genie

I came home last night after being gone all day and both of my ottos were dead.... tank is cycled.... it looks like they ate themselves to death.... really fat bellies.... the only thing I can think of is that I had a major algae bloom and added an algae killing chemical that said safe for fish and plants. Is this the culprit?

Fla_Larry

how long have you had those OTO's? i just recently was made to believe that generally newly aquired OTO's tend to drop like flies BUT if you suppliment their feeding with fresh Veggies ( i use 2 slices of fresh cucumber ) that will keep the benificial bacteria alive in their guys and as a result keep the OTO alive.

Shawnie

im sorry you lost your babies the big bellies could be from bloating after death....they are sensitive creatures and IMO it probably was the meds.....check your ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates as some meds kill the cycle ...goodluck!

KyWildFish

Im going to say meds too. The tank is too old for a cycle issue. I agree with Shawnie sounds like the meds got em, they eat algea so the meds in the algae probably became toxic and killed them.

genie

yeah... they have been in the tank for over a year.... but I just recently moved the tank to a new apt. BUT I kept everything wet (gravel and filter stuff) and put the tank up right away.... havent had any spikes in the ammonia, nitrate, nitrite levels.... they were fine for a week. I added the Algae Rid stuff (I think that is the name) and one day later.... dead otos.

agabr123

i'm sorry you lost them

matt11390

Sorry that you lost them as well. I have lost 3 in 2 months. Did you notice any behavioral patterns in them right before they died. I have noticed with the 3 that I lost that about a few days before their deaths they would occasionally go to the surface for a gulp of air...like a cory cat does. Also, they would become a loner and not swim with the others in their school. Weird patterns but these three were consistent in those two behaviors.

IMO, ottos are just as hard, and maybe harder, to keep than cardinal tetras. They seem very fickle.

AlyeskaGirl

Oh, I am sorry you lost your Ottos.