fishfriendly

Hi im new to here. I have been keeping tropical fish for about a year now. We recently bought a new large tank (65litre) and set it up as per directions.

We gradually introduced the fish into the new tank and alls been well. Nitrates are normal, ammonia normal, pH 7.2, nirites normal and the temps is set at 24. Wer have the water tested by our local aquactic centre where we get our fish from to make sure it is done correctly. Do a 30% water change every week.

I have noticed over the last couple off days our female palties spine is curving, she had a fry off about 14 babies 16 weeks ago and some have actually been rehomed (7 to be exact. As they was a good size over 1 inch long) She is eating normally. Her front fins (or arms as i call them) seem to be disappearing, also the top off her mouth looks a bit white, shes lost weight and her eyes seem to be bullging a bit.

Please can anyone help. I have seperated her from the other fish at the moment to be on the safe side. We did loose a neon tetra last week he lost his colour and had pop eye and was a bit deformed.

aquarist48

Hello FishFriendly and Welcome to Fish Lore!
I would like to recommend that you have your own test kit. What is most recommended on this site is the API (liquid) Master Test Kit. It contains everything you need to test for ammonia, nitrite, nitrates and pH levels. I don't feel comfortable having fish stores to do the tests. Too, in a lot of cases they use the quick dip test strips that can be very inaccurate and unreliable compared to the liquid test kits. To have the fish store to tell you that your water is "fine" is not enough information. You really need to know the exact levels for the above tests.

I'm sorry to hear that you're having fish troubles and losses. If you can give us the test results would be a great help.
Best wishes!
Ken