White Cloud Minnow Fish Desease

HI everyone,
I have a 5 gallon tank with minnows and amano shrimps. One of my white clouds minnow has been acting sick for the past few days. He shows these syntoms:
- lethargic
- loss of appetite
- loss of weight
- heavy breathing
- hiding behaviour
- isolation from the group.

It’s my first time with an aquarium and I don’t know how to diagnose a fish and find the right treatment. I have done some research online but I don’t seem to find anything that match with him.
2 weeks ago my ph suddenly dropped (it’s usually stable) so I have done more frequent water changes and I managed to bring it back up slowly in few days time. I thought this could be a possible cause of his behaviour but the others are not affected and act healthy. Anybody can help??

 

Hi, what are your other tank parameters? (Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate) Also, do you know about the nitrogen cycle or if you tank is cycled?

There should be a sick fish template to fill out, but I don’t know where it is. If someone else could post that, that would be great.

 

unless there's visible external symptoms, its hard to say. maybe something simple like ammonia poisoning, or poor water quality or an internal infection.

maybe a close up picture could help.

 

- Nitrate 15
- Nitrite 0
- Ammonia 0
- Ph 6.5

I had the aquarium since October and it’s the first time that my parameters change so drastically. I do 20/25% water change every week (more often if there is something wrong in the parameters). I will post a picture, sorry for the quality.

 

Do bigger water changes. It's only a 5 gallon tank.

 

looks like you have driftwood, which can lower pH. do you have a GH KH test kit?

beneficial bacteria, fish, invertebrates, plants will consume minerals and nutrients.

 

The GH is 8d and the KH is 6d.

 

MI fish started feeling better last week, he was eating again! Tho morning I found him laying at the bottom of the tank, not moving but still breathing. I have checked the water parameters and they are fine, I have done 50% water change but he’s not any better. What can I do?

 

hard to see with those pictures, but everything else seems ok.

 

I keep these fish (I have a dozen) and I have occasionally experienced this same problem but I have accepted it as part and parcel of keeping small fish. The rest of the shoal seem very healthy indeed. I don't think it takes much for a small fish to go downhill, who knows what faults can take place in the body.

 

I don't know if I can be much help in saying this, "But mother nature will naturally weed out the weaker in favor of the stronger." Not sure if you understand what I am saying, but this applies probably even more when it comes to species that are born at a high rate and volume like fish or minnows more then any. Minnows are nature's rabbits in the water, and are part of the food chain for larger species. Not having any other way to perpetuate the species they do so by huge numbers. So there will always be those that just never where capable of living as long as others in the same species, and will succumb faster to environmental stress then others, ei, lower immune systems, etc.

Not saying this is what is happening with your White Cloud, but if no other possible out come for it getting sick then it is something to consider.

Then there is always over breeding by large fish farms that only care about profit over quality.