I set up a 55 gallon tank about three months ago. I have two oscars, 9 corriadors, one catfish, one angelfish, one pleco and 5 silver dollars. I was very proud of the tank because my angelfish and my silver dollars were especially exquisit with flawless fins and great color. Recently within the past two weeks however I have noticed that on my silver dollars that the upper part of their nose/mouth seems to be wounded with a white cotton like growth on those specific spots. I thought it was just a typical fungal infection so I treated the tank with Mardel and later added stress coat to help them heal. It seemed to be working but now I noticed that one of my silver dollars is in big trouble. The entire upper part of his face is nearly gone! And the cotton substance seems to be growing. Can anyone help me please, I can not seem to figure out what is happening to my silver dollars. They are the only ones who have this problem. My other fish are in great condition. Does anyone know what this sickness or disease could be? Any help would be great and it would probably save my silver dollars life. Thank you- Jackie
Silver Dollar Disease?
- Thread starter tinkgrl12
- Start date
your problem is undoubtedly related to severe overstocking. two oscars at maturity, need about 120 gallons just for themselves. i'm guessing your fish are still immature (?) but are beginning to exhibit the stress of crowding.
fish maintained in tanks which are too small or in conditions which are too crowded, develop severe stress syndrome. these fish do not exhibit proper color, do not develop proper fin form, do not exhibit proper metabolic development, do not exhibit normal behaviour, do not develop proper musculature, do not develop properly functioning organ systems and as a result, slowly lose their inherant resistance to disease. this results in a significantly shortened lifespan and along the way, lots of diseases for which the poorly conditioned fish is a good target.
fish maintained in tanks which are too small or in conditions which are too crowded, develop severe stress syndrome. these fish do not exhibit proper color, do not develop proper fin form, do not exhibit proper metabolic development, do not exhibit normal behaviour, do not develop proper musculature, do not develop properly functioning organ systems and as a result, slowly lose their inherant resistance to disease. this results in a significantly shortened lifespan and along the way, lots of diseases for which the poorly conditioned fish is a good target.
My one oscar is almost an adult, however the other oscar is still a juvenile, I know they should have more space, it was not my idea to get the second oscar that was may fathers (I was not happy). I supposed I could take the silver dollars out, my adult oscar is in mating mode right now and had moved about 3 pounds of stone. I am not sure if that has anything to do with the silver dollars problems or not. Should I quarentine the silver dollars in a separate tank. They are of an adult size and I am not sure if giving them a 39 gal. by themselves will solve anything because there are 5 of them. Is there a reason why my silver dollars are the only ones who seem to be having stress/crowding issues? Thanks for the help I really appreciate it.
I see some really big problems here:
Are they Red Hooks that you have in the 55g? If they are, they are either severely stunted or not adult sized as they would be barely able to turn around in there. They can grow over 12-14"+ A 55 gallon is only 13 inches deep. How old and how big are they?
This 75g alone is severely overstocked. ELEVEN Red Hooks? The comet goldfish, which belongs in a pond, can grow even bigger than the Red Hooks. Angelfish as well? A common pleco? Another possible 18" fish.
tinkgrl12, you have some very severe problems in the making if this is truly how your tanks are stocked. Yes, move those dollars out of the 55 but do not put them in a 30 gallon and not in the 75g. Either buy a few more tanks or give the fish to an LFS or sell them.
Even if you get the Oscars the 120g tank they need, the rest of the fish need more room as well. You'll need about 200gallons just for the eleven Red Hooks.
Roan
Roan
Are they Red Hooks that you have in the 55g? If they are, they are either severely stunted or not adult sized as they would be barely able to turn around in there. They can grow over 12-14"+ A 55 gallon is only 13 inches deep. How old and how big are they?
This 75g alone is severely overstocked. ELEVEN Red Hooks? The comet goldfish, which belongs in a pond, can grow even bigger than the Red Hooks. Angelfish as well? A common pleco? Another possible 18" fish.
tinkgrl12, you have some very severe problems in the making if this is truly how your tanks are stocked. Yes, move those dollars out of the 55 but do not put them in a 30 gallon and not in the 75g. Either buy a few more tanks or give the fish to an LFS or sell them.
Even if you get the Oscars the 120g tank they need, the rest of the fish need more room as well. You'll need about 200gallons just for the eleven Red Hooks.
Roan
Roan
I have not fixed my tank set up, the 11 silver dollars that were in the 75 got split up. 5 of them are now in the 55 and 6 in the 75. two of which are little guys. In the 55 gal they are about the size of my fist (which is not very large). The comet is rather large but with his methodical cleaning of the bottom of the tank really does not cause any problems. I only have two angelfish in the 75gal and they are only about 7 months old. I will change my signature but that was just where my fish were until I bought the 55 gal. I also have two 39 gals set up incase I have to move any of my fish. My 75 is in perfect condition that is not what I am worried about. It is the 5 silver dollars in my 55 which are the size of my fist. They are the only fish showing any signs of sickness. I am not going to risk spreading the infection to my 75 gal tank. I suppose I could take the fish to the fish store but they will not take silver dollars that are infected. Thanks for the help yet again, I am focusing on the 55 gal problem though the 75 is fine. Thank you