Pictus Catfish just dropped dead

I really do appreciate everyone's help. I want to assure you that we are researching thoroughly, and taking everything said here to heart.

We started with gouramis because they were a birthday gift to my hubby from my well-meaning 12 y/o daughter (without my prior knowledge).

We are truely heartbroken over the outcome of our mistakes and consider it as serious as if we had lost a litter of kittens or puppies. It is our intent to correct our mistakes, and the conditions in our tank and not lose any more finny friends.

We are well meaning, responsible adults who DO NOT consider fish disposable.

Please do not flame us because we got bad advice. We are doing our best to correct the problem before we add more fish.

It is confusing because there is so much contradictory information out there, and in here as well. We are trying to sort through it all and come up with the best solution possible.

Thank you to those of you who have so kindly offered your advice and concern.

And CT - I will pay attention to your advice about the threads.
 
ok like everyone has said a fishless is the easiest and least cruel, also good luck on the second try, im sorry about all the lost fish and even more sorry for the insults some people have given you, its not your fault, its petsmart, we should be insulting them not you. Once the cycle is over what fish are you planning on getting, dont listen to the people that say no fragile fish, you can have fragile fish in your tank as long as they will fit in 20 gallons and as long as you have the correct water params for them and also as long as you have researched on them and as long as you are ready mentally to take care of a fragile fish. Good luck on the second go.

Sorry if it has already been answered but what filter are you using. Also try to look for another fish store near you thats better than petsmart.
 
I'm sorry to hear of all your trouble. My first fish tank was a similar disaster (and I'd been researching ... so I should have known better.) I had the fish named before they died.

Once you are satisfied that the tank is cleaned out and you are ready to start again - do a fishless cycle. Since no ones explained it, here goes (you can probably find better explanations elsewhere): keep everything running as though you had fish (filter, heater on etc) but don't add any fish. Then add something to "simulate" fish waste. The options I know of are adding fish food (yup, just let it decay in there - and add a pinch every day), adding a frozen shrimp or similar (again, just letting it decay) or buying pure ammonia (with no additives) and adding some to the tank daily.

The decaying items create ammonia, which feeds the bacteria, allowing your tank to cycle without risking any fish.

Using these, you will be able to test for ammonia and nitrite to see how far through the cycle you are. Once both are zero, it's time to get fish! It could take several weeks - and this is a great time to decide exactly which fish you want and will be small enough for your tank.

You can add live plants at any point if you decide to get some.

Good luck.
 
First I want to thank you, Musho, for your kind words.

We are running a 50 gal. penguin bio-wheel filter (the 30 gal we bought didn't work, so they replaced it with the 50 gal. one at no extra cost.) with two charcoal and blue (sponge?) filter pads and a filter bag with ammonia rocks in it.

We plan on starting with 2 hardy danios when the tank is cycled and give them a couple of weeks alone before we get anything else.

We plan on buying a house the first of 2008, and having a large (100 gal. +) built. Barring that, we have our eyes on a 90 Gal tank we saw at a small fish store we just found.

We have told PetSmart (not that they care) that we will no longer be doing business with them. We found a small locally owned and operated fish store called Aquarium Odessey. The owner, who works there everyday, is a member of the local tropical fish club. They meet in the store after hours. We will be dealing with her directly, and buying all of our fish from her. She is the one who suggested starting with the danios when we restock.
 
ok it sounds good, i love danios, i have 4 of them and will be getting 2 more next week. Its a good filter but dont use the ammonia removing rocks (zeolite) since it will just starve the bacteria of ammonia.

Once your done cycling you can add 2 danios every 4 days until you reach 6. Since they are schooling fish they do good in groups of 6 or more. They are very hardy fish.
 
magakitty said:
We started with gouramis because they were a birthday gift to my hubby from my well-meaning 12 y/o daughter (without my prior knowledge).

We are truely heartbroken over the outcome of our mistakes and consider it as serious as if we had lost a litter of kittens or puppies. It is our intent to correct our mistakes, and the conditions in our tank and not lose any more finny friends.

We are well meaning, responsible adults who DO NOT consider fish disposable.

Please do not flame us because we got bad advice. We are doing our best to correct the problem before we add more fish.
Thank you to those of you who have so kindly offered your advice and concern.
Click to expand...

Your good intentions have been absolutely clear through the whole thread. Get through this and you will have a fantastic hobby, for you, your hubby and your kids. There was one flame...I think you should ignore it...fwiw...you have exactly the right attitude, so keep it up :) it happens, learn, move on, it won't happen again (that's what I say to myself)
 
thank you coler - one more question. The ammonia was at .25 after the 50% change yesterday, now it's back up to 1.0. Should I just let it go since it is fishless, or do another change?
 
Since it is fishless currently, and if you are satisfied that you have clened to your satisfaction, I would let it ride. The bacteria will develop that converts ammonia to nitrite. The bacteria that changes nitrite to nitrate are slower growing and will take a while.

If you decide to go back to a fishy cycje, ensure you do enough water changes to get ammonia and nitrite to zero and maintain them there.
 
Yep, no more water changes . There's no need if you have no fish you're trying to keep alive. Just wait for the beneficial bacteria to catch up and do all the work now.

Continue to put a small pinch of fish food into the tank every day though , that way you continue to produce some waste.
 
Coler said:
Your good intentions have been absolutely clear through the whole thread. Get through this and you will have a fantastic hobby, for you, your hubby and your kids. There was one flame...I think you should ignore it...fwiw...you have exactly the right attitude, so keep it up :) it happens, learn, move on, it won't happen again (that's what I say to myself)
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more Coler. Keep your head up. We are all here to help each other and to learn from each other.

If anything, I was more concerned that this experience would sour you from the hobby! :( Talk about getting hit with bad luck!

Once the cycling is over, the rest is a lot of fun and relaxation!

Keep us posted! Regards
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom