need help with my clown loach

[gilly27]

hi there everyone,

ive recently bought two small clown loaches to keep my other two clowns company. last week i noticed one of my new clowns has a dark mass in its abdomen, its still swimming well and eating normally but i couldent find anything on the net as to what it could be, as it dident seem to be in any distress i just left it but have been observing it for any changes, today i noticed my second new clown has also developed a dark mass in the same place, my other clowns seem to be ok, i also have 3 cardinals and two pearl danoes which seem to be fine, i did have 3 neon tetras and a pleco, the pleco died about a week after i bought it, i did a part water change, then 3 days later my neons died, does anyone have any info as to what could be up with my clowns as i would hate to lose them. b.t.w my tank is 20 gl, is there to many fish in my tank thanks
gilly27

 

[Coler]

ok well in theory I think 3 neons, 3 cardinals, 2 danios and 4 very small clown loaches is not currently very badly overstocked but it is inappropriately stocked, for your future reference.

(clown loaches get a foot long and need to be in huge aquariums, take them back before you get too attached to them or get them a large, large tank).

However you are losing fish, which is an indication of problems.

My question is whether you cycled your tank and what your test readings for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are. Also the kind of test kit you have.

Can't stress it enough that the 20 gallon is just not going to cut the mustard for those clowns and it will cause them damage. Do a google search on clown loach and see what you find, and don't believe anyone who says fish grow to fit your tank and that this is ok and does them no harm.

oops - edit : Hi and Welcome to the site. There's lots of good advice available here.

 

[DaisyTattoo]

Also, when you are changing your water are you adding dechlorinator? And yes, those clown loaches will get much too large for your tank. But, you are starting off right by coming to ask questions We all started somewhere and usually it was by killing a number of fish

 

[Coler]

^ yep dechlorinator is crucial.

if you can get your hands on Seachem Prime its great for this and has many other benefits.

I should have said that changes in fish colouration are often a sign of stress in fish.

 

[jm1212]

how often are you feeding them?

180 gallon tank is a minimum for a group of 5

 

[loaches r cool]

As for the 'black mass' a picture would really help if you can post one...

 

[shaggbark]

I have clowns, I have had the younger smaller ones for about 6 months and they seem to have an almost see thru belly, maybe you are just seeing what they are eating 8) Michelle

 

[gilly27]

hi, thanks for all the tips and advice, i have a friend with a 200 g tank that will take my loaches when they grow to big, i feed them once a day with complete sinking food until they stop eating, someone i know said to turn heater up a touch and believe it or not it seems to have done the trick the black masses seem to be disapearing, i do use dechlorinter, i am currently working on gettin sum pics downloaded but the little mites wont stay in one place long enough lol. its great to know theres a lot of ppl out there who dont mind helpin newbies such as myself. once again thanks