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FAQs on Anabantoids/Gouramis
& Relatives Disease 1 Related Articles: Anabantoids/Gouramis
& Relatives, Genera
Ctenopoma & Microctenopoma,
Betta splendens/Siamese
Fighting Fish,
Related FAQs: Gourami
Disease 2, Gourami Disease 3,
Gourami Disease 4, & Gouramis 1,
Gouramis 2,
Gourami Identification, Gourami
Behavior, Gourami Compatibility,
Gourami Selection,
Gourami Systems,
Gourami Feeding,
Gourami Reproduction, Betta splendens/Siamese
Fighting Fish, |
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Sick Kissing Gourami 10/27/08
First off I would like to say thank you for having a wonderful and informative
site!
<Very kind.>
I have a 30 gallon aquarium that is home to 1 blue paradise gourami, 1 golden
gourami, 1 opaline gourami, and 1 pink kissing gourami. I have had this set up
for 7 months with the gourami's being happy and friendly. I have a topfin carbon
filter and change 20% of the water regularly.
<A good baseline for water changes is 25% per week, and the more the better,
assuming water chemistry doesn't vary too much. Now, as for filtration, I'm not
a big fan of carbon in freshwater tanks. Unless you specifically understand what
it's for and what you're using it to remove from the water, you almost certainly
don't need it. Carbon also needs to be replaced every 3-4 weeks: if you aren't
doing that, it isn't doing its job. Bottom line, for most aquarists keeping
freshwater fish, what matters is mechanical and especially biological media. The
filter should be rated at not less than 4 times the volume of the tank in
turnover per hour, and ideally 50% more than that. Personally, I don't like
those silly little "hang on the back" filters popular in the US especially;
they're overpriced for what they are, and most seem to rely on filter medium
"modules" strictly limiting the options available to the aquarist to expensive,
space-inefficient modules. Great for the manufacturer and retailer, rubbish for
the hobbyist.>
Two weeks ago I tried to add 2 tiger barbs to the mix, but both died within
three days of adding them to the aquarium, when I removed the bodies I noticed
they both had a white cottonlike growth on their mouths.
<Could be either fungus or something called Mouth Fungus, a bacterial infection
also called Columnaris.>
I looked up the symptom online, and finding it to be mouth fungus I promptly
treated the tank with Tank Buddies Fungus Clear, which was recommended to my by
the LFS. After a week everything looked fine.
<Do remember carbon removes medications from the water. Another GOOD reason not
to use carbon in your freshwater tank. Did you remove the carbon?>
I checked in on my fish this morning and the kissing gourami's mouth was bright
red and puckered out. He tried to eat with the other fish, but seemed that he
could not take in the food. This afternoon I checked back in with him and now
his mouth is very swollen and has a bloody look to it. He is sitting listlessly
on the bottom of the tank. Please let me know how to help my fish friend!
<Do review water quality first of all, as that's the thing that causes Mouth
Fungus, Finrot, and Fungus infections. Next up, treat the tank with an
anti-fungal, anti-bacterial medication (but nothing tea-tree oil based like
Melafix or Pimafix). Remove carbon whenever using medications.>
Many Thanks,
Liz
<Cheers, Neale.>
Kissing Gourami, Disease - 10/23/2005
I cannot find any information on my specific conditions of my Pink Kissers. I have 2 that are 4 to 5 " long, that I have had for 2 years very healthy until a few days ago, I did add a smaller pink kisser about 1 week ago.
<Did you quarantine the new fish prior to adding to your tank?>
Virtually overnight 1 started having signs of erosion around his mouth, his mouth looks like it is almost completing gone, now the others are having the same problem. How do I treat this and what is it?
<Uh, actually, the first question is what is it, THEN how do you treat it.... So, as for what it is, I'd prefer to have more information about your system prior to giving you some ideas, but I think it likely that it's a bacterial complaint of some sort, probably brought in by the new fish.
As for how to treat it.... Your first mission is to find out your water quality. Test for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. Ammonia and nitrite must be ZERO, nitrate less than 20ppm - if this is not so, rectify with water changes. This alone may be all you need to do. If, however, you find that your water quality IS good, then you'll want to consider treating with a broad-spectrum antibiotic that treats both gram-positive and gram-negative bacterial infections.>
I don't want to lose these beautiful fish! Help!
<Test and fix your water, first and foremost.>
Debra
<Wishing you well, -Sabrina>
Big Lack Of Info - Warning... Graphic pic! 10/18/2005
I just noticed one of my Gouramis on the bottom of my tank and its
mouth looks like one large sore. Can this be treated or is it better to
remove the fish and put it down? All other fish look fine....
<There is nowhere near enough information to go off here for me to give
you any sort of a recommendation at all. I know nothing about your
system, inhabitants, maintenance practices, water quality.... without
these vital chunks of information, there's really nothing I can tell
you. Please start by reading on WetWebMedia in the freshwater section.>
Regards, -Chris
<Wishing you well, -Sabrina> |
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Dwarf Gourami Discoloration - 10/14/2005
Hi,
I have a 2 month old 150L tank (see below for details) to which I added 4 dwarf
Gouramis 5 days ago. I have since discovered that, contrary to the advice of the shop assistant at my LFS, they are likely to be aggressive especially because I have a feeling that they might all be males.
<Entirely possible.>
Three of them are 100%
<As opposed to, say, 50%? And if they were 50%, would you prefer the front half, or the balk half? I imagine you mean they appear to be in perfect health.>
and doing really well but one of them started making a bubble nest a couple of days ago and got quite territorial about his patch of water lettuce, chasing the others away and trying to nip them.
<This is normal behaviour.>
This wasn't a huge problem per se because he failed to catch any of them and none of them are showing any signs of injury or even stress. The thing is that the aggressor has got patches of discolouration on him that seem to have got worse over the last 24 hours. The patches are white in colour and vary from one to three mm in area. They are mostly around his head and shoulders and one on the end of his dorsal fin which is transparent.
He is swimming, behaving and eating fine (menu this week was Monday: Tetra Pro flakes, Wednesday: frozen defrosted bloodworm, tomorrow: blanched shelled peas. All supplemented with plenty of my plants!). The patches aren't raised or cotton woolly and don't match the descriptions that I can find on your site or any others so far. If anything they look like scarring (no scales are hanging off and I haven't seen any fall off) but I can't find any pictures of what
Gouramis look like when they have scales missing. A Google search on "Gourami scales missing" gives a couple of hits for forums where people describe red patches where scales have been lost but the patches on my fish certainly aren't red.
Yesterday I tried to catch him to give him a time-out for a week or two in my old 10G tank (empty but for two very reclusive
Kuhli loaches) but he totally eluded my efforts and I didn't want to stress him, however I did mangle his beautiful nest in the process. Since then he hasn't tried to rebuild it and his aggressive behaviour has ceased but, as I said, I'm still concerned because the discoloured patches seem to have gotten worse. I suppose it is possible that I am being obsessive because a couple of them were a bit patchy looking when I got them home and under my lights. The others have all flourished though.
<Hmm.... Without actually seeing the fish, I'm not sure I can advise you well on this.... Were it me/my fish, I would probably be waffling between removing the animal to a separate system for observation, or leaving in the main system and just watching him closely.... I am uncomfortable advising you to do either of these; leaving the fish in the main system is a risk if he has anything communicable, but removing him is an unnecessary stress if he just happens to be a slightly discoloured fish by nature.... I would be really torn, here. If in doubt, I suppose my "default" is to remove the animal to a quarantine system to be on the safe side.>
Any ideas? I don't want to medicate until I have a better idea of what's up
<VERY good.>
with him and also medication would mean that the 10G would be converted to a QT tank and I'd have to catch the
Kuhlis (not easy, they're like greased lightening)
<True enough!>
and transfer them. In the absence of any other clues it seems to me that the patches are where the other fish have retaliated to his aggression but I only have a year's experience so am certainly no expert and would really appreciate your thoughts.
<You could be entirely correct, here.>
TANK SPECS:
150L Tropiquarium
Fluval 4 Plus filter
Nutrafin CO2
Layer of JBL Aquabasics complete substrate covered by layer of Aquagrit
1 x LifeGlow and 1 x PowerGlow bulbs on from 9am-12am.
Plants:
Red Water Rose,
Hygro polysperma,
Pygmy Chain Sword,
Bacopa monnieri,
Ech Tenellus,
Vallisneria Corkscrew,
Red Ludwigia,
Rotala macrandra,
Ambulia aquatica,
Hair Grass,
Cabomba Aquatica,
Vallisneria Torta,
Elodea Densa,
Floating Water Lettuce,
Red-stem Milfoil.
2 x cardinal tetras, 3 x rummy-nosed tetras, 3 x black Neons, 2 x dwarf bristle nosed
Plec, 4 x dwarf
Gouramis.
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 25mg/l
pH: 7.6
<Ammonia? If not zero, bring it to zero with water changes. I imagine you knew that already, though.>
20-30% water change every 10-14 days, last done yesterday.
<honestly, all sounds good to me..... aside from the discoloration. Weigh the pros and cons, and consider
whether or not to remove the fish for observation at this point.... There are many possibilities of what this might be, ranging from the fish's own personal coloration to minor damage to bacterial disease; I would treat this as a "watch and see" situation, either in the main tank or in quarantine. Wishing you well, -Sabrina>
My 3- spot Male Gourami Has a Torn Tail! 10/9/05
Hi, I have a 29 gal tropical tank, well established with a variety of fish living comfortable for the past 3 years. This is a very natural tank, and my
fish are extremely healthy, breeding and living peacefully. The tank is not overcrowded, has proper ph, and my fish are properly fed.
However, this evening, I was doing my regular once or twice per month vacuuming, when I left
both ends of the hose in the tank to let the fish de-stress for awhile before I
continued. The vacuum was not suctioning, but my male 3 spot Gourami, 4 inches long, decided to investigate the vacuum and got himself up into the wide
plastic tubing, about 2 inches in diameter.
I lifted the tubing up and he swam out, however, later in the evening, I noticed he had a vertical tear in
his tail, next to his body, about half the width of the tail. What should I do, if
anything?
I have had him for years, and his name is Jackass because for a long time he was really very aggressive. Now he is a great friend. I
don't want him to suffer, and I don't want to lose him, please help! Thanks, Bunnie
<Sounds/reads like this is some sort of mechanical injury... it should heal of its own accord with just good general upkeep, feeding. I would not "add medicine" to the water. Bob Fenner>
Re: My 3 spot male
Gourami has a torn tail!
10/10/05
Thanks for the reply, Bob. The section of tail has fallen off over the weekend. He is still swimming happily, and eating well, and the wound seems to
have begun healing. I appreciate your response. Have a nice day, Bunnie
<Thank you. Gouramis are good healers, regenerators under healthy conditions. Yours should re-grow the fin in time. Bob Fenner>
Dwarf Gourami growths 10/4/05
Hi - I had a question about my male blue powder dwarf Gourami. He has two
lumps on each side of the top of his head. He looks like he's about to
sprout little horns or something:)
<Not good...>
He also has a dark spot towards the top
of his tail fin. He acts fine, and I'd like to get him a mate - but I want
to make sure nothings wrong with him first. Thank you, hope you can help.
<Please read here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/GouramiDisFAQs.htm
Bob Fenner>
Gourami With Bacterial Infection 9/28/05
Hey gang. My dwarf Gourami has an injury that doesn't seem to be healing,
I'm not sure what to try next. I've had this fish for approx. two weeks. On
purchase, he had some red colouration around his bottom lip, which I
thought was part of his normal colouring. However, it's slowly getting
worse. The skin around his bottom lip has a "bloodshot" appearance to it,
and it appears as though the flesh around the lip area is disintegrating.
I've been able to look very closely, and there doesn't appear to be any
fungal-type growth. It's just as though the skin is sloughing off. The fish
is eating and behaving normally. A little info about his environment:
cycled 10 gallon tank, shared with one other male dwarf Gourami and four
Cory cats. He's been chased around by the other Gourami a little, but I've
seen virtually no actual aggression between the two. We've been treating
with Melafix, but not surprisingly, it's had little effect. Any suggestions
you may have for further treatment would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! JM
< This is a bacterial infection that needs to be treated with some heavy duty
antibiotics. First do a 30% water change, vacuum the gravel and clean the filter.
A separate hospital tank would be best. The water should be around 80 F. Treat
with Nitrofuranace. These infections can be very difficult to cure so early
detection and treatment is essential.-Chuck>
Blue Dwarf Gourami 9/28/05
Hello I have a healthy 37 gal tank well established - current inhabitants
same for 9-10 mos. Of late - into the fourth week - one blue dwarf Gourami has
been laying on his(?) side in the front corner of the tank appearing dead. He
has piled rocks into the corner - whether by design or incidental to laying
there moving fins I don't know - but a good sized pile has accumulated. He
interacts with other fish, swims around apparently healthy throughout the day -
perhaps 25-30% of the time and eats well.
No chemical changes, but about 4-6 weeks ago I lost a b.d.g. for unknown reasons
and with no precedent behavior - was it his mate?
< Probably not.>
Is this grief?
< No>
He has had no physical changes with the exception that he MIGHT be missing one
whisker - I can't honestly tell but I believe both are intact. Thanks very
much.
< These little guys come from slow moving water with lots of plants in which to
hide. Fast moving tankmates quickly intimidate these little guys into hiding.
Add some floating plants and see if that makes a difference. Stress may lead to
disease.-Chuck>
Sick Golden Gourami 9/9/05
Hello,
I have operated aquariums for over 10 years. The current one is 4 years old. 60
gallons. Fish: 4 red
dwarf Gourami, 5 tetras, two large Danios, one large angel and two golden
Gouramis. It is the female
Gourami I am worried about. I know I have a male/female as I can tell this from
the dorsal fins. I
observe my fish every day. The problem I have is with the female Gourami who now
just lays on in the corner
or somewhere on the bottom. The male will still come to it and it will swim
elsewhere. It is getting weaker
every day as it hasn't eaten for some time now (close to a month). Yesterday, it
was laying on its side. I
watched over the months as the male would chase the female. I thought they were
mating. I have had these
Gouramis for 7 years (they came from my other tank). They are quite large -
probably around 4 - 5 in. I did
a partial water change this week to see if things improved. My water levels, ph,
etc. are normal. I have
observed the chasing for some time and the fact that this female hides and stays
away from the male.
I guess another step would be to put it in another tank which I unfortunately do
not have :-(
Can you please help me rescue my wonderful golden
Gourami :-) Thank you.
<... seven years is a good long while for this species to live... and a month
w/o eating... I might try an immersion/bath in some tank water, with Epsom Salt
added... a level teaspoon in a gallon volume... for about an hour... Hopefully
this general cathartic will "stir" your female Trichogaster to more activity...
Cheers, Bob Fenner>
Re: Sick Golden Gourami 9/11/05
Hello Bob,
Thank you for your reply. Interesting suggestion. I
will give it a try. How long should I leave the fish
in this "Epsom water"? Also, is "tank" water regular
water ?
Thanks again.
Cheers,
Orysia
<Is in the original post (below)... yes to using tank water, about an hour.
Cheers, Bob Fenner>
Parasite or bacteria? Gourami illness 9/8/05
I have read your FAQs and have done some of my own research and am
still not
sure what I have going on with my dwarf Gourami. "He" (still not sure of sex)
lives in a 10 gallon tank with two white clouds and a male and female black
skirt tetra. I feed them flakes and blood worms for treats. No live plants and I change the carbon filter every 1-2 weeks. This is my first tank and I have
quite a bit to learn. He has developed what looks like a small abscess
(whitish in color at edges), approx 4mm in diameter on his side underneath the
fin.
I have noticed that if the carbon filter is slightly dirty the
abscess has a
small red spot protruding from it (looks like a blood vessel possibly). This
goes away when the filter is changed, but the abscess, although it appears as
if it healing, is not going away.
<Good description, observations>
I am nervous to just try anything without
really knowing what is going on.
<Ahh! You are to be congratulated here>
I can't decipher whether is a fungal or
bacterial infection or something else that I haven't happened upon.
<Mmm, true fungal infections of aquarium fishes are indeed rare...>
Any information that could be more specific would be a great help. If I need to
provide you
with any additional information, please let me know. I really appreciate
your time on this. Thank you. Please respond to XXXX if possible as I am using
a friend's account. Sincerely,
Allison Savage
<Please read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/GouramiDisFAQs.htm
as you will find, Colisa lalia are prone to this sort of "anomalous"
complaint... can be "cured" by successive treatment for both gram-negative
bacteria and protozoan infections. I wish you and your Gourami well. Bob Fenner>
Re: Parasite or bacteria? Gourami illness 9/12/05
Mr. Fenner, I am afraid I didn't make it in time. I lost my Gourami this
morning. I appreciate once again your info and if I encounter this problem
with future Gouramis I will know how and what to do in a timely manner.
Sincerely, Allison Savage
<Sorry to read of your loss. Cheers, Bob Fenner>
Big, smooth yellowish patches on pearl Gourami 9/8/05
Help! I just put my obviously ill Pearl Gourami, Celeste, back into
my big tank with everybody else. I'm resorting to desperate measures
(which could in themselves prove to cause more illnesses/ fatalities) to
save her. When Mister (my male Gold Gourami) was the sole survivor of a
nasty bacterial outbreak &/or New Tank Syndrome in my 10 gal. (one year
ago) it was amazing.
<Too small a volume...>
He did have fin rot so the LFS recommended Tri Sulfa capsules which I
administered in a 2.5 gal. hospital tank. He began to rock back and forth
and freak-out a few minutes later so I quickly filled a bucket with H2O(
& Nov Aqua) for keeping him until I cleaned the others out. His
condition worsened as he didn't eat for four weeks. The fin rot was
consuming him so, during that month I tried a 30 second salt tonic
(which flipped him out as if it burned),
<Did>
waited a week and began giving him Maracyn for 10 days without success.
It was heartbreaking to watch him dwindle away. His eyes looked crazy or
full of terror as the rocking became stronger and more spastic, like a
medical seizure. Out of desperation I bought Finnoohlala, my female Gold
Gourami, and put her in with Mister as soon as I got her home. My
prayers were answered as it took like maybe 30 min. for him to
recover... I kid you not. His feelers still haven't completely repaired
but almost. Thanks to your website I now know that he probably had
Gourami Disease. You're site is the ONLY source I've found with any
reference to this disease. Thank you.
Anyhow, in an attempt to have similar success with Celeste's condition
I returned her to the big tank. These weird patches on her are round,
smooth and large. they seem to be erasing or removing the color from
skin and fins. On her body they look beige-yellowish where she should be
silver with a black stripe. On her fin the affected spot becomes
transparent. I first thought I noticed one about two months ago on her
forehead. It was very faint and no-one else saw it. My friends and
family convinced me to leave the fish alone and stop obsessing. Over the
next month or so sometimes I thought I could see it other times not at
all. Two weeks ago I went to Utah for 5 days and returned to a
disaster. My mom over fed them while I was gone and there was a
plethora of little white worms on only the glass. Although confident
that I had gotten rid of the worms with an algae scrubber, gravel
vacuum and 30% water change I went and bought four Aeneus Catfish just
in case. While they were in quarantine I thought I saw more faint
patches on Celeste and the one on her head looked yellowish.
I went on-line to research what it could be, without success. By
morning (last Thursday) she was fine again. Friday I was unable to
inspect her until after midnight when I definitely saw a couple of
patches including the one on her forehead. I transferred her to another
tank (un cycled) on Saturday. I was gone all day Sunday and had my Mom
babysitting the fish with instructions not to feed. When I next saw
Celeste she was covered with patches and the bowel movement was lighter
colored than the tan it had been the previous week (which was different
than the typical orangish brown she normally has). I have Rheumatoid
Arthritis which has locked my knees in the bent position making walking
difficult and extremely painful. This sounds like a lame excuse but my
parameters test kit is down stairs where I cannot get it till mid
tomorrow. So, my question is this..." Can you tell from the photo(s)
what could be wrong with Celeste"?
<Mmm, no... but is likely more environmental than pathogenic... do you
test for water quality? Oh, I see some of this below>
By the way it's a 29 gallon tank, Marineland type C Power Filter with
Bio Wheel,
I keep it between 78-80 degrees F and perform weekly 15% water changes
with Nov Aqua treated water.
Tank inhabitants:
-2 Golden Gouramis, 1 Pearl Gourami & 4 Aeneus Catfish
I'll get those parameters ASAP. Thank you, Sara
<Sara, do test, have your water tested for nitrate concentration...
consider adding some live plant (even simple floating types) to improve
water quality. What do you feed these fishes? Do you have non-freshwater
decor items? Something "too much" or "too little" in their world is at
cause here. Bob Fenner> |
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Injured dwarf Gourami & adaptation questions 9/5/05
Hello. I stumbled across this website this evening and know I will be a
regular reader from now on. I read lots of other letters on your site
after doing a search on Gouramis but didn't see anything pertaining to my
Gourami's particular injury.
Here's some background. I bought a 55 gallon rectangular aquarium and
considered carefully what I wanted to put in it. I decided to go with a
tank of tinies and have so far successfully kept together nine neon tetras,
eight long fin red minor tetras, and seven Lampeye tetras. The minors chase
each other but there is no nipping - all fins are intact (considering when I
compare pictures in a book the dorsal fins are normally slightly jagged
compared to some other types of tetras), and no chunks are missing from any
bodies. I cycled the tank with two goldfish and then moved them into a twenty
gallon tank by themselves.
<Want to make a note here for others edification... not a good idea to use
goldfish in this fashion. They are almost invariably vectors of pathogenic
disease... easily transfer to such new systems>
In the 55 gallon tank I have two twin
Whisper 60 power filters, each one pumping 330 gph. My ammonia and nitrites
have always been zero, my nitrates around 40, and my pH at 6.8.
<Please read re nitrates on WWM... best to keep under 20 ppm>
With the large tank (for three schools of tetras), stable water conditions
and filter overkill, I wanted to add a fourth species to the tank and added
four male dwarf Gouramis three days ago. Compared to the various larger
Gouramis, they seemed peaceful enough to put with the tetras. Also the tank
is big enough that it seems they should have enough room not to be
aggressive with each other even though they are all males. I've been
worried about one of the Gouramis. He hangs out at the top back corner of
the tank underneath the filter in a diagonal position with his mouth about a
1/2 inch below the surface touching the glass. His mouth and fins move but
he stays in the same spot. So far I've been feeding the same TetraMin
tropical flakes I've been using, but crushed because of the tetras' small
mouths. The other three Gouramis eat them readily, but the flakes float
right beside the one in the corner and he doesn't react at all. Both of his
pelvic fins look fine, so I don't think he is having trouble sensing the
flakes. I tested the water conditions and found two major problems. I
forgot that I had vacuumed the gravel two days before I bought the Gouramis and
my nitrates were at 180.
<Yeeikes!>
I think that if I hadn't vacuumed so recently
my biofilter would have been able to handle the additional fish. My ammonia
was at .25
<Should be undetectable...>
and my nitrites were at zero. I checked the pH and was
shocked to find it had dropped down to 6.0. Is that because of the high
nitrates?
<These are tied together...>
I haven't noticed any large pH variations in my tap water so far
and haven't added a buffer.
<Your source water is obviously of low alkaline reserve>
To start fixing things I added five-and-a-half scoops of proper pH 7.0 per
the directions, waited an hour and then tested again. The pH had improved to
6.4.
<You want to change pH slowly... best with small water changes... the addition
of a bit of sodium bicarbonate dissolved in the new water...>
Then I did a 12 gallon water change to dilute the nitrates. I
waited an hour (BTW, how long after a water change should I test again),
<A few hours>
checked and the pH was still 6.4 and the nitrates had dropped to 80. I know
that the pH still isn't high enough and the nitrates are too high, but I'm
afraid that I'll stress my fish too much if I fix things all in one night.
<You are right here>
I'm planning on changing another 12 gallons each night and adding the
prescribed amount of pH 7.0 until things get better. Is this the right thing to
do?
<... please read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwph,alk.htm
and the linked files at top>
Which is the lesser evil, a huge change in pH and nitrates at
one time, or enduring a couple more days of diminishing bad conditions?
<Depends... in this case the latter>
I'll also be careful not to overfeed.
<Good... and add some other food type/s... frozen/defrosted, to your mix>
So back to the listless Gourami. He is still in the corner and not moving
around after I changed the water. After reading the other Gourami letters I
realized that hanging out and not eating can be due to adaptation, but the
other Gouramis aren't doing that. Yes, they go near the top and sometimes
get their oxygen directly from the air. Sometimes all three do this and
sometimes one prefers the bottom corner behind a decoration. The two that
stay high swim together like they're best friends. That behavior surprises me
since they're both supposed to be males, I've seen you warn in other
responses that the male dwarf Gouramis can be aggressive, but my tank is big
enough that the pair stays near the center and the others are two feet away on
either end.
<I don't think you will have aggression problems... for the reasons you state>
They are the most peaceful fish in my aquarium. Is this
because they're still adapting and haven't gotten around to worrying about
each other, or do you think they have enough room that they'll stay peaceful?
<Mostly the latter... and the absence of females>
The tetras all stay in the middle level, so the Gouramis are not competing with
them for space (yet).
Now for my injured Gourami, and it's not the listless one. We had a
disaster today. I've been keeping an eye on the Gouramis since they're new
and this afternoon could find only three. After searching all over,
including the floor, I finally found him stuck in one of my decorations. It
was an artificial rock formation with holes through it that fish could swim
through. One of the holes was smaller than the others, but I never thought
much about it since the tetras could swim through just fine. The
Gourami is
about 1.5 inches long, and he was stuck just past his right pectoral fin.
His left fin was still behind the opening. I didn't know what to do because
both pulling him or pushing him out would have injured one fin or the other.
My husband I consulted and decided to risk pulling the whole decoration
(with fish) out onto the floor and breaking it with a hammer. We got him out
with two mild blows and then back into the water within 30 seconds. His
dorsal fin is a little messed up, he has abrasions on his right side, and
the right pectoral fin while there, doesn't move. We have dubbed this fish
"Lefty". The other fins look fine and he swims around and eats. He's one
of the pair at the top and is acting normal. What do I need to do for him?
Is he likely to die?
<Hopefully will recover of its own accord>
I've seen people refer to Melafix, but I'm not familiar with it. Should I use
that?
<I would not>
The injuries they described were not
the same as this. I don't know what I should have done instead of using the
hammer, but it's over and I can't take it back.
Since I've never posted before, I don't know how long it takes to get a
response and whether or not my letter is too long. Until I hear back I plan
on doing the gradual water change, continuing the pH every night, and not
doing anything about the injured Gourami. I have no way to tell if he's got
internal injuries, and if he does die that lessens the chance that the three
remaining Gouramis will fight. If he survives and things stay peaceful then
I hope to have a happy, stable aquarium with a "lefty" in it.
I really appreciate your help in this and thank you in advance for your
response.
Lynn
<Welcome. Bob Fenner>
Possibly diseased Gourami? 8/7/05
Hi,
I found your posts very helpful in the past, and figured I would pick
your brain for a situation that has developed in my tank.
<Not much there, but go ahead>
I recently purchased 2 blue dwarf Gouramis last week and placed them in
a 29-gallon, well-established aquarium. One of the Gouramis has since
passed away, from what looked like fin rot.
<Yikes...>
The other fish appeared
healthy until today, when I noticed that 2 red spots appeared on either
side of his belly right, directly across from one another, just above
the fin line. The spots look like sores; no signs of fin rot, at least
as of yet. I have never seen anything like the sores, and haven't been
able to find any references to this type of illness. I'm going to move
him to a hospital tank as none of the other fish are exhibiting any
symptoms. What do you think this might be, and what would be the best
way to treat it?
Thank you,
Amy
<Unfortunately, Colisa genus Gouramis are notorious for "falling apart" this
time of year... along with a few other seasonal far East imports... Please read
here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/GouramiDisFAQs.htm
Bob Fenner>
Sick dwarf Gourami 8/2/05
Hi Crew,
My dwarf Gourami stopped eating about 10 days ago. Actually, she still shows
quite a good appetite, but can not swallow: she takes food in the mouth and
spews it back the same second. I have tried flakes, pellets, brine shrimp -
her favourite - to no avail. Then I have noticed white (or colorless)
stringy feces instead of usual dark brown ones.
<Good observation>
My guess was that it was
internal parasites and I put her in a quarantine tank and started treatment
with Metronidazole.
<Ah, this would have been my choice as well>
After 5 days of treatment as per package instructions
there are no changes: she is still refuses to eat and produces white long
feces. Otherwise, her behaviour is fairly normal. Water parameters are fine:
no ammonia or nitrites, other fish appear healthy.
I would greatly appreciate your help.
Thanks,
Konstantin.
<Next to try is an anti-worm... vermifuge. I would look for Praziquantel... You
can use the search tool on WWM to read more specifically re. Know that most if
not all Gouramis raised in the Far East for the ornamental trade have these
difficulties. Bob Fenner>
Re: Sick dwarf Gourami update 8/6/05
Thank you, Bob.
I have been now treating QT tank with Praziquantel for three days. Nothing
has changed much, and I am afraid the time is running out. She still can not
swallow and I do not know for how long she can go without any food. At the
same time she looks and behaves hungry: with a sight of food she jumps to
it, grab in her mouth, and then let go looking bewildered. And also, I have
not noticed for a last couple of days white stringy feces she had before.
Actually, no feces, period.
Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks,
Konstantin.
<Yes... have you added Epsom salt to the water? About a level teaspoon per ten
gallons. Bob Fenner>
Re: Sick dwarf Gourami update 8/7/05
No, I have not, but I will. Thanks. Konstantin.
<Ahh, magnesium sulfate can be a very effective cathartic... I do hope it works
for you. BobF>
Sick Blue Gourami? Magnetic magic? 7/17/05
Hi,
I have a blue Gourami and a flame Gourami in a ten gallon tank with an
eco-Aqualizer and a Rena Air 50 bubbler.
<I've got a magical pyramid on my head and an Eheim>
The blue Gourami has been
behaving strangely for the last few weeks. It stays at the top of the
tank with its head at the surface constantly and seems to be swimming
awkwardly (as if it can't swim straight but with its head angled up
always). I've changed the water and noticed some fin and tail rot so
I've been treating it with Mardel Maracyn-two for the last three days
but haven't noticed much change. The flame Gourami seems to be
perfectly fine.
Thanks for your help,
Albert
<... for? Please read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/gouramifaqs.htm
and the linked files above. Bob Fenner>
Sick Gourami
What can I do to help out the poor Gourami? His eye seems to now have
"popped" - it's no longer blood read and clear - there is a tear in the bubble
and stringy black items are coming out. Is this a normal healing process? Should
I move him to his own tank to heal and treat with Epson salt? I am still using
Maracyn - Two and the ph was fine, but as you said, the ammonia was up... the
water temp is 80. Thanks so much for your help! Victoria Barba
< Move the Gourami to his own tank. If you see exterior signs of bacteria then I
would recommend treating with Nitrofurazone. Internal bacterial infections with
not visible signs of bacteria except the popped eye need to be treated with
Metronidazole.-Chuck>
Gourami Loss
Hi there, I have a 100G planted tank setup with Angel Fish, Guppies,
Mollies, Plecos, Platies, and Tetra's. I keep a regular check on my chemicals,
and have always found that Ammonia, Nitrate, and Nitrite to be at or very close
to 0.0 My pH stays at a neutral 7.0. I have had these numbers verified by
three other sources. About every three to four months I lose most, if not all
the Gourami's for no apparent reason. I then began checking my other chemical
with additional test kits and found that this corresponded with a very high (off
the scale) amount of Phosphate. I usually do about a 30%-40% water change every
three weeks with a dosage of Seachem "Neutral Regulator". I found that if I do
it more often or a larger amount, I lose the Angel Fish. I currently run two
Tetra Tec PF500's (I got a good deal on price) with "Chemi-Pure", "Phos-X",
"Bio-Max" and the other slots taken up by the standard filter media. I believe
that the latest losses were due to me forgetting to change the "Phos-X" in time.
My questions are:
Are Gourami's particularly sensitive to Phosphate ? Also with the loss of the
Gourami's, I have no other loss...
<Not particularly sensitive... and given your otherwise healthy livestock (thank
you for the complete list), am given to comment that the root problem here is
likely the initial health of the Gouramis themselves. Put another way, the other
types of healthy fishes you have cover the spectrum of useful water quality that
Gouramis enjoy/tolerate... and they are way too often bunk nowadays... Dying
easily, imported, often "goosed" (treated with hormones to "color up") from the
orient. Many do "just die" mysteriously... especially in seasonal changes in
temperature>
Is there a better way to Phosphate in check ?
<Yes... to get, use a Reverse Osmosis device or other chemical (contactor)
device. Some input here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/h2opurifiers.htm
See the links at top>
Any suggestions on equipment or maintenance changes ?
Many Thanks...
<Please see WWM re (the freshwater SubWeb)... Storing make-up water for a week
or more in advance of your use might do all here to remedy the situation... Bob
Fenner>
Help! Sick Blue Dwarf Gourami
Hi there--
<Hello>
Recently I've had nothing but trouble with my 3 gallon Eclipse tank--
<Very hard to keep such small volumes stable>
A bumblebee goby just died on me (had some kind of mouth fungus),
<This is a brackish water species...>
and now my Neon Blue dwarf Gourami has come down with something nasty-- the
past 2 days I noticed his stomach started to bulge out, with his right side
bigger than the left, and he suddenly became inactive, floating head up in
the top corner of the tank. When he did start swimming around, he would swim
like he had a twitch, and then occasionally slap his bulging left side of
his stomach against the side of the tank, making a small *thud* sound.
<Not good>
I read up on your homepage and in the Gourami FAQ it sounded like a
bacterial infection, so I searched local LFS's and bought the only medicated
food I could find, called Anti-Bacteria, by Jungle. I gave that to him for
two days, did a 33% water change, and he seemed to get better, even pooping
more constantly (although it was a bit stringy).
<Good choices of action...>
I wake up this morning to see that his stomach is still bloated, more
evenly, and now he is having trouble swimming. He seems to be weighed down
by his stomach, struggling to swim over things and bumping into décor as if
he was an over-weighted zeppelin. I just caught him resting on the aquarium
floor, almost sideways(!!), breathing heavily. Other that the stomach, he
appears to have no other external symptoms.
<It's likely you read re this genus' trouble seasonally... particularly this
species (Colisa lalia) "falls apart" in the warming months...>
Please help quick! I don't wanna lose another fish...
Terry
<Please take another read through the Gourami FAQs files... And search for
the Bumblebee Goby on WWM... you could try using Epsom Salt here, but I do
not give your fish good odds. Bob Fenner>
PS tank profile, Ammonia 0ppm, PH 7.2, Alkalinity 80ppm, Nitrite 0ppm,
Nitrate 30ppm (after water change)
Tank inhabitants-- Gold Dojo Loach, 2 glass shrimp, 1 Amano shrimp, 1 Oto
(and the Gourami)
One Eyed Gourami
Thanks very much for your info. It seems that my fish has lost his eye.
It is an empty socket now. There is a very weird scar across that side of
his head though. I can only imagine what trauma happened to that eye. Can't
believe it happened so fast.
I really appreciate the advice you have given so far.
My Gourami is in a tank by himself, eating now and bumping into the plant
that is in there. Should I remove all obstacles and/or should I place him
back in the tank with the Parrotfish - his home for the last three years? He
seems to be looking over at the Parrotfish like he's lonely. Will the
Parrotfish attack him? The water is now at a healthy 74 degrees in both
tanks. Again, I appreciate your continued correspondence. Victoria Barba
Colema
< Fish that have been injured tend to draw attention to themselves but
acting strange. This strange behaviour implies a weakness that will attract
fish looking for a quick meal. I would keep your Gourami separate if you
wish to keep him.-Chuck>
Sick Gourami, worm? Protozoan? Flagyl
Hi there,
<Hello>
I have a Gourami that has developed a red pimple like sore on his head, which has a white string coming out of it. It seems apparent that it may be
a worm, but I thought it was fungus and am using fungus cure. Just finished the second dose and no improvement shown. The other 5
Gouramis are fine, and the sick one is eating fine and behaving normally. Should I give this
Fungus Cure more time, or should I switch to another method?
<This is very unlikely a fungus... perhaps a Octomita infection... you could treat with Metronidazole... Please read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/metranidazole.htm.
Bob Fenner>
Gouramis with multi symptoms? Colisa lalia import stock problem
Hi people,
<Susan>
I know you've heard this a million times before but here it goes anyway
(HELP I'm a total newbie and I'm killing my fish!). Story goes like this....
After finally setting up and stabilizing a community of fish in a 100? gal tank for a couple of months (current tenants: 2 small angels, 2 neon blue
Gouramis, 2 tiger barbs, 5 black widow tetras, 1 sword and 1 Pleco) we decided to replace a couple of the original lost
Gouramis and add another
Pleco to help control the algae. I had a second 'hospital tank' set up ready and waiting to QT these guys as recommended. Two days after QTing
them, the water became pretty cloudy (whitish) and I admit that I panicked and put the
Gouramis into the general population. By morning the smallest
of the two new ones had developed a red underbelly, approx. half the length of the belly and it extended upwards about 1/4th of the total depth of the
body in a very elongated oval shape, and the discoloration extended into the lower fins. Not only just streaked but the color seemed to fully saturate
the appendages. I assume (after doing some quick research) that this was some sort of hematoma or septicemia of some description. The other symptom
exhibited was the rocking back and forth described as 'Gourami disease'. I transferred him late afternoon into my newly cleaned out hospital tank
filled 2/3rds full of water from the big tank and 1/3 of dechlorinated water that I doctored with all that was available to me at the time "Tetra General
Tonic". Well, I wasn't successful as by late that night he was found floating nose up but the top of his head was blackened. The 2nd new
Gourami
so far is fine, but day 3 one of the 'old' Gouramis is showing the same red underbelly and has been transferred into the hospital tank (I'll know more
when I get home from work - am hoping NOT to see that rocking motion or him nose up!!). I've been desperately searching for medications I can buy
online as much of what is discussed on these forums aren't available in the middle east (where I am living currently). I've only found one water test
for ammonia and one for ph which I've not had a chance yet to do so I know that the big tank surviving and thriving as it has been up to this point has
been probably more due to dumb luck than anything but... what happened to the
Gourami has made me very aware of getting hold of the appropriate
treatments for these emergencies. I don't have any of the numbers to give as I'm writing you from work. But my main question is first 'by the
description does anyone know what really killed the Gourami' and second 'what would be the best meds or treatments in your opinion'. I've been
sifting through as much info on your site as possible but I think the fish's time is limited and I'm feeling like I need someone with experience to tell
me what's what!
Thanks for any insights or suggestions you can offer!
Sue
<Thank you... for your concern, and writing so well. I want to impress on you that this "type" of
Gourami, very hybridized Colisa lalia... sold variously as this and that dwarf
Gouramis are VERY likely to die in the sort of fashion you describe. They are raised under "exacting" circumstances (in filth really) in the Far East and seasonally "break down" badly as you describe... people in the trade actually use the term "time bomb"... What am I trying to impart, state emphatically here? That by and large their loss has very little to do with anything (other than buying them) that you did or CAN do. So, first off... DON'T buy any more of this species. Now, it may seem counterintuitive, but other
Gourami species are fine.... very hardy, disease-resistant by comparison. Don't know how much you'd like to hear/read re the "arrival/acclimation/curing" of Colisa lalia by importers/wholesale distributors, but I'd like to state it here for others use. There have been successful protocols of administering Furan compounds... at ten-twenty five milligrams per gallon, with half or so water changes (off line centralized systems) every three days for a good ten days... but who knows what happens to this dwarf stock afterwards? Look to other species for stocking your system. Bob Fenner>
By the Moonlight of my Gourami
Thanks Bob,
My remaining moonlight Gourami has developed a swollen protuberance above
one of his eyes, a crescent 7mm long, 2m wide and sticking out 2mm from the
body. He is swimming and eating normally. I've placed him in an isolated 20
Gal tank and begun treatment with Maracyn (sp?)<Maracyn, erythromycin>
yesterday. Do you think I
should be using Maracyn II? (Tetracycline)<Actually another antibiotic, but
yes, I would use this instead... mixing some in with the fishes foods. This
won't hurt the other fishes if they ingest it... nor will this complaint likely
infect your other livestock. Bob Fenner>
Your fish buddy,
Jeff
P.S. If he doesn't make it we can always have another party....
<Life to you my friend.>
Urgent!!!!
Can you help me my male dwarf Gourami is sitting on the bottom of the tank
and his breathing is heavy do you know what is wrong with it and how to cure it.
Could you please reply quickly as I am quite worried about it. Thank you
<Not a good sign... hopefully your fish is "just resting"... this
species (Colisa lalia) can be hard to keep... Often imported with disease
problems. You might want to look into feeding all your fishes in this
tank/system an antibiotic-laced food for infectious disease (bacteria...). These
are made by Tetra, HBH and others or you can "make your own"... as
detailed here on our site: http://WetWebMedia.com/holedispnd.htm
Bob Fenner>
Dwarf Gourami concerns
I just bought a pair of dwarf Gouramis and the female seems to stay in the
corner a lot what is the possible cause of this? Also are they easy to breed?
thanks
<Not a good sign that the female is in the corner... but maybe doing so from
shipping stress. Please read: http://WetWebMedia.com/anabantoids.htm
And get back to me if you have specific questions.
Bob Fenner>
Furunculosis (likely Columnaris, as in Chondrococcus bacteria)
I have one remaining dwarf Gourami that has Furunculosis. I've had 3 die
from it. Thanks to your website, I've finally determined what the problem was
and have been treating him with fabulous results. My question is, how long can I
treat him with the medicine? As of this date, he's had 4 doses, can I continue
until he's completely healed?
<yes...and you should until the fish is clearly cured and then some. As with
people, you will treat the condition with antibiotics for slightly longer than
the malady is evidenced. Extra water changes just before each application of
medicine will also be quite helpful>
Please respond soon, Thankfully, Heather
<with kind regards, Anthony>
heather
Neon Dwarf Gourami Help
My male Neon Dwarf Gourami seems sick. I have had him for maybe five weeks
now he did fine and was really hardy ( I cycled my tank with him, my two
female Gouramis, and a red tailed shark) but now he is just hanging out in
the corner by my heater (the temp is fine its at 79 degrees) and doesn't get
excited like he used to at feeding time (used to take Tubifex worms from my
hand... also feed flake). Now he looks really skinny but his colors aren't
fading or anything so I'm assuming he's not totally given up eating. What
could be the matter with my fish? any ideas? Could it be my other fish I have
2 2.5' female Gourami's, 2' red tail shark, a 4.5' Black Ghost Knife, 2 1.5'
clown loaches (which I'm treating for ich... but none of the other fish have
the white spots that would suggest ich), and a 6' zig zag eel.
<Ah ha! Either the medication (they're toxic to a degree to fishes) and/or a
latent infestation of ich (the white spots are visible only in advanced cases...
a reaction, mucus to irritation by the ich organism) is likely the root cause/s
here. Please consult with the fine folks on our Chatforum as to how you might
proceed: http://wetwebfotos.com/talk/
For me, I'd go with elevating the temperature of your system and leave off with
any "medication" to treat your system. Bob Fenner>
Thanks for your help,
Kevin
Sick Dwarf Gourami
Hello,
I have a 5 gallon fresh water tank in addition to my 72 gallon brackish. This
week one of two dwarf Gouramis in the freshwater tank has become sick with
Popeye. I have been treating the tank with Epson salts (as I read in the WWM
Faq's for Popeye) and antibiotics.
<Good treatment protocol. One note, it is better to use an antibiotic food
versus medicating the entire tank.>
The Popeye has effected one side terribly. The swelling has yet to go down. I've
also been doing daily saltwater baths to try to draw out some of the fluid
behind the eye.
<This would not be my course of action. Popeye is not a terrible disease.
Rather minor affliction that I would not treat so aggressively.>
I've seen no improvement, it's only gotten worse. This morning I got up and he
is leaning against the side of the tank, breathing with some difficulty. When I
fed them however, he did make an effort to swim up to have a bite. I'm at a
loss, I do not want him to be in any discomfort, but I have had other fish pull
through with other conditions before, so I am not hugely sure about euthanasia.
I am not sure what to do. Should I keep treating him or should I euthanize the
poor soul.
<I would not give up the fight just yet. Epson salt, medicated food, and a
good water change/cleaning to ensure peak water quality would be what I would
do.>
Any help would be great. Thank you so much for your help.
Take good care, Amy
<You too. -Steven Pro>
GOURAMI FRY WITH WHITE SPOT
Hi, I really hope u can help, I have 60 dwarf Gourami fry 10 days old. They have
been infected with white spot disease from my other tank which is being treated
successfully but what about my poor fry, some are dying. Is normal
treatment to harsh and will aquarium salt help?
thank you for any response
Sophia
<Morning Sophia. I checked with Bob on this one, regular Ich meds
would be too harsh for these little guys. Try slowly raising the
temperature up to around 85. The elevated temperature alone should do
the trick. Best of luck, Gage>
Sick Gourami
I have a 10 gallon tank, with 3 Red Dwarf Gouramis and 2 Neon Rosy Barbs (also 1
Pleco). This is my first tank and I've had the same healthy fish in it for about
11 months. One of my Gouramis recently became sick. His mouth started to swell
and now he can hardly close it. He seems to be staying close to the top and is
breathing heavily, but is still trying to eat. My local pet store suggested
drops that fight "internal infections and diseases" so I have started
with the treatment.
<does not sound like an internal problem.>
I've never had a sick fish, so I'm not quite sure what to do. I've been doing
research for a few days and haven't found much helpful information. Could you
please let me know if there's anything else that I could try. Any info would be
greatly appreciated.
<This sounds like it could be a fungal infection. If you are not
already doing so I would be add salt to the water add about a tablespoon of
aquarium salt per gallon. Make sure your temperature is in the upper
seventies without any major swings. Also medicate with a medication
that has both Nitrofurazone and Furazolidone in it. 3-5 days consecutively with
small water changes daily just before the new dose. Best of luck, and
please check out the article below.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/AqBizSubWebIndex/fishdisho.htm
-Gage>
Dwarf Gourami
Hi,
My girlfriend has a pair of Dwarf Gouramis. She is concerned that one may be
ill. They symptoms include a darkening of the color to a darker shade of
turquoise as well as much lower activity and labored breathing. The fish lies on
its side on the bottom a lot and the movement of the gills is faster and deeper.
There does not appear to be any fungus or worms or slime or anything like that
on the fish. She did not mention weight loss or eating habits (I have not yet
observed the fish). Any insight that you may be able to provide would be much
appreciated. IT sounds odd to me that the color would deepen. Usually I would
expect a sick fish to lose color. Maybe it is pregnant and about to release a
bunch of eggs or something :) She has not had the fish long, maybe 6 months, but
who knows how long the store had it. It was full grown when
purchased. Thanks again, Josh Moninger
<Hi Josh, if there are no other outward signs of disease I would start by
looking at the water quality. Pick up some test kits (ammonia, nitrate, nitrite,
ph, etc) or have your LFS test the water for you. Also, what size
tank are we dealing with, what type of filtration, and who are the other tank
mates. Check out the link below for info on freshwater disease ID http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwfshparasites.htm
Best of luck, Gage>
Disease of my Dwarf Gourami
Hi,
I was wondering if you would be able to help me diagnose what my dwarf Gourami
died of half an hour ago. I have a 10 gallon tank with:
5 - Neon Tetra
5 - Fancy Guppies
1 - Male Dwarf Gourami
Two days ago I noticed a small whitey patch, irregular in shape on the side of
my Gourami's head. The patch wasn't smooth, more like cotton wool in water;
waving in the current. I decided to put him in a breeding cage that
you can put in the aquarium, just so that he wouldn't come in contact with my
other fish.
Yesterday (a day later) he looked worse. The white patch had
increased in size slightly and there was a tiny bit of it on the top of one
fin. I quarantined him in another tank that day.
<<It sounds like fungus. I’m sorry to hear that he died. For future
reference, one of the Mardel products (Maracyn, Maroxy, Maracide, etc) treats
this but I can’t remember which one exactly. Fungus Guard by Jungle will also
treat this. I’ve had the best luck with the one by Jungle.>>
This morning the white patch was larger and looked like a scab: I could see a
little red patch in the middle of it. The white stuff was about 0.5
cm in diameter. The fin that previously had the white patch on it was
completely opaque and shredded. His other fin was
perfectly functional and clear. Over part of his body was a mucusy white, not
quite as white as the initial patch.
He no longer made that crest on his back stand up and it was coated thinly will
mucus. His colour was duller and he mostly stayed sunken on the
bottom of the tank, apart from making quick dashes to the surface now and then.
In the end he lay horizontally on the bottom. The white patch
protruded from
his scale approx 1/3 of a centimeter and was a cloudy white.
<<Definitely sounds like fungus.>>
Well, that's everything. I know that I sound very concerned, it's
just that I would like to know what I did wrong and hopefully save my other
fish, so it won't happen again.
<<Watch your other fish very closely and if they show any symptoms,
immediately quarantine them and treat with a medication for fungus. Sometimes
they will get it, other times they won’t so it’s hard to say.>>
Thanks Jess
<<You’re welcome. Ronni>>
Yikes! ICK!!!
Help! I stocked my tank with 5 Gouramis, 1 male Betta, 2 Kuhli
loaches and 3 clown loaches.
<<Just a note from experience here, watch your Betta with the Gouramis.
The Betta may at some point eat the "whiskers" of your Gouramis or the
Gouramis may decide that the Bettas fins look like a tasty treat. :o)>>
At some point, ick was introduced. I've been treating with a
commercial product for the last 3 days, using their directions (the ick was
minimal at beginning of treatment - 4 or 5 white spots total on clown
loaches mainly). What are my chances of getting rid of this nasty
organism? I'd appreciate any info or advise you have to offer.
<<Your chances of getting rid of it are actually quite good. Time/success
will depend on what kind of commercial medication you are using. My personal
favorites are Ick Guard or Maroxy but I've talked to many people about Ich and
everyone has their own favorite. Just follow the manufacturers instructions
exactly and you should see an improvement. I'm not positive here but your
loaches may be a small scale or scaleless fish, if they are then the medicating
rules are different for them. Many ich medications can be poison to scaleless
fish. Do a search for clown loach using the Google search box at
www.wetwebmedia.com to find out for sure. Take care! Ronni>>
Thank you! Bev
A Disease In The Moonlight?
Hello, I don't know if I'm posting to the right place.
<If it's about something that swims, you're in the right place! Scott F. with
you!>
I would like to know what to do about my sick male moonlight
Gourami. I have a male and female in a 60 liter tank, no other fish.
A couple months ago my male started getting sick-his feelers became
"floppy" and noodly, and now are about half their original
size, then his skin became brownish, now he's very very lethargic.
Meanwhile the female is growing by leaps and bounds, she's very healthy and
beautiful and aggressive to the poor guy. At feeding time, she pushes
him away! I sink some food in his quiet little hiding place behind the filter,
and he barely eats. The tank condition is fine, Ph good, I change the
water once a week, temp. is about 26-27 C. Sorry for all the metrics, I live in
France.
<No problem>
Any idea what's going on? I hope some one can help, thank you very
much, Kitk
<Well, Kitk- it sounds like the Gourami is suffering from some kind of
bacterial infection. This may have been brought about as a result of stress
(possibly from the female's constant aggression..). Also, you may want to review
your water conditions to make sure that ammonia or nitrite are not present, and
that regular maintenance is carried out on this aquarium. You may want to separate
this fish into a smaller aquarium for observation, careful feeding, and
possible treatment. If the separation and good food/water alone don't do the
trick, I'd start with a basic antibacterial substance, such as Methylene blue,
in his water. See if that brings about some positive results after a few days or
so. If this method does not seem to be working, you may need to look into a
broad-spectrum antibiotic. Before using any medication, I'd look in the
Freshwater section on the WetWebMedia.com site under "diseases", and
try to verify what condition that you may be dealing with. Good luck!>
Ulcers on dwarf Gourami
I have a 29 gallon tank that has been up and running for 4 years. I have 3
black widow tetras, 3 Serpae tetras, 2 hatchet fish, 2 red tailed Rasboras, 4
lemon tetras, 1 swordtail, 3 Corys, 1 Pleco, 3 neon tetras, 1 dwarf Gourami. I
recently had 2 dwarf Gourami's but one just died. The water temp is 78, the
ammonia is 0, the nitrite is 0, the ph is 7. Last week one of the Gouramis had
like a lump by it's mouth just under it's eye. He was acting
normally. About 2 days later the lump turned into an ulcer. I treated
the tank with penicillin. The ulcer got worse and small red blotches appeared
near his tail more towards hi underside. He also developed a lump on
his back just in front of hi fin. He just looked so bad last night that I put
him out of his misery. Now one of my Serpae tetras has like a whit spot on his
body and a white film towards his tail. I got some Quinsulfex Quinine Capsules
Formula M13 and starting treating the tank last night. Could you tell me what
was and is wrong with my fish and am I treating it correctly. I do not want to
lose the whole tank. Also, do you think I have overloaded my tank with too many
fish? Thank you. Patty
<It sounds like a parasite. Please check out http://www/wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwfshparasites.htm
for info on the different ones and their recommended treatments. You do have a
few too many fish in this tank. Not counting the Pleco you have between 35 &
40 inches and you should have a max of 25-29 inches. Ronni>
Gourami whiskers
I have 4 Gouramis in a 30 gal planted tank with 15-20 freshwater plants and
2 big rocks with hiding holes and a loach cave for my 2 clown loaches. Also 2
Danios, 2 tetras, a Pleco to control algae and 2 rosy barbs. all are
getting along great and life is good except that I noticed that 2 of the
Gouramis 1 dwarf blue, and one honey, have had one of there whiskers
nipped. Not completely off, but just shortened a little bit... like
maybe a quarter of an inch from a 2 inch whisker. Has been several
weeks and it doesn’t show any signs of infection as far as I can tell. My
question is should this concern me as I haven’t seen any signs of other
aggression or infection, and will these whiskers grow back and if so how long
will it take to return to the size of the other whiskers. Thank you, Don Otey
<It’s hard to say what the culprit is here. It could easily be one of your
other fish (my first guess would be the Danios or one of the other Gouramis).
Unless it continues to get worse I wouldn’t worry about it too much, just
watch them to make sure they aren’t getting picked on. The whiskers should
grow back in time but it’s hard to say how long. Ronni>
Sick kissing Gourami
>Hi Bob,
>>A minion by the name of Marina here.
>I have a 3-4 inch kissing Gourami that is several years old. Last week he
had a circular area on his side that was whitish in color. I changed 20% of the
water and kept an eye on it.
>>Do a larger water change. You've mentioned nothing about
using carbon, filtration, or water parameters, so I'll assume that you know to
remove carbon when medicating, and that you also know that some meds can
"knock out" a good portion of your benthic bacterial
colonies. This is another good reason to do larger water changes (50%
identical, fresh water will help greatly).
>This week it seems to have spread to the back 1/2 of his body on one side.
He also has 1-2 raised bumps on his other side, about 2mm x4mm in size. He is
eating and still "kissing" the other Gourami. He seems sluggish though
and generally not too good. Two days ago I started a treatment of Maracyn II. So
far this does not seem to be helping.
>>We're really shooting in the dark, especially because I'm going by your
description with no photos, and my book of fish diseases is in storage
(curses!). Do both a Google and Dogpile search, as you'll be in a
better position to determine what best matches your fish's
symptoms. I would also, after doing that large water change, switch
to Melafix, another broad spectrum antibiotic. If you do NOT have
live plants in the tank, I would add 1 teaspoon of salt (Kosher or marine salt
mix) per gallon of tank water. This will boost the effects of the
antibiotic, as well as relieve a bit of the pressure on the fish's system
(osmotic differences between fishy flesh and water). Also, please
delve into our library here--> http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwinfectdisfaqs.htm
>This fish has had previous bacterial infections that responded quickly to
Maracyn II. What do you think? Jeff Hulett Hawkeye
>>I would try the other broad spectrum antibiotic along with the
salt. This is assuming that it's not a fungal infection (the Methylene
blue would help address that), though I'm really not sure that's a
possibility by your description. Keep up the water changes, if he
takes any fresh foods do try to stimulate feeding this way (bloodworms, daphnia,
mosquito larvae, et al). At this point it may be far too stressful
for him to undergo a saltwater dip, so I don't recommend it. Let's
keep our fingers crossed! Marina
Re: sick kissing Gourami
>Thanks Marina,
I will do a larger water change and try to send you a photo. I do have live
plants in the tank. I did do a search, but didn't turn up anything.
>>Then you won't be able to use the salt. I did more searching,
and the best I can find online is that it must be an infection, but at this
point I can't even narrow down whether it's bacterial, fungal, or
viral. If you can set up a hospital tank for this fish, I would
advise it. This way you can help him with salt. If you
believe that it would cause really undue stress on the fish, then don't move
him. Other than that, my only other suggestions are to try different
broad spectrums. Here's a link to fish meds, uses, dosing, etc.
--> http://www.petswarehouse.com/Fishmed3.htm
and here--> http://www.petswarehouse.com/Fishmed2.htm
>>Good luck, and keep us posted. Marina
Re: sick kissing Gourami
>Thank you Marina,
>>You're welcome.
>I spent some time looking at the fish with a magnifying glass and I noticed
some white tuft stuff on one of the site. It was very small. After seeing that,
I treated the tank with Rid Ich+, which is mostly Malachite Green. I also
removed a smaller kissing Gourami from the tank to reduce stress on the sick
one. I did this because, even though he was sick, he still "kissed"
the other one, and frequently chased it around the tank. I also added
a tablespoon or so of salt. I did this last Thursday or Friday. Since
then I've kept up the treatments once per day for both the Maracyn II and the
Malachite Green.
The fish improved dramatically with this treatment.
>>FANTASTIC! Boy, that is great news.
>After one day the 2x4mm spot had shrunk 50% and the tufts were gone. His
motion seems better and he seems to be getting better every day. Since he really
didn't respond to the Maracyn II, I can only guess that this must have been
fungal.
>>Me too. Again, let the happiness ensue! You've
found the trouble, and are treating with good success. I have
achieved my (the whole crew's, actually) goal.
>I plan to discontinue you Maracyn II today and keep up the M. Green until he
seems healed.
>>Sounds like a good plan.
>By the looks of his progress, this should only take a few more days.
>>Could it get any better?
>After that I'll reinsert the carbon in the filter. I've included
photos of the fish in its original sick state. You can see the
discoloration on the back half of his body. This spread from the original
circular site which was about 8 mm wide. Thank you very much for your
help with this.
>>This is great, except that I can't seem to view the
.jpg. Bob? Jason? Zo? Someone with
more puter knowledge than me? Well, the point is that the fish is on
his way back to good health. I'm very pleased with the
news. Marina
Blue Gourami Question
Hello. Recently bought a 55 gallon tank, and got a variety of fish.
<Greetings>
4 silver dollars
4 glass tetras
4 high finned tetras
and 2 blue Gouramis
I also have a Plecostomus
<OK>
Everything was working fine, until I noticed ich on some of the fish (silver
dollar and tetra). I treated the water following the instructions, and still
notice a white spot on one of the glass tetras. I hope this resolves itself, but
I worry about one of my Gouramis. He lives around the plants, which is near the
filter. He has been fine there, but now he seems to be caught up in the current.
He tries to swim, but just lurches forward and back. The other Gourami chases
him sometimes, and then he can move just fine... I'm worried if that is a
problem with the ich, or something else.
<You may need to re-medicate for the ich again. I really don’t think the
Gourami has a problem, most likely he just likes that spot and the feel of the
current there.>
Ph is set at 7 and I've been pretty regular on changing the water, although I
haven't tested the ammonia. Any advice you have for a new fish hobbyist. Adam
Sutherland
<You probably should test the ammonia and nitrites but other than that, keep
up the good work! Ronni>
Unhealthy Gourami? (06/29/03)
<Hi! Ananda here tonight...>
Hi! I was just wondering if it is unhealthy that my blue dwarf Gourami's poop is
long and stringy (by long I mean about 4 times his length sometimes)? Weird
question, I know.
<Not at all a weird question -- a sign that you're paying attention to your
fish! It could indeed be a symptom of a problem. It might be some sort of
intestinal parasite, especially if the feces are a whitish color (they should
always be darkish).>
Also, if it IS unhealthy, what can I do about it?
<I tend to use Metronidazole for this purpose. You might also try Pepso food.
I've heard Disco-med also works for this.>
I feed him flakes and he seems to be healthy otherwise.
<Do give him a bit of variety in his diet -- at least use a couple of
different types of flake. An occasional treat of frozen food or freeze-dried
"treats" won't hurt, either.>
Thanks for your help!
Kelly
<You're quite welcome. --Ananda>
Spotted Fish
Hi,
I have a golden Gourami in my tank and I have just noticed her having 2 black
spots on her body, one by the tail, another in the middle of her
body. Those spots are on both sides and exactly in the same
place. I wonder whether they should be there ( I haven't noticed them
before) or it is a disease. Other than that she seems fine. I will be
waiting for your answer
<Lina, this is normal. The golden Gourami, or Trichogaster
trichopterus is almost always seen with black spots at the middle of the side
and at the caudal-fin base. It sounds to me that you have a perfectly
healthy specimen.>
Thank you, Lina
Gourami Problems
Hi. Two days ago I got four male neon blue dwarf Gouramis and put them in a
10g. tank by themselves and I have a few concerns. first of all, they are all
males, will that pose a problem? <they may fight... if it becomes a problem
you will need to separate them> second, 2-3 of them seem to not be eating,
<maybe they are stressed? did you check the water quality... were they eating
when you purchased them?> and the one that does eat doesn't seem to eat very
much, <some is better than nothing at all> I feed them TetraMin flakes,
but they just sit there hiding or on the bottom, should I just change the food
or what? <check the water quality> and also, one of them seems mentally
challenged. I've noticed him shaking, darting around the tank and running into
things and that sort of behavior. what is the problem and how can I cure
it?<you can't they just have to adapt to their new living conditions> I've
been having a little trouble with my water heater so the temp has changed some,
could this be a problem?<possibly> please hurry back to me I am very
concerned.<just keep a close eye on the fish and check the water quality...
and read more on WWM about these particular species of fish and acceptable
ranges of water quality, good luck, IanB>
thank you, Drew
Gourami trouble
Please Help,
<Sabrina here tonight, I'll certainly try>
Today I changed 1/4th of my 35 gal tanks water and every one was fine, tonight
on the side of my Gouramis he/she? has red raised bump on the side of the body
with a small white spot in the center, and two littler red spots by her face.
Please help! I have searched the web and asked around, what is it and what
should I do?
<Well, first off, this sounds like some sort of bacterial
infection. As to what it is specifically, it could be early stages of
septicemia, perhaps a wound that has been infected, possibly mycobacteriosis
(fish TB), perhaps something else. Start by isolating the sick fish
in a separate tank, prevent the illness from spreading. I would treat
with Kanamycin sulfate, available as "Kanacyn" by Aquatronics, or
perhaps "Spectrogram", which is a combination of Kanamycin and
Nitrofurazone. Do be certain to monitor your water parameters closely
(pH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate) and keep things stable to help the fish recover
during treatment. Hope all goes well, -Sabrina>
Thanks for your time, Mary
Trichogaster trichopterus
Hi,
<Hello, Sabrina here>
I was unable to find any good documentation about my Gourami. I have
2 female three spotted Gourami and they have been living together for about 6
months.
<Trichogaster trichopterus is the Latin name - a Google search will yield
great results, and here's the WWM article: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/anabantoids.htm
.>
Living with them, I have a small school of tiger barbs. The other day
I bought a pink kissing Gourami. Now one of my three spotted Gourami
has turned very dark and his spots have faded out so that it appears as if it
has no spots. I suspect that it may be stress because the color
change occurred within about 3 hours. A bacteria wouldn't act this
fast without harming any of the other fish right?
<It's certainly possible, but you're right on about stress,
too. Now you've just got to determine why the fish is stressed -
illness, perhaps; or maybe being bullied by that new kisser.>
Anyway, that fish now hangs out in the plants. How should I go about
diagnosing what is wrong?
<A good starting point: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwfshparasites.htm Other
than that, observe the fish very closely, and separate to a quarantine tank if
at all possible, for better observation and to protect the fish, also to prevent
any possibility of spreading any illness to other fish.>
Thanks, Keeter
<Wishing you well, -Sabrina>
Gourami Problem
About a week after Christmas(2003), I purchased two
small Gold Gouramis a little under two inches, One
slightly larger than the other. They had been gobbling
down their share of Bloodworms and TetraMin flakes,
the larger one had grown to about three and a half
inches while the smaller one still remained small, but
ate just as much as the other. About a week ago, the
smaller one stopped eating and just stared out the
front of the tank. Four days after he stopped eating,
he/she just died, and I have No idea why. I checked
the water and ammonia and nitrate was 0 and Ph was
7.4- Is that ok? They are in a 29 gallon tank with
three platys, four mollies, two Cory cats, and five
tetras and they all get along, especially the live
bearers. We went to PetSmart to see if the lone
Gourami could survive by itself, and he said that they
do MUCH better in pairs, although not a schooling fish
so he would be ok. So we bought another, not knowing
if it was a male or female. When we let it float in
his little plastic bag, we noticed that once again,
the Gourami was smaller than big fish of the tank. The
new Gourami also had darker, more brown, markings and
redder eyes. When we let him out of the bag, the old
Gourami began rubbing against it and feeling of it
with its little feeler thingy ma bobbers (don't have a
clue as to what they are!!) Is that a way of breeding?
I tried to find info on which ones are males and which
ones are females and the old Gourami had a longer
dorsal fin and it was kinda pointy, and the new one
has a short fin. He did that until I fed them that
night and the old Gourami chased the new one away from
the food and hasn't had anything to do with the new
one since except chasing it and I noticed a small tear
on the new one's tail. Should I take the new one back
before It kills or gets killed? Who caused the tear?
Thanks for all your help. You site is on my favorites
list! Rachel
>>Dear Rachel; You mention testing your water for ammonia and nitrate, did
you also test nitrites? Nitrite and nitrate are not the same thing, and I would
recommend always testing for all three. Ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. You need
to know the results for ALL three tests. You pH sounds fine. How often are you
doing partial water changes? Please let me know all of this information :) Your
gold Gouramis have feelers, most Gouramis do, and they use these to inspect
other fish. It is quite normal, it's their way of communicating with each other.
The tear in her fins could be caused by aggression, either from the other Gourami,
or from one of your mollies. Just make sure you test your water, and that your
water tests indicate good water quality, otherwise your fish can develop fin rot
or fungus on the damaged fins. Good luck! -Gwen<<
Dwarf Gourami and Camallanus
Hi there,
<Hello! Sabrina, here.>
Thank you all for keeping such a wonderful and informative website.
<And thank you for the kind words!>
I have had two dwarf Gourami in a 5 gallon QT tank with an established sponge
filter for approx 2 months. I plan on moving them to a much
larger tank when I'm sure that they are disease/parasite free.
<Sounds like an excellent plan.>
About one month ago I noticed two tiny red threads (approx. 2mm long) poking out
from the anus of each Gourami.
<Yikes, that does indeed sound like Camallanus.>
I ordered some Pepsofood and fed it for three days and then once per week as
directed with no effect.
<Although Pepso food is very useful stuff, I do not believe it contains
medicines effective against Camallanus.>
The fish still have a hearty appetite and do not display any unusual
behavior or appearance.
<Always a good sign!>
Recently I was reading an article that suggested my fish were infected with the Camallanus
nematode.
<Sounds like it. Though, is it possible what you're seeing is just
feces? Some red-colored foods will give fish red poo, but the
"threadlike" appearance you describe is classic of Camallanus.>
Many different medications were suggested on many websites like disco worm,
<Perhaps this was "Discomed"? Discomed, manufactured by
Aquatronics, contains Levamisole, and should be effective against Camallanus.>
Trichlorfon, fluke tabs,
<Fluke tabs are/contain Trichlorfon. This substance should be
avoided unless absolutely *nothing* else works; although it might be effective,
it could be very toxic to the fish.>
Fenbendazole,
<Likely would be effective, but will be very hard to find, I imagine. Try
looking for the proprietary name "Panacur". However, this
will be difficult to dose, as it is usually found sold as a goat or horse
worming medicine.>
and Levacide.
<Perhaps "Levamisole"?>
Levacide was touted as being the best cure for this problem.
<If you mean "Levamisole", as above, you can find that in Discomed,
made by Aquatronics.>
I did some research on the web and could not find out where to buy this
medication and whether or not it would harm the biological filter.
<Whether you use Piperazine or Levamisole (or even Fenbendazole), it should
be administered via food, so it should not impact the nitrifying
Ammonia is 0 nitrite 0 nitrate 10ppm temp 78F and 25% WC 2 times a week with
dechlorinated water I keep heated and aerated in a bucket.
<Sounds great.>
Has anyone had experience with this kind of infestation? Which medication would
be most effective and where can I get it?
<Either Levamisole or Piperazine should work for you. Most small,
non-chain fish stores do carry Discomed (Levamisole); however, you can also find
it available for sale at many online stores. You can also look for
Aquatronics' "Pipzine", which contains Piperazine, and should also be
very effective against Camallanus. If you have trouble locating
either of these, you might try contacting Aquatronics ( http://www.aquatronicsonline.com/
). I believe there is a store locater on their 'site, as well.>
Can snails be a secondary host?
<I don't *think* so; it is usually spread through feces, I believe. It
would certainly be a good idea to prevent moving any life from the sick tank to
another.>
Also, Camallanus I read is highly infectious.
<It can be easily spread if an infected fish dies and is left in the tank to
be nibbled on, or also again, through nibbling on feces (Mmmm, feces), so it'd
be a really good idea to siphon off any poo and gunk very regularly, even
daily.>
If it has reached my other planted freshwater community tank (18 gal, 5 neon
tetra, 1 SAE, 2 Otto Cats), what medication could I use with the sensitive
catfish?
<Certainly *not* Trichlorfon, that's for sure. Piperazine or Levamisole
should be fine, though.>
Thank you in advance for your help. Michelle
<Sure thing. Wishing you and your Gourami well, Sabrina>
Gourami Troubles
Hello - Hoping you can help. We have just recovered from a case
of Ich in
our tank - 2 survivors only. 1 Pearl Danio and 1 Gold Gourami. After
two
weeks, we added a Pleco, 2 more Danios and through the recommendation at the
pet store, 3 white balloon platys. Everyone seems happy except that
the
Gourami is attacking the platys (one of them is pregnant). The pet
store
staff suggested the Gourami would be fine on his own. It has only
been 24
hours since the platys went in the tank but they already seem stressed.
Should I rid of the Gourami? Should I get a partner for him? Is
it too
soon and give them a few more days to adjust to the new attendees?
Thanks for your help.
Patty Despinic
<<Dear Patty; what size is the tank? Tank size does play an important role
in the aggression levels of fish. And gold Gouramis can be nasty. Adding
another simply means you are adding another potentially nasty fish. They
each have their own character, some are nasty, but some do fine in community
tanks. As for the balloon platies (are you sure they aren't balloon
mollies?)
you need to make a judgment call...is the Gourami aggressing them to the
point where their fins are becoming shredded? If not, try leaving them in
there for a few more days, and see if the aggression lessens. If it doesn't
lessen, you will need to decide if you still want to keep them, or return
either them or the Gourami. -Gwen>>
Gourami Troubles II
Sorry-the tank is 30 gallons. I have left them together for a
few days and
they are not really any better. The balloon (mollies) do not have any
physical damage but they are huddled together in the plant in the tank and
won't swim the tank. I have tested it by removing the Gourami for a
short
while and the balloon molly's demeanor changes quickly and dramatically.
They are obviously much happier. If I decide to get rid of the Gourami
-
any suggestions other than flushing him. He was purchased weeks ago -
I'm
not sure they would take him back. Is it safe to give him to a friend
who
also has a tank? Thanks for all your help. Patty Despinic
<<Hey Patty, you should phone your LFS and ask them. Tell them the
problem,
and if they don't take back the Gourami, would they know of any other stores
that would? I don't see a problem, most Serious Pet stores will take a healthy
fish back. But yes, it is probably safe to give him away to your friend, too.
Good luck! -Gwen>>
Gourami Troubles
Hello - Hoping you can help. We have just recovered from a case
of Ich in
our tank - 2 survivors only. 1 Pearl Danio and 1 Gold Gourami. After
two
weeks, we added a Pleco, 2 more Danios and through the recommendation at the
pet store, 3 white balloon platys. Everyone seems happy except that
the
Gourami is attacking the platys (one of them is pregnant). The pet
store
staff suggested the Gourami would be fine on his own. It has only
been 24
hours since the platys went in the tank but they already seem stressed.
Should I rid of the Gourami? Should I get a partner for him? Is
it too
soon and give them a few more days to adjust to the new attendees?
Thanks for your help.
Patty Despinic
<<Dear Patty; what size is the tank? Tank size does play an important role
in the aggression levels of fish. And gold Gouramis can be nasty. Adding
another simply means you are adding another potentially nasty fish. They
each have their own character, some are nasty, but some do fine in community
tanks. As for the balloon platies (are you sure they aren't balloon mollies?)
you need to make a judgment call...is the Gourami aggressing them to the
point where their fins are becoming shredded? If not, try leaving them in
there for a few more days, and see if the aggression lessens. If it doesn't
lessen, you will need to decide if you still want to keep them, or return
either them or the Gourami. -Gwen>>
Big Stomach Dwarf Gourami
Hi, I have a dwarf Gourami and it's stomach is expanded (looks abnormal),
suspect she has eaten too much or gastric problem. It always float at bottom and
doesn't show much activity since last 3 days, I have reduced the diet but still
not sure how will it recover? Can you help me to give him some exercise
to clean off his stomach. Please help, my another Gourami died last month with
the same symptoms.
<<Hello there. You can try to find a medicated food at your local fish
store, this might help. Also, make sure your water quality is good, do you do
regular partial water changes? If so, how often, and do you test your water?
Test for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates. You may also feed some fibre, such as
foods with Spirulina, or frozen daphnia. Do the scales stick out like a
pinecone? If so, the infection is too far advanced to save the fish :(
-Gwen>>
Lethargic Dwarf Gourami
I browsed through some of your FAQ and couldn't seem to find the specific
problem I'm having.
One of my dwarf Gouramis (which we've had for around 6 mo.s and has always
seemed quite healthy until recently) has begun to stay on the bottom of the tank
or will wedge itself in a plant and lay there. It also doesn't seem to be
eating. None of the other fish are showing symptoms of any illness. Its colour
seems a bit dulled; however, I don't see any film/parasites/fungus on the fish.
Any advice? It looks like it's dying and I don't know what to do.
<<Hello. You will need to test your water, and let me know the results of
the following: ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. You can get your water tested at
most respectable tropical fish stores. Once we have established this, I can help
you further with troubleshooting your problem, 90% of fish related illnesses are
directly related to water quality issues. If you cannot get your water tested
immediately, at least do a partial water change to help the fish until you can
test it. In the meantime you may also add a bit of salt to the tank, aquarium
salt is also found at your local fish store, add one teaspoon per gallon,
gradually. Keep the salt in the tank for a few weeks. If you do water changes,
the salt can be re-added to the new water. i.e. if you remove 5 gallons of
water, replace it with 5 gallons of new water with 5 teaspoons of salt. Any
top-off water (due to evaporation) should be freshwater only. Please let me know
your test results as soon as you can. Thanks -Gwen>>
Moonlight Serenade
Hi Bob, thanks for looking. My fish shows a rather strange scarring across
the bottom part of the body, running along the top of the ventral fin. I've been
in this hobby for over 15 years and have never seen this. I was hoping you could
come up with some ideas. Water's good, so is the temperature; the pH may be a
bit acidic. Thanks, Mauricio.
P.S. the "infected" fish is a moonlight Gourami
<<Hi Mauricio, Gwen here instead of Bob. I am unsure of what I'm following up on
here. Do you have a pic of this scarring? Some background info, too, like tank
specs: how many gallons, what tankmates are in with him, how often you do
water changes, what are the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings, and what the
fish is behaving like. Is it eating? Hiding? Acting normal? All of this info
will help. Thanks, Gwen>>
Lumpy Gourami - 05/31/2004
Hi!
<Yo!>
One of our Gouramis has a small lump on the left side of his face, near his
mouth. It appears to be under the scales, as the scales seem to be
pushed up. Otherwise, he/she seems healthy, eating, generally
enjoying life.
<Sounds possibly like the beginnings of Lymphocystis.... but also
several other possibilities.>
We have a 20 gallon freshwater tank with two Gouramis, three red/orange tetras,
a catfish, an algae eater and two guppies. The tank is about 5 months
old and apart from needing periodic treatment for high PH,
<Not good to have a tank on a pH roller-coaster.... how high is
the pH of your tap? Have you got any "saltwater"
decorations in the tank (coral skeletons,
etc.)? Limestone? Crushed coral or aragonite
substrate? Better to fix the source of the problem than treat
symptoms of it.>
tests normal in every other way.
<What readings do you have for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate? I
suspect, if this is Lymphocystis, that there's a high nitrate reading
involved? Otherwise I might suspect another illness, perhaps
bacterial or fungal in nature....>
All the other fish look and act normal. What, if anything, should I
do?
<Test those levels mentioned - if you find that you do have a high nitrate
reading, work on improving husbandry - perhaps vacuum the gravel more often,
clean filters, larger and/or more frequent water changes.... Lymphocystis
can/should go away on its own as this happens.>
Peggy
<Wishing you and your lumpy Gourami well, -Sabrina>
Listless Gourami - 06/01/2004
I have had a pair of dwarf Gouramis for about 3 months and they have been
fine & healthy. However, for the last 4 days the male appears to be unwell.
He is either sitting on the bottom or hanging near the top looking totally
disinterested. At feeding times he initially attempts to take a flake but
usually ends up spitting it back out and therefore quickly loses interest! There
is no obvious signs of disease other than his colours seem a little dull.
<Dull color, listlessness - anything else, at all, out of the norm? Even
things that might not seem that big a deal can be good evidence to try and
diagnose an illness.>
However today I noticed the swordtails & platys keep nudging him, he
responds by moving away.
<So he's still responsive, at least.>
I have tried treating the water with anti-bacterial solution.
<Uhm, do you know what, precisely, you used? Did you complete the
treatment as directed on the package, or stop after the initial dose?>
I have tested the water and all levels are okay.
<Mm, 'okay' is subjective. Can you please let us know the readings
you have for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH? Also, how large is
the tank, what are the other inhabitants, when was your last addition to the
tank, how long ago did you last clean, and what is your maintenance schedule
like? Have you changed anything lately? Food,
dechlorinator, decor or plants, anything at all?>
Please can you give me any advice as to what to do next, as I think he may be
dying!
<Unfortunately, with so little to go off, I can't give a lot of advice. It
never hurts to do a rather sizeable water change; that ought to be the first
thing on your list; after that, I really don't have much to suggest. Please
do get back to us; I'd like to be able to help further.>
G. Smith
<Wishing your Gourami a swift recovery, -Sabrina>
Listless Gourami - II - 06/01/2004
Thanks for your reply, unfortunately the dwarf Gourami has since
died! Gill
<I'm so sorry to hear that, Gill. Please let us know if we can be
of any further assistance. Wishing you and your fishes
well, -Sabrina>
Re: Freshwater Tank question
Chuck:
In reference to this answer on the website, "watch out that ventral fin
feelers don't get picked off by the faster moving fish"...I've noticed that
my blue Gourami seems to have a section missing from his "plumage" Where is
the ventral fin, and are the Danios or blue tetras the likely culprit, as
they are the faster moving fish? Also, if I increase my Danio school (I
only have 3 now), do you think that stands a chance of decreasing the
chances of this happening again?
< These "feelers" that are characteristic of many Gourami species, are too
tempting for other species to leave alone. The Gouramis often use these to poke
and prod other things and they get picked off by the smaller faster fish like
the blue tetras in your case. Adding more fish won't prevent this from happening
again.-Chuck>
Cyndy Monarez/Thomas Nelson
Do you think the Gourami's fin difficulty warrants MelaFix?
< No not really unless you see it fungused or diseased.>
He's not
hovering in the corner and appears to be okay, plus there doesn't seem to be
any further damage at this time. My only other tank houses a Beta, and from
what I've read, it certainly won't help me to put the Gourami with him,
right?
< The Betta will be very territorial and your Gourami will be worse off.>
I guess what I'm asking....could this be a problem that could
eventually cause bacterial problems within the whole tank?
< Not really unless the fish becomes weak and sick from an infection.>
Also, I hate
treating the whole tank with MelaFix when he's the only one that needs it.
Please weigh in if you will.....Thanks, Cyndy
< I would not treat the tank and concentrate on keeping the water clean.-Chuck>
Sick Gourami
Hello! I've been reading through your FAQs and articles and I
have found them very useful. They have made my job a lot easier,
because I just started fish keeping about a month and a half ago. Anyways,
here is my question. I have a 10 gallon quarantine tank with two
dwarf Gouramis in them for three weeks. The water quality is
ammonia=0ppm, nitrites=0ppm, nitrates=10ppm, pH=7.6. I did a 30%
water change last night and the nitrates dropped to about 5ppm. Back
to the question... About four days after putting the Gouramis into the tank, I
noticed brown splotches on their heads. That was the most obvious
feature. The splotches are not regular or in any particular pattern. The
splotches have been there ever since. Last night, everything changed
because I found one Gourami lying nearly on its side on the tank's bottom. Its
gills and mouth were flapping rapidly. Also, I noticed that their feces were
awfully long and light colored. On the other hand, this morning, the
healthier Gourami had a dark feces trail. The sicker Gourami looked even worse. What
can I do about this? Thanks a lot.
<<Hello. Dwarf Gouramis are specifically prone to bacterial infections.
You can try your LFS to see what meds they have in stock to combat external
bacterial infections. Salt may help in early cases, as will Melafix, but if the
disease has not been caught at the beginning, you may need something stronger.
Good job on the testing, keep it up! -Gwen>>
Flame Gourami
Help! My very 1st fish (purchased in May) was a Flame Gourami who lived
happily until I got a 2nd Gourami (a Blue one). They lived together for
about 2 months but the Blue Gourami was too aggressive and nipped at the
fins of the Flame. Fearing this would be too stressful I have recently moved
the Blue into another tank. This 10 gallon tank also contains 3 Tetras, 3
small Ghost Catfish, and now 2 new Black Mollies.
The Flame Gourami appeared to be getting stressed from the other Gourami and
began hiding and evading most of his day. Now ever though the Blue Gourami
was removed, the Flame Gourami continues to spend most of his day hiding and
rather than coming to the surface at feeding time as he used to, now "runs"
and hides as fast as he can when I approach the tank, sometimes running
into the side of the tank in his hurry to get away.
Yesterday I found this Gourami laying on his side, seemingly gasping for air
and I assumed he was dying. However he has moved around but now he is
swimming around, but in odd ways, as if he is disoriented. He seems unable
to stay right side up and even swims in corkscrews patterns to get around the
tank.
Looking at all your information about fish disease the only thing I can
attribute this to is stress but other than staying away from the tank as
much as possible so as not to care him, I do not know what else to do. He
has no growths on his body nor are there any oddities about his general
shape/appearance. He has some fins nips on his tail fin, which were from the
other Gourami, but they have never affected his swimming before. His other
fins appear fine. The blue stripe on his dorsal fin varies in brightness
from day to day--but always has.
The Ph level to the tank was a little acidic so I have fixed that and I
increased the output to the filter to increase airflow into the water. None
of the other fish appear to be bothered if it were a general tank condition
issue.
How can I de-stress my fish before it is too late or is there another
explanation?
<The stress may have weakened you fish and caused an internal bacterial
infection. Do a 30% water change and clean the filter. I would treat with
Metronidazole and leave the light off for most of the day unless you have live
plants.-Chuck>
Thanks for any help you can provide.
KMR
Dropsical Gourami - 10/06/2004
My 80 gallon freshwater, planted tank contains six discus and two moonlight
Gouramis. Everyone is happy, healthy, eating, and generally utterly
normal-- but one of the Gouramis has, for the last week or so, developed
the hugest belly I have ever seen-- like he swallowed a monstrous marble. He
(it) doesn't have "pine cone" like scales, just this gigantic bulge. He's
not eating for the past two/three days-- not surprising, I guess, with
whatever's happening probably taking up all the room in his system and
more.
<Could be simple constipation causing these Dropsical symptoms, or could be
something more daunting - internal bacterial infection, damage to or
infection of the swimbladder.... For now, I would hope that it is simple
constipation. Quarantine the fish (carefully! Use a container to catch, not
a net) and add Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) to his water, at one or two
tablespoons per ten gallons. Do not feed for now, and see how it
goes. When you do begin to feed again, feed *only* foods of high roughage
content: daphnia, adult brine shrimp, thawed pea with the shell removed....>
I feel like I should take a pin to his side and deflate him, he's so bulgy!
<Yikes, don't do *that*! ;) >
Any thoughts as to what might be going on? (feed is one small feed of
beef heart, one small feed of bloodworms and one small feed of frozen
freshwater cuisine cubes daily, plus there's all sorts of natural greenery
going on in the tank for anyone that wants it.)
<Another possibility I see here. Beef heart, though widely used by discus
keepers, is a hotly debated topic - and I'm on the side that it should
never, ever be fed to fish. Mind you, though, there are plenty of folks
much more experienced than I that use it regularly. My reasoning comes from
the fact that (as I understand it) this stuff will, over time, cause fatty
deposits on the liver that will ultimately cause irreparable damage, and
possibly kill the fish. I am of the mind that fish that require meats in
their diet should only be fed meats that are aquatic in nature - shrimp,
fish, scallops, squid, worms, insects/larvae; plenty of good'uns out
there. It's not every day ya see cow hearts floating down the Amazon, to be
nibbled by local discus....>
The other Gourami is fine....
<Then, hopefully, just a simple case of Gourami constipation.>
Judy Waytiuk
<Wishing you and your bloaty-bellied buddy well, -Sabrina>
Dropsical Gourami - II - 10/06/2004
Hi Sabrina, thanks for getting back to me...
<You bet.>
I tried the Epsom salts thing (and now have two quarts of Epsom salts to use in
my bath-- the pharmacist burst out laughing when I said I just needed a few
teaspoons for a sick fish.)
<Hah! Oh, my.... I'm sure that was an adventure! I wish you'd have seen the
look on my vet's face when I asked for a syringe so I could kill
Aiptasia.... He was sure *one* of us was off their rocker.>
Didn't work. A very wee bit of poop came out, but that was it. The little guy
gave up the ghost overnight (I think, starved to death, since he/it'd stopped
eating over a week ago).
<So sorry to hear of this.>
So I necropsied him. And strange it may be, but the huge bulge (about the size
of those BIG marbles! in a wee, small Gourami) was WATER!! No sign of parasites
or nothing'! Go figure-- may have been a birth defect of some sort. Have you
ever heard of that?
<Actually, likely this fluid was the result of an internal bacterial
infection.... Did you perhaps see off-white lumps/granulomas on the internal
organs? Anything else amiss? Any good pics/books to go off, so you might have
an idea what something "wrong" might look like, and have something to use for
identifying the problem? There are a few *great* books packed with info
available, and one that I like solely for the clear, concise photography (though
the info is somewhat outdated). Let me know if you'd like some
recommendations.>
BTW, your thoughts on beef heart are most interesting.
<Ala Levar Burton, "You don't have to take *my* word for it". From Bailey and
Burgess' "Tropical Fishlopaedia", page 69, "It is best to avoid feeding
mammal/bird meats to fish as this can lead to the accumulation of harmful fatty
deposits in the liver and other tissues. Despite such risks, the feeding of
beef heart or liver is still advocated by many aquarists, but if, used at all,
the golden rule is to feed such meats very sparingly. On the other hand, fresh
or frozen fish, shellfish, (e.g. mussels), and shrimps/prawns are excellent
foods for fish." Gratzek's "Aquariology" tome also cautions about the use of
beef heart. I'm sure others do, as well. For me, I would rather treat my fish
to some shrimp or scallop and not worry about it at all. And again, many discus
breeders recommend the use of the meat highly.... Why, I'm not sure, but they
do.>
I just may take that to heart,
<No pun intended?>
and feed them beef heart very, very seldom as a special treat, since they do go
ape over it.
<A good plan. Do please be cautious.>
Mind you, they go ape over all their food.
<Sounds like a fish to me! Wishing you well, -Sabrina>
Blue Dwarf Gourami with Swollen eye
Hi WWM,
I am fairly new to keeping tropical fish, so apologies if this is a dumb
question. This morning when I checked on my fish I noticed that one of the Dwarf
Gouramis (affectionately named Bleu) has a very swollen left eye (it's actually
like it's been mounted on a washer and stuck to the side of his head). He
definitely WASN'T like it yesterday.
< Probably a case of pop eye has started. Anaerobic bacteria has begun to grow
behind the eye ball and the pressure that the bacteria have generated has begun
to push the eye out of the socket. Treat with Metronidazole in a separate
hospital tank.>
He doesn't appear to be in any distress, although he is slightly isolating
himself from the other fish. He came out for food this morning and ate as
normal. He's quite shy anyway, and sometimes gets chased by one of the other
Gouramis (Altogether we have 1 Indian Gourami, 2 dwarf Gourami, 1 golden
Gourami, 2 leopard Plecos, 3 golden algae eaters, 10 assorted tetras and three
zebra Danios) but much less so than when they were all initially introduced to
the tank.
We have had a few problems with the tank since building it up. We did have two
angels (with 3 zebras, 1 Pleco, 1 Gourami and 5 neon tetras) both of which died
10 days after joining the tank (one of which was never found - assumed eaten).
More recently we bought a Betta that was very beautiful but incredibly shy.
After his first night in the tank I found him lying in the shadow of a rock.
Worried that he was trapped, I put my hand gently against the glass to see if he
would react, and he swam away. He spent a lot of time hiding behind the
thermometer stuck on the side of the tank. That evening I was looking for him
everywhere, and after a 40 minute search discovered him UNDER an ornament. There
was a small gap in the volcanic rock/gravel and I just assumed that he was ok.
The next morning I woke to find him in shreds. Half his scales were missing and
his tail was non-existent. I immediately isolat |
