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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| I think it might die soon...HELP
My mother has a cichlid and I dont know what is wrong with it. When we bought it it was a light color with white spots on its fins. Im not sure what kind it is. Ill provide a picture here real soon. Anyways, now he is a real dark blue and it is making me worry. I dont know if its good or bad because it has never been this dark of a color. I checked the pH levels and they are at 7.5...the amonia levels are fine as well. It keeps resting on the smaller plants and I just get the feeling he is real sick and we already lost one of them. I think its still pretty young too. Im not sure what to do. We have some fish meds but I dont want to hurt the zebra danios...what do I do??
Last edited by mytts92; July 21st, 2009 at 01:20 PM.
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| Post a picture it will help lots.
Cichlids can go from light to dark color in a matter of seconds depending on mood.
Brian | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| ...I really think this is it for it....he keeps going in the corner....i think im too late..... | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| Is it a fairly new fish for you?
Does it go to the corner when you come near the tank?
Then will it come back out into the open when you back off some?
Is your tank cycled?
If we knew the type of fish that also would help lots.
Brian | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| weve had the fish for about a month and yeah the tank is cycled...im trying to get a pic up...my computer is slow...I think it might be a dwarf cichlid but Im not sure... | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| The pic will help.
Does it only run to a corner when you come near the tank to look at it?
Brian | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| no he typically stays out in the open....now he isnt responding to anything...he went into the very corner and now only his gills are moving..... | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| Chances are you are stressing him out each time you "run" up to the tank to check on him.
Stay back for a bit and see if he comes out and swims around a bit.
Without a pic I really cant tell you much more right now.
Brian | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| its not a very good pic either...
its the best pic I could get with my crappy phone...
Last edited by Lucy; July 17th, 2009 at 09:19 PM.
Reason: merging back to back posts | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| Sorry to be a pain...but can you make the pic any bigger I can't even start to make it out.
Brian | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| when we first got him, he was in my tank because my mom had tiger barbs that would nip at him...I only have a ten gallon my mom has a 30 gallon...we had two but when the other died in my tank we removed the tiger barbs and put him back in my moms tank. He seemed happy and fine but about a week ago his color started changing and I didnt know if that was normal or not....now it seems like hes getting ready to pass....my mom loves that fish too... | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| I can try... | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| Have you been doing water changes | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| Quote:
Originally Posted by mytts92  I checked the ph levels and they are at 0...the amonia levels are fine as well.
We have some fish meds but I dont want to hurt the zebra danios...what do I do?? | what type of water testers are you using? Ph can't be 0.
Also, please post the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings.
And please do not use any meds ! This could be a water quality issue that can easily be fixed, so please post the readings so we can make that determination. | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| Im not sure...my mom takes care of him...he lives downstairs in the living room and Im never home....my mom isnt here either so i cant ask but knowing her probably not....is there anything I can do? Should I put him in my tank or give him meds or what??...I really dont hes going to make it though....putting him in my tank would stress him out too much, huh?? | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| If he has been in the tank for a month or so and you have yet to do a water change, that is more than likely your biggest problem.
Really you should be doing water changes weekly.
Any way to find out if mom has been doing it?
Brian | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| Never administer medications randomly, without knowing if or what the problem is. Many have lost fish that way. Sometimes the supposed "cure" is what kills the fish, and the reason is, because there was no illness, just a water quality issue.
When your mom gets home, check and see if she has water testers. If she doesn't, she really should go buy some. They are essential in fishkeeping.
My advice is to do a water change, that way, if there is ammonia or nitrite present, a water change will remove it. Make sure the temp of the new water going in, is the same as the existing tank water. (use a thermometer if you need to).
do you have any prime water conditioner in the house? That will detox any ammonia and nitrite for 24 hours. | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| I dont know it says "Delux PH level test kit" my grandpa gave it to me....the ph levels are around 7.6 and im doing the nitrate one now
the ammonia is real high....6.0 to 7.0 is what it says....how do i get it to drop??
Last edited by Lucy; July 17th, 2009 at 09:57 PM.
Reason: merging posts | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| The ph is fine. It's the ammonia and nitrite that are toxic, and nitrAte is toxic too, but only at high levels.
Ammonia is produced by fish waste and uneaten food. If the tank isn't cycled, the "good" bacteria aren't established to feed on the ammonia, and the ammonia builds up in the tank, killing the fish.
Please do a water change, and I recommend your mom gets the proper test kits, and some Prime water conditioner, which will detoxify the ammonia and nitrites for 24 hours, in between water changes. API has a great liquid test kit, available at Petsmart, Petco, and most other pet stores. Don't buy the paper test strips, they are inaccurate.
heres' a link that explains the nitrogen cycle. http://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm
good luck with mom's fish mytts ! Please keep us updated! | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| oh, you found an ammonia test ?
That ammonia level is extremely toxic ! You must do a water change ASAP !! | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| sorry i was looking at the wrong strip....when i first checked the ph levels(on my first post)
ok....will do! thank you so much....ill tell my mom what to do for proper maintance of her fish -rolls eyes- Im glad im reading up before I buy fish....
the nitrate says 20 to 0...
Last edited by Lucy; July 17th, 2009 at 09:57 PM.
Reason: merging back to back posts, you can use the edit button to add to a post :) | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| the only way to remove ammonia from the tank, is by water change. Do a very large water change now, because the ammonia level is extremely toxic at a 6 or 7. There is no safe level of ammonia, it should always be zero.
Even small amounts of ammonia are harmful to fish.
You're welcome mytts! Good luck, please let us know how you make out. | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| should I put him in my tank? will that stress him too much? My tank has been properly cycled....The ph is 7.5 the ammonia is at 0 and so are the nitrate and nitrite | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| my tank has been sitting for a month....no fish | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| your cycled tank should have some nitrate reading. Having a 0 nitrAte is odd.
But yes, if the ammonia is 6 or 7, that fish will die in mom's tank. It may already be too late, being it's been exposed to that much ammonia.
Just make sure the water temp in your tank is the same or very very close to the water temp the fish has been in.
Ph has to be the same as well. I see your tank has a ph of 7.5, and moms tank has 7.6, so that is no problem.
Last edited by joy1125; July 17th, 2009 at 10:04 PM.
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| no...the strip says that yellow= 0 ?? Im new at this so -shrug- | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| mytts, as long as you are sure your tank has 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite, the fish can go in there.
the important thing for now is, to either do a huge water change on mom's tank, or get the fish into yours, because the longer it's exposed to that extreme level of ammonia, the worse it's gonna get for the fish. it's suffering right now at that level.
If you put it in your tank, you will need to check readings daily, and possibly have to do water changes daily as well . You can post back and we'll help you figure out what's going on with your nitrAte reading. | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| ok thank you so much | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Addict
| you're welcome, hope all goes well. | |
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July 17th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| i switched the fish to my tank and now he is swimming around =) | |
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