, no nitrate, but the local shop says my nitrate is a little high (not sure what the disparity there is), but for some reason, I have lost a lawnmower blenny, a firefish, and a cardinal, all kind of flailing their gills like they were suffocating or something. I don't know what's killing them. My temp is perfect. I have a via aqua 650 cannister filter w/ native bacteria from the local pet store, a three-stage skimmer, powerheads, and a cleaner crew. The fish seem perfectly happy, until suddenly one's time will come. What will end this sad cycle of death?
Help Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!
- Thread starter wet&wild
- Start date
Not putting fish in would stop the death, and I've never heard of a "quick cure" for a cycle. I would do it the normal way, do you have live rock? Whats a three stage skimmer? Don't put any more fish in until you find out whats wrong.
temp is 76; salinity is 1.022; fish are from a very well-respected and established marine fish specialist here in so cal; acclimating them by introducing tank water to the pet store bag over a 30 minute period, they seem to acclimate perfectly well. all stayed in tank and behaved normally and fed for weeks straight, each of the three just seemed to suddenly get sluggish and die. the remaining four fish still seem very lively and feed ravenously. can't figur it out
the skimmer is a back pack two, I believe (it has three compartments where the water flows- first all the bubbles rise through in one column, then the water pours over into another compartment to allow the water to settle, then it goes into a third column where it is released back into the tank
Sounds like the way they describe cyanide poisoning. Fish look good for a few weeks, then keel over dead.
what would cause cyanide poisoning? or was that a joke? oh yeah... also, no live rock... just crushed coral and a cansiter filter with the little ball things embedded with live bacteria in the filter
I just cam back from another pet shop and the manager there said that it sounds a lot like gill parasites, since he tested my water and it came back fine for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, ammonia, etc., given my discription of how the fish died, sluggish and refusing to eat the final day, and then flaring their gills dramtically, as if suffocating
he convinced me to get a uv filter sterilizer and also to try this fish food that has garlic in it to repel parasites...does this sound about right?
he convinced me to get a uv filter sterilizer and also to try this fish food that has garlic in it to repel parasites...does this sound about right?
Not at all a joke - I believe cyanide is used to stun fish to make them easy to capture in the wild. Weeks later, they succumb and die (usually after they've been purchased). I lost a goby who looked well until one day his condition rapidly deteriorated: he began flaring his gills, breathing rapidly, seemed unaware of his surroundings, started swimming erratically and eventually became almost comatose (at which point I euthanized him). I chalked it up to cyanide, since my wrasse displayed no symptoms and my parameters hadn't changed.wet&wild said:
My suggestion is to make sure all your water parameters are ideal, then try getting your next fish from another store (make sure they get their fish from a different source and ask if the fish are net-caught or, better yet, captive bred) and see what happens.
Wow. That's pretty crazy. I had no idea. Thanks so much for the heads up. It does seem plausible since all my parameters seem perfect. Well, I'll pray for the best- and I'll let you all know develops as it happens. Thanks for all your help and take care.