brawlymcknuckles

Confused as to why my pleco died. He was super happy in the tank on day 1. Cleaned the entire tank quite efficiently. Then after a week or so he appeared to stop eating. There was nothing visiably wrong with him and the tank params are all spot on. The danios are happy as can be.

Today I checked on pleco and he was stone cold dead.

I know he would have grown too large for the tank and I was going to bring him in to the pet store and exchange.

No clue what killed him, wanted to maybe get an otto or something that will keep the tank clean.

Suggestions? comments? Did I maybe starve the pleco, There seemed to be tons of algea in the tank for it to eat so I didn't add waffers or anything

Lucy

I'm really sorry you lost him. I don't think pleco eat all that much algea. They should be given wafers, veggies etc.

Dojo

What kind of algae do you have in the tank? It might not have been the type plecos eat. If your water parameters were fine and he was otherwise healthy I can't think of anything else, but sorry for your loss

Sharkitty

Oy, I'm sorry.

If it makes you feel any better, I put a pleco in a brand new tank and fed him nothing at all for 6 weeks until I returned him to the store. I didn't know anything then. I doubt your guy starved, for what it's worth. Perhaps he was already old, or in ill health? We talk about all the diseases we can see, but I imagine that fish are like any other animal in that they can be internally sick and not show symptoms.

midnightwolf

im sorry you lost the guy.

hkirchen

It is a mystery.

I lost two lf albino bn plecos in the first two weeks. I tried everything to save them. There were several theories, and I will list what they said in case it helps you.

One theory was that there was not enough oxygen. I got a piece of driftwood with a plant on it and a air stick. He died.

The next theory was that I had the temp too high. It was set to 80, I lowered it to 78. He died.

My parameters were amonia 0, nitrite 0, and nitrate 20.

Now I am on my third one, and he has made it for over a month. He is very hungry all of the time, and he is growing like crazy. I am very happy.

Hope that gives you some ideas.

brawlymcknuckles

I have been reading that pleco like drift wood. Given that I wasn't suplementing his diet with wafers, I think I may have starved the poor fella :-(

Darn pet store and their advise. Fisrt in selling me a pleco for a 10 g tank and second telling me I don't have to feed it. My own bad for not researching it first, it was a spur of the moment decision

well...live and learn

agabr123

i'm sorry to hear that

Blub

I can't explain that sorry death - but I'm just going to warn you that a lone Otto will not be happy - they are schooling fish. (But that's not really a problem due to their small size and bio-load)