Franky_Bones

I got a RTS a few weeks ago and now I am noticing white around the edges of his top fin and two side fins but not his tail fin. Is something wrong with him?

Shawnie

does it look like salt crystals?

Franky_Bones

No. it looks just like the rest of the fin only white. No crystallization of any kind that I could find.

Franky_Bones

I took some photos but they aren't really clear.
Does anyone know how to make a Canon PowerShot SD500 take clear fish pictures?

alyssium

franky,

my new RTBS has the same white along the fins. i had 2 previous fish that had ICH and i KNOW it isn't it. i think it's just the colouring.

when i was at the zoo today (they have a red-tail in one of their tanks) it had similar white markings just on the fin tips. i hope that helps a lil

Franky_Bones

cool so maybe its just normal. I really like my RTS and dont want anything bad to happen to him.

Johawk

Mine has the same coloration on the fins. I have had it since it was just over an inch long, now it is about 3 inches. Really dark black body and a bright red tail, I think it's happy and healthy. No need to worry about the white tips on the fins.

jen82

My shark has this too. It is 3 inchs long and I've had it since it was about 2cm. It has always had same white marks and it perfectly healthy. I always wondered it was the difference between male and female because a friend of mine has one with no marks.

Steen16

mine has it to, i think it is normal because even the ones at the fish store have the white tips

Red1313

I'd say that the coloring is normal as well. And I read somewhere that the femal RTS has a grayer stomache then the male, but I don't know if that's true or not.

Steen16

Its true because mine is female and has a white stomach

Steen16

you guys have got red tails so do u think when mine has grown i could put it with an oscar or dempsey?

Red1313

Well it should be big enough to hold it's own size wise and I think I read somewhere that cichilids can be suitible tank mates. However you might want to try asking that question over in the cichilid section I don't know much about oscars or dempsey's. But let us know the answer!

Steen16

Thanks alot will do

Steen16

well iv got my oscar he is only a young one i bit bigger then my shark they seem to be fine at the moment. the shark can hold his ground and pretects his cave!! they eye each other its quite funny

Jo3olous

Ive read about a tank with a 10'' Oscar a 6'' RTBS and a 12'' Pleco. Tank owner said it works out fine, just give the RTBS his caves to claim as his land.

Jo3olous

Oh, and I also have a 2.5 inch RTS with white tips on his fins, lol

bigfoot-daniel

This is definitely normal. I had a RTS for about 4months that developed this strange white marking on its top fin and both local Pets at Home stores insisted it was fin rot. After spending about £30 on treatments and no signs of curing it, I gave the RTS to a friend to quarentine and hopefully cure its "fin rot". Sadly it died in quarentine.

This week I went to a new aquarium store where they have juvenile RTS's all of which have this white markings around the edges of their fins. I asked whether it was fin rot and the owner assured me that it wasnt and that RTS's in home/store tanks often develop a white colouration to the fin edges and its entirely normal. He even said, "let me guess, it was Pets at Home that told you it was fin rot and you spent a fortune on treatments".

Jo3olous

sucks to get suckered

bigfoot-daniel

Sure does I loved that RTS. Hence the reason I will never take advice or buy fish from Pets at Home ever again. I thought it was a safe bet to take the advice of two seperate stores, especially when they send their staff on special training to be able to work in the fish department.

Red1313

Hugs about your shark. I'd be heart broken if anything happened to Red. Even if I don't see him that often I start to worry when his tank goes still.

bigfoot-daniel

I think I was quite lucky with that shark in that he was a socialite - always coming to the glass whenever there were people around. Swam around with his buddy the sucking loach, even shared his submarine home with him. Occasionally chased the loach outta the sub and then raced him back "home". lol.

I hope my juvenile RTS grows up to be as accomodating, especially as today he has been venturing into the submarine rather than sticking around under the filter.

Steen16

:P

Jo3olous

If they have good quality fish I would still buy fish/products from them. But you should never trust retail-sellers anyway. They just want your monies. I would just ignore them and get w/e though just research first

bigfoot-daniel

They have been pretty good up until then, I mean I bought some new guppies and they all died within 48hours. They tested my water and said that due to the deaths and stuff I had a small amonia problem and a huge nitrates problem (although the nitrates are likely to be unrelated to the amonia spike, they probably contributed to the deaths). They gave me a credit note and got me to do water changes and things. Wasnt until 2 weeks later, several water changes and 4 water tests that they suggested a nitra-zorb pouch to deal with the problem and protect my established fishes. If they just wanted my money they could have quite easily sold me the £10 nitra-zorb pouch from the start, rather than educate me with water changes and water tests. Then a few weeks later they retested my water and let me use my credit note to buy whatever I wanted.

I went to the store believing from my research that it was fin rot, and asked what they thought it was, which they "confirmed" was fin rot. Just wish i had of found this forum sooner. lol.

Red1313

Live and learn, that's what fish keeping is all about.

alyssium

i'm really sorry to hear of the loss of your rts. i have been worried sick about my rts Ernest for the past few days so i know what that is like. what i can say i have learned is that everyone tells you something different, andi have learned to guage things by my fish and no one else. they tell you lots.

Chris123

I think its just a sign of age.

he be fine