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FAQs on Freshwater Finrot Related Articles: Freshwater Fish Diseases, Freshwater Diseases, FW
Disease Troubleshooting,
Choose Your Weapon: Freshwater Fish Disease Treatment
Options by Neale Monks,
Related FAQs: Infectious FW Diseases 1,
Dropsy/Dropsical Conditions,
Aquarium
Maintenance, FW Parasitic Diseases, African Cichlid Disease 1,
Cichlid
Disease, Betta Disease 1,
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Goldfish tail rot 4/5/08
Hi, WWM!
About two months ago, my husband and 9-yr-old came home with -- surprise! --
three small (about 1-1.5² each) goldfish and an apple snail from our local
Wal-Mart (much to my chagrin; we already have three dogs, a mouse, and five
hermit crabs... most of whom eventually become my responsibility!). We put them
in a ten-gallon tank with a power carbon filter that hangs on the side of the
tank, splashing water back into the tank in a constant waterfall.
A week ago we noticed that one of the fish had lost a substantial amount of her
tail. She was spending much of her time near the top of the tank. She was also
constipated (trailing long white poop strand). I did some research online and
discovered all the WRONG things weıve been doing these couple of months ? no
water changes, overfeeding with boring/starchy flakes only, etc. I diagnosed her
with poor water conditions, constipation, and tail rot, got the water checked at
the local pet store (not so bad, considering it had NEVER been changed ? Ph
neutral, Nitrites/nitrates of 40 and ammonia of .25, all of which the store
employee said were in the ³safe² range), and have treated the tank with Triple
Sulfa for an entire course of treatment ? 5 days, changing 25% of water halfway
through process and again last night, at end of process. I also did not feed for
two days, then gave a little fresh spinach, and am now feeding small amount of
dried krill; this seems to have cleared up her constipation. I should mention
that I treated the ENTIRE tank, upon the recommendation of the store employee. I
also added a live plant to the tank (something we didnıt have before), after
doing the water change and replacing the carbon filter last night.
My question has to do with the tail rot. Although the fish is now very active
and happy, eating and swimming well (or as well as can be expected without a
tail!) and is not hovering near the top of the tank, she still has white fuzzy
signs of tail rot on the stub of what was once her tail. Does this mean that she
is still infected, or has a secondary fungal infection that I should be treating
some other way? Or is it normal to still see the fuzzy white signs of the tail
rot, even when she is ³all better?² Iıve searched everywhere online for this
info, and am still feeling clueless about how to know definitively if sheıs ok
now... or not. I donıt want to do another course of antibiotic treatment, unless
itıs necessary.
Thanks so much from all of us!
Susan
<Hello Susan. Yes, it sounds like your fish has Fungus as well as Finrot. So use
a medication that treats both. Treating the tank does no harm to the filter so
don't be afraid of using one. Here in England I recommend eSHa 2000 for this,
but elsewhere in the world you may need to use a different product. I don't
recommend Melafix/Pimafix though. See here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWsubwebindex/fwfishmeds.htm
Fundamentally your problem is a tank that it is too small and likely
under-filtered, see here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/goldfish101art.htm
Cheers, Neale.>
Sick goldfish question...
using WWM 3/30/08
Hi,
I came across your web page a few minutes ago.
<Ah, then you haven't read any of our articles on Goldfish. Start here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fwsubwebindex/goldfish101art.htm
>
I'm looking for some help regarding my two fantail goldfish. They live in a 20
gal. tank,
<Too small in the long term.>
I do regular water changes. One has fin rot.
<You don't mention filtration. Finrot is almost always caused by poor water
quality. So, when fish get Finrot, the first thing you do is check for Ammonia
or Nitrite. Do this, and then get back to me.>
I am treating with MelaFix and elevated the salt to one teaspoon/gallon of new
water.
<Melafix won't help here and neither will salt. Goldfish DO NOT NEED salt. The
guys in the store sell you this stuff because they can. It's useless. Much
better to provide good water quality through filtration and weekly 50% water
changes.>
The Finrot has not gone away yet, but I'm still hopeful, since I had forgotten
to take the carbon filter out . . .
<Carbon has zero effect on salt and Melafix. In any case, carbon is useless is
this sort of tank. Again, it's mostly about getting money from fishkeepers than
anything else. Instead go with a plain vanilla filter with sponges and/or
ceramic noodles. Choose a filter that provides not less than 6 times the volume
of the tank in turnover per hour. You'll see the rating on the filter or the
package it came in. So for a 20 gallon tank, you need a filter rated at no less
than 120 gallons per hour. Anything smaller will be overwhelmed by the dirt
these fish produce.>
I'm new at this, and trying to learn all the tricks of keeping them healthy.
<No tricks. Just science. Read, learn.>
So one, does the above treatment plan seem like a good one?
<Not really, no. Go for something like Maracyn (in the US) or a real
antibacterial remedy such as eSHa 2000.>
And two, what is a normal alkalinity for goldfish? According to the chart on my
testing kit, their alkalinity is pretty high.
<That's fine. Goldfish like hard, alkaline water. A pH around 7.5 to 8, general
hardness around 10-20 dH, and carbonate hardness not less than 5 degrees KH will
suit them well.>
Thank you for your time!
Genia
<Hope this helps, Neale.>
Betta fin rot -03/28/08
I have a 5 gal filtered, heated tank with a Betta, a few Neons and an
African dwarf frog. Ammonia & nitrites are both 0. I'm pretty sure the Betta has
fin rot - raggedy fins, with whitish edge on tail.
<Sounds likely. Do remember Neons have been reported as fin nippers towards
Bettas, and they are NOT a recommended combination. In addition, 5 gallons is
way too small for Neons.>
I read a previous posting on this site to treat with Kanacyn.
Is it okay to treat in the tank with the Neons & African dwarf frog, or do I
need to separate him for treatment?
<Neons should be fine. Kanacyn is not safe with amphibians though, so remove the
frog.>
I don't want to harm the others. Thanks! -Karen
<Cheers, Neale.>
Infected plant, a casualty,
and a mis-diagnosis? Mmm, mis-mix of FW lvstk., disease period
2/26/08
Good afternoon crew! Hope it's warmer where you are than here!
<Was about to wish you the same!>
As requested before submissions, here are my tank parameters.
-30 gal tank w/ side mounted 30-60 gal waterfall filter (carbon, filter sponge,
ammonia)
-Nitrate 0,
<Mmm, none, zip?>
Nitrite 0, Hardness approx 120-150ppm, Chlorine 0, Alkalinity between
120&180ppm, pH 7.6, Ammonia 0.2-0.3
<Not good...>
-tank temp avg 76-78F
-20W tank light for plant growth & vibrant fish color
-25% water changes with gravel siphoned once weekly.
Here is my stock.
-2 fantail goldfish. One the size of a quarter, one the size of a nickel
-3 golden wonder killifish about 1 1/2 long
-3 red wag platies size of a nickel
-2 white skirt tetras quarter sized
-1 iridescent shark 3 inches long
<... quite a mix... am sure you've heard/read re Goldfish "like" for cooler (and
harder, more alkaline) water than the tetras, killies...>
-tank has been established for a very successfully with only 2 deaths
(I don't believe this is overstocking and there is sufficient dwelling spots
like fake coral, rocks, caves. Please correct me if I'm wrong)
Here is my situation.
I reluctantly & recently purchased 2 plants (a very small bunch of Anubias, and
what I believe is fanworts)
<The former are very tough... depending on what the latter are... not so much>
for the purpose of providing more territory & safety for my recently turned
aggressive killifish (only aggressive to the 3 of each other, not the other
species). I read nightmare stories of people bringing in sick plants to their
aquarium & all their livestock gets wiped out,
<Rare, but happens. Much more often, the plants just die>
but I felt it was necessary, and could provide some positive benefit. I think
the negative side may be the case with me.
I noticed 4 closely clumped white spots on the rear fin of my white skirt tetra.
Over the course of 2 days the spots either all disappeared, were smaller, or on
a different spot of the rear fin. No other fish were experiencing this. I
treated the tank for ich because the white spots were ich sized, have had other
ich experience, and I know how ich works & its life cycle. I used a Methylene
Blue treatment for 3 days, 25% water change per day, removed carbon, and turned
water temp to 80-82F. The problem did not get better with the treatment for the
tetra, and in fact my 2 fantail goldfish seemed to have suffered from treatment,
one gravely.
<See above... don't like too-warm water... and the ammonia... trouble>
Both goldfish developed frayed edges on their rear tails like a minor case of
fin rot. The little guy seemed like he was "panting", and overnight he suddenly
died. My waterfall filter provides plenty of oxygen bubbles, so I don't think it
was from lack of oxygen.
<Mmmm>
The other goldfish still has a finely frayed rear tail, and the tips curl inward
now like a woman's hair with rollers. His breathing looks normal. No other fish
seem to be infected or reacting problematically at this time.
My question is should I be treating for a fungus or parasite treatment instead
of the ich? What am I doing wrong, please lead me down the path of success!
Tim P
USA
<... Really... need at least two systems here. One for the goldfish, maybe with
the platies... the other for the tropicals. IF this is a parasite, it may well
be a trematode/fluke... Please see WWM re the System needs for all you list, how
to treat for FW worm complaints... Bob Fenner>
Re: Infected plant, a casualty, and a mis-diagnosis?
2/27/08
Thank you Bob for the info regarding the worm complaints. Just an update
on my tank situation & to add to this distress, my iridescent shark now
has something completely different than I've ever dealt with. The shark
also has very white frayed edges on all his fins like fin rot.
<Mmm, environmental... the treatment effects... perhaps the disruption
of nitrification>
Also his slime coat seems to be very over active, to the point where its
making his black shiny body look like a velvety grayish to the point
where it could look mossy (not to the extent of cotton fungus, and
doesn't look like velvet disease). His gills seem to be a bit gasp. I
will treat for flukes as you recommend but I don't see any worms.
<The "spots" that keep recurring, moving... are "worms"...
flukes/trematodes... See the Net, WWM re>
I suppose I will treat it as a parasite, not a fungus.
<See... WWM... re>
Though reading the articles on this site are very informative, I'm
afraid to choose a wrong diagnosis. I will isolate the Goldfish & the
Platies in a different tank, however do you recommend this after
treatment since they have all co- existed for more than a year together,
and may share the same diseases? Again, thank you for all your help, it
makes a difference.
Tim P
<And send along some clear, well-resolved pix if you can. Cheers, Bob
Fenner>Re: Infected plant,
a casualty, and a mis-diagnosis?
Bob,
As you've requested, here are a few photos of my iridescent shark.
Notice the white slimy frayed fin edges, and he's also glazed over with
the white-slimy kind of bumpy mucus which actually looks fleshy &
torn-like. This isn't fungus is it? He's even has mucus hanging off his
whiskers. Normally he would hang out under the rock at the bottom of the
tank in the dark, but now I find him normally swimming around up top or
near the top below the tank light. His swimming does not seem to look
labored, and he is not breathing heavy. I treated the tank with Binox,
hopefully I'm not fighting a cause that's already in the grave. Goldfish
seems to not be getting any worse, maybe even better. No other fish seem
to be infected at this time, with the exception of the killi with the 1
white spot on its rear tail. The original problem tetra has no spots. Is
the anti parasite medication still the course of treatment needed?
Again, thanks so much.
P.S. Please feel free to use these photos on your site for educational
purposes. It's the least I can do for you educating me, and hopefully
this can help others.
New water parameters . .
NO3-0
NO2-0
Chlorine-0
Hardness 150ppm
Alkalinity-180ppm
pH-7.8
Ammonia- .1 to .2
Thanks
Tim
<Hello Tim. This fish has Finrot and/or Fungus. It's in terrible shape.
Both these diseases are more environmental than anything else, and the
fact you have Ammonia in the aquarium clinches the deal as far as I'm
concerned. Let's make this crystal clear: Pangasius sp. catfish are NOT
AQUARIUM FISH. Do please see the Planet Catfish page on this species to
see how big they get:
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catalog/species.php?species_id=172
Never have been, and never will be, worth keeping. They just don't do
well in aquaria, even if you can handle the fact they reach upwards of 1
m in length. You need lots of water movement and good water quality,
since these are riverine fish. They're also schooling fish and tend to
be extremely nervous when kept alone, thrashing about the tank when the
lights go out or whatever. Your tank is loaded to the gunwales with
rocks and such, and these are utterly incompatible with Pangasius: when
the catfish swim, they bump into the rocks, get damaged, and then
infection sets in. They are riverine catfish that need a tank that is
basically composed of two things: [1] a huge box filled with water and
[2] a massively powerful filter producing 8-10 times the volume of the
tank in turnover per hour. They don't want plants, rocks, seashells,
bogwood... nothing! As if to underline this point some more, scientists
recently established that at least one species of Pangasius (P. krempfi)
actually swims out of rivers and into the sea once it grows up! Finally,
you appear to be keeping a notorious fin-nipper, Gymnocorymbus ternetzi.
This species is precisely the kind of fish you wouldn't combine with
these nervous catfish. These characins will nip the Pangasius, damaging
the fins and sending the poor animal into paroxysms of fear. So, short
term: treat with a combination Finrot/Fungus medication. I have found
eSHa 2000 works excellently well with catfish and other sensitive
species. Daily salt water dips might also be useful, but I fear they'd
be too stressful for a catfish this nervous. Long term: needs rehoming.
Wrong tank, wrong tankmates. Hope this helps, Neale.>
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Cichlid Might Have Fin Rot
2/16/08
Hello, Not sure what kind of cichlid I have, but he is orange in color, and
is about 3.5 years old. Just recently he became ill and isn't himself.
Normally he eats the rocks and spits them out to make his own area in the tank,
he is an only fish. Then he got sick, tank got very dirty very quick and he
bloated. We cleaned the tank, he got better and bloating went away.
Still seems to have a little under his mouth. Then we notice he has a circle
sort of a cut below his left fin. It almost looks like something is
eating away at it. Not sure if it is or not? He is still not behaving the same,
but eats and seems a little better. What can I do to help him? Is
this a parasite? I can't seem to find any answers with the same type of problem.
His cut is now getting bigger and I'm afraid if we don't act quick we might lose
him. Can you offer advice? Thanks so much.
K. Matts
< Sounds like you may have a Lake Malawi cichlid commonly called Mbuna. They eat
mainly algae that they scrape off of the rocks. You fish is getting older and
may not be able to fight off diseases like he use to do. These fish are really
hardy if the right conditions are being met. First, keep the tank clean. Check
the nitrates and keep them below 20 ppm. As nitrates increase the fish get
weaker and the parasites that cause the disease get stronger. They like hard
alkaline water at about 77 F. They eat mainly algae so feed him a diet high in
vegetable matter. Your fish may have a bacterial infection called fin or tail
rot. Ideally he could be placed in a hospital tank and treated with
Nitrofurazone. You can treat the main tank but the antibiotic may harm the
biological filtration so you will have to watch for ammonia spikes after the
treatment. In extremely tough cases I have cut the infected fin back past the
infection with fingernail clippers and wiped the infected area with a fish dip
before treating. If the fin gets fungused or the disease grows into the meaty
portion of the fish the fin may not grow back.-Chuck
Sand beds in Freshwater tanks 2/16/08
Hi Bob, Amy here I have the Oscars with "HLLE" I have been writing you the
last couple of days. So much information on this sight. It's really great. I
haven't really seen that sand beds are that common for freshwater fish.
<Mmm, no... for a few "reasons"... mainly just perceived as being too hard to
maintain>
I just yesterday cleaned all the rocks and sand in my upper aquarium 220 gal. I
never told you I had a partial sand bed. I have very fine rocks and about 80
pounds of Moonlite sand total of about 4 inches deep. It seems to be enough sand
to fill the gaps between my fine gravel. Maybe that's why I have those little
white worms. I also see air bubbles in my rocks at times. That should be good.
Maybe not now that I cleaned them, no more bubbles. My Aquarium has been set up
for about 1.5 years now. I do clean my gravel bed in my upper tank, but not very
often. Normally I just get the loose debris off the surface. The last couple of
days, I really cleaned all my rocks because of my problem with "HLLE". Did I
just remove all the good bacteria from my tank?
<Mmm, assuredly not>
The sand / gravel really wasn't that dirty, probably because it is so dense. I
did not move my stationary rocks and caves to clean. They cover about half of my
aquarium floor. So there should still be bacteria there. In the future how
should I clean the sand / gravel in my upper tank?
<... this is posted as well... Please learn to/use the indices and search tool
on WWM>
Is a sand bed beneficial to freshwater fish?
<Can be if maintained adequately>
When I set up I thought " more natural" is better, right. I know sand beds are
great for saltwater and I may change over some day. I want to do the best for my
fish. Thanks for all your advise. Amy
<Please read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwsetupindex.htm
the second tray, FW substrates, the linked files above...>
Oh one more thing. I am going to feed my fish food with Metronidazole in it. I
also think I'm going to start treating for fin rot today, with Pro Series Fungus
Cure. Let me know if you think that might be a bad idea. When the fin rot
treatment is completed I was going treat my water again with Metronidazole.
<Please... read re on WWM. I would only treat once with Metronidazole...>
Just so you know, I always remove the charcoal when I treat with medications.
Thanks again for the help. I'm going to try feeding peas and crickets today. I
hope they like it. Thanks again, Amy
<Keep reading my young friend. BobF>
Re: ? Finrot
2/16/08
is it possible it is fin rot or some type of fungus? Or is it more likely a
injury from aggression?
<Finrot is distinctive: white patches on the fins, often with a pinkish edge.
The pink comes from inflamed blood vessels and the white is dead tissue.
Gradually the fin membrane decays away. Finrot is (sadly) very common in newly
set up tanks and in overstocked tanks. It is almost always associated with poor
water quality. So if you suspect Finrot, you must (A) treat the disease; and (B)
review water conditions and make changes as required. De see here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwdistrbshtart.htm
And also related articles. Cheers, Neale.>
Moving Betta Fish to a Bigger
Tank/Fin rot 10/21/07
Hello,
<Hello!>
I got a betta fish about a month ago- my college had an event and they gave away
bettas for free. The bowl he came in seemed "too small" so I got him a larger
(half gallon) bowl, which he's been living in since then. However, reading on
your site (I know, I should have done my research *first* but I assumed that
since people in my dorm in previous years had bettas in those little bowls that
it was okay for them) I got him a 2.5 gallon tank with a heater and filter (it's
a charcoal filter type, rather than a sponge...is that okay?) and some largish
cloth plants.
<Carbon isn't really useful in this aquarium. You're going to need to change 50%
of the water weekly (at least) and doing that will remove the dissolved organic
wastes through dilution. Since carbon is used to remove those wastes, the carbon
is rendered obsolete. Carbon also removes medications: you cannot use fish
medicine in an aquarium with carbon. So, replace the carbon with *biological*
filter media instead. Sponge would be ideal, but ceramic hoops or filter wool
will work too.>
My question is, from what I've seen you're supposed to cycle the tank before
putting the fish in, but that can take up to 6 weeks.
<Yes.>
But it seems like even an uncycled heated and larger tank would be better for
Kappa (my betta) than his small cold bowl.
<Correct.>
Is it safe to put him in now, and just change the water often (I'm thinking
every 3 days with a 50% change- in his old bowl I was doing 100% changes every 3
days), or is it better to wait for the new tank to cycle?
<Your plan sounds ideal. Move the fish, do water changes regularly, and test the
nitrite levels periodically to check things are OK. When fish are exposed to
high ammonia and nitrite levels, they are prone to fungus and finrot, so you
want to keep them as low as possible, preferably zero.>
Also, I put the plastic plant and the gravel from his old bowl in, with new
gravel and a couple larger fabric plants- will that help the tank cycle faster?
<Marginally, if at all.>
(I don't know if there was anything beneficial on them, in order to get the
waste off the gravel I'd been swishing it in tap water when I did his water
changes, and rinsing off the plant
<Arggghh! Never wash anything under the tap you want bacteria to live on. Always
wash biologically active filter media in a bucket or bowl of water taken from
the aquarium.>
I did notice some sort of stringy whitish stuff on the plant though, is that
good or bad growth?)
<Likely algae (if green) or bacteria (if grey/white). Either way, harmless
though perhaps unsightly.>
I don't have any tests for ammonia/nitrates/nitrites yet, but I am getting some
as soon as I can find them (the store I went to was out of a lot of stuff).
<Get the simple combination dip-sticks. They're cheap (here around £10 for 25
tests) and you can slice them down the middle to make twice as many tests. Each
dip-stick has nitrite, ammonia, nitrate, pH and hardness (at least) making them
extremely useful for quickly judging the conditions in the tank.>
I'm especially concerned about leaving Kappa in the old bowl because he's had a
chronic case of fin rot since about a week after I got him. At first he lost
about a quarter inch of the 'webbing' on his tail, and I got him some aquarium
salt and tetracycline gel-food medicine.
<The salt detoxifies nitrite, which is useful when a tank is immature. I'm not
convinced Tetracycline food is beneficial, given it is an antibiotic for
internal infections, and Finrot is an external infection. I think you need to
add a Finrot medication to the water.>
The medicine said to give him 5 drops per serving (2x a day) but I could never
get him to eat more than 2 drops (the brand was "aquarium products gel-Tek
tetracycline", for what it's worth). It seemed to stop the fin rot, and it
started growing back but as soon as the medication period (3 days) ended, within
a day the tail had rotted back to about where it was the first time.
<Curing the symptoms -- Finrot -- while not fixing the cause -- poor water
quality -- locks you into a cycle where every time you cure the fish, it gets
sick again soon after.>
I tried the tetracycline again and this time he'd hardly eat it (I think he just
doesn't like it, he loves the Hikari pellets and frozen bloodworms that are his
normal food). The rot didn't really get any better, so I stopped for a couple of
days then switched to Jungle Fungus buddies (which said they also treat fin
rot). That has helped more, but by this time his tail is about half the length
it used to be.
<Oh.>
Anyway, the tail has been stable for a couple of days but after I switched Kappa
into the 2.5 tank, and he swam around for an hour or so, the webbing that had
been regrowing has fallen out again. Will the better conditions help him (he's
still on the Jungle medication), or do I need to do something else to get this
cleared up?
<I think at the moment you're "running to stand still" because high levels of
ammonia and nitrite in the aquarium are putting immense stress on the fish.>
(I've been trying to find Maracyn (2) since that seems to be highly recommended
on your site, but I can't find it in either of the pet stores here.) Other than
that he seems healthy and active- he was very curious about everything in the
new tank and comes over to me every time I get near. Also, pretty much every
time I changed his bowl water, he would make a bubble nest, so he couldn't have
been too unhappy...?
<In other words: when water quality improves, he's happy; when water gets bad
again, he stops being happy.>
Sorry this is so long, but I wanted to give as much detail as possible.
Thanks for your time,
--Kyra
<Do water tests, replace carbon with true biological filter media, ensure
ammonia and nitrite settle down to zero levels. Don't overfeed, and do regular
water changes. Keep treating the finrot. Once the water is good, you'll see the
finrot won't come back. Do read the articles here at WWM about Bettas. Cheers,
Neale.>
Re: Moving Betta Fish to a Bigger Tank/Fin rot
10/22/07
Dear Neale,
Thanks so much for your help and the quick response. I'll be looking for a new filter and ammonia/nitrite/nitrate tests for Kappa's tank. You guys run an amazing site, and I'm sure I'll be referencing it a lot in the future.
Thanks again,
--Kyra
<Kyra, thanks for the kind words, which I'll be sure and pass on to the Crew. Good luck with your Betta! Neale>
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Albino Cory and fin rot
10/18/07
Hi Bob--
<Well, it's Neale right now; hope that'll do.>
I hope you are doing great.
As always, let me please start with thanking you for the WWM web site and
opportunity to share my concerns / problems / questions with other aquarists.
<Cheers!>
I do have a question about and a problem with fin rot in Albino Cory.
<Ah, Finrot... almost always an issue with water quality. If it ever gets caused
by other stuff, that's news to me. So, always review water quality while
treating Finrot.>
Few months ago my little Albino got that disease. In the aftermath of that fin
rot my Albino lost its dorsal and pectoral fins... ;--(
I acknowledge I was afraid to medicate the fish assuming that changing water
will be much more beneficial than dropping medication... Perhaps, I was wrong.
<Indeed you were wrong. It's a 2-step process. Water changes are essential to
maintaining good water quality. No question. 50% weekly is my recommendation.
BUT, while using a medication, you can't do water changes. Water changes would
(obviously) dilute the medication, reducing its efficacy. This is also why you
remove carbon from the filter (if you're using it, and you shouldn't be in my
opinion). Carbon removes medication, reducing its efficacy as well. Regardless,
it's not an "either/or" situation -- you do water changes to prevent problems,
and use medications (stopping water changes) when problems arise. When the
medication course is finished, resume water changes.>
On a regular basis, every Wednesday and Saturday, I change 30% of my 25-gallon
tank water...
The pH range reads between 6.8 and 7.0. The water temperature is ca. 76 F.
The ammonia level is 0.
<All sounds reasonable. I personally find Nitrite more informative than Ammonia
though; ammonia can come from inorganic sources (e.g., tap water) and its
absence tells you nothing about the Nitrifying bacteria that turn Nitrite into
Nitrate.>
I keep lots of plants (Cabomba & banana) and make sure the water circulation is
quite fast (I have one Emperor filter + one small Hagen filter for 10-gallon
tank and 2 oxygen stones).
<10 gallons a little on the small side for Corydoras paleatus (which is likely
what you have).>
I am not sure what I am doing wrong, but there must be something I do not get
right...
I noticed that my Albino started loosing its caudal fins (I observed the fin
became quite ragged and 1/2 "eaten").
<How often do you clean the substrate? It's often said that dirty substrates can
promote secondary infections on benthic fish. No idea if this is true or not,
but stirring the gravel every few weeks before doing a water change can't do any
harm, so long as you don't uproot the plants.>
At this point I have to acknowledge that I am clueless ;--( and desperately
looking for help, before the entire caudal disappears.
<I see.>
Do you think that I should place Albino in a hospital tank and treat it for the
fin rot?
<No, Cories like to be in groups, and keeping them alone will stress the fish in
question. Besides, you may as well treat the tank.>
If so, what is the best medication (least harmful) I could offer to that little
fish.
<Cories are fairly tolerant of medications compared with more sensitive catfish.
So any combination Finrot/Fungus medication will work here. Ideally, get
something safe with sensitive fish and/or invertebrates, but it really doesn't
matter too much. I happen to find eSHa 2000 very good with sensitive fish, but
as far as I know it's only sold here in Europe. Mardel Maracyn is one
alternative you might consider.>
Sorry to "bother" you with my question... I hope you will be able to guide
me toward the right answer.
Thanks much in advance for your feedback.
Anna
<Hope this helps, Neale>
Re: Albino Cory and fin rot
10/18/07
Thanks much, Neale.
I will try the medication on my display tank... Though, I am bit worried about
my plants ;--( and beneficial bacterias if I do the process in the
main tank.
<Used properly, modern medications won't harm filter or plants. Just read the
instructions carefully, and follow them to the letter.>
I forgot to mention that I do clean gravel 2 x a week -- along with water
changes (first gravel, than water).
I noticed that my pH changes with - or + 0.2 value. That looks like a lot.
<Hmm... that's not a dangerous change in itself, but it's the rate of change
that matters more. Is this across one week, or six weeks, or what? If on a
weekly basis, I'd be slightly concerned, but if over six weeks or more, I
wouldn't be too bothered. All aquaria become acidic over time. Water changes
reverse the pH drop, and increasing carbonate hardness (KH) slows the pH drop
down. For a standard aquarium, a hardness of 5-10 degrees KH should keep the
water chemistry stable between water changes. 50% water changes weekly should
reverse any pH drops before they become serious.>
Maybe I feed the fish too much ;--(
<Always a possibility. Review the articles on feeding fish here at WWM or in
your aquarium book. As a rule, one or two pinches of food per day are fine, and
each pinch should be so small that all the food is eaten in 2 minutes. Catfish
should be given their own portion of food, preferably at night. For a small
school of Corydoras, a small pinch of sinking pellets or a single Pleco algae
wafer per night will be fine.>
Perhaps, this may be a reason why my Albino got sick ;--(
<Overfeeding compromises water quality; poor water quality causes fish to get
sick.>
Anyway, I will try Maracyn.
Hopefully it will help.
<Yes I hope so too; good luck!>
Again, thanks much for your help. I greatly appreciate your insights.
Greetings from NYC,
Anna
<Cheers, Neale>
Re: Albino Cory and fin rot
10/20/07
Thanks much, Neale.
I got the answer -- I feed my fish too much ;--(
The pH changes occur within a week!
The cycle becomes apparent -- too much food increases acidity. Water changes
drop that factor, which increases again over the course of a week due too
increased amount of food in the gravel.
I am going to read more about proper feeding.
Thanks much for your help.
;--)
ANNA
<Ah, yes, overfeeding can cause acidification. But also check other factors.
Bogwood is a notorious acidifier of aquaria, especially if it hasn't been
"cured" properly before use. Anyway, do try halving the amount of food you use,
and see how that changes the pH. You might consider adding a chemical buffer to
the system to prevent pH changes. Small amounts of crushed coral or crushed
oyster shell places in the filter will do the trick nicely. As these dissolve,
they raise the carbonate hardness (measured in degrees KH). For a standard
community aquarium, you want a KH around 5-10 degrees. In a small aquarium, half
a cup of crushed coral should do the trick, perhaps even less. You don't need
masses, since you're not after a hard water aquarium like you'd use for a
Tanganyikan cichlid tank. But a little extra carbonate hardness, just enough to
inhibit rapid pH changes, would be a cheap and effective "insurance policy".
Cheers, Neale.>
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