Stressed Fish

[Sage Exotics]

My dwarf gourami is always a little spooked after I do a water change, but I usually only gravel vac the front half of the tank because my fish are hiding in the back and I don’t want to stress them. I decided I’d do the back this time because it probably needed cleaning, but now my dwarf gourami is really stressed out. I did the change in the morning and she’s still a bit sluggish and jumpy, looks a bit pale too. I’ve lost fish to this before, and I dechlorinate that water beforehand and always s make sure it’s the right temperature, so I’m convinced it’s only stress. Any tips on how to do maintenance with minimal stress? What Can I do for my gourami?

 

[DutchAquarium]

move slowly when you gravel vac to avoid stress. Also, you can watch your fish for a while when they eat. this allows them to get used to your presence.

 

[Sage Exotics]

I do move slowly, and I do watch them as they eat to make sure everyone’s getting their share, no aggression, everyone is eating, etc. I also close the lid very softly because if I don’t my gourami darts behind a plant. I don’t know what else could be affecting her, but my male platy is always flaring and darting around all day, my last female died after she had like a billion fry so now he just wants some girls. My cat might bother them when I’m asleep or at school, so I can try covering with a blanket/towel on one side to prevent my cat from seeing the delectable fishies. I really don’t know what else I can do.

 

[pugletfan]

Maybe you could just clean and vac part of the back at a time, just 1/4 of the back so they still have lots of places to hide.

 

[Sage Exotics]

Yeah, I’ll try that, thanks!