Hi
So I've been fighting with this new 55gal (which has been setup for about three weeks now) I got to replace my old 29gal which cracked and leaked...so I had to move 2 large veil-tails and one fat pond comet into the 55gal on the second day of it being setup (i know, not a good idea). I've managed to get my cycle on its way (not fully cycled yet as my ammonia levels are still high, even with my every other day 50% water changes, nitrite is very low to zero and nitriate is about 20). The problem is that my girlfriend purchased some more fish and put them in the tank while she was watching for a few days while I was out of town (this was after about 6 days of being setup)...she bought and added, 2 small black moors, 1 pleco, 1 lionhead, 1 bubble eye and 1 calico (quite full and I'd say over its limit), but I've got a penguin 330 (modified with airstones in the extra media baskets) and a Hagen 201 powerhead filter and 4 airstones in the tank...so filtration should not be too bad, I dont think. Thing is, my two large veil tails have had terrible fin rot for about a week and a half and they are show noticible loss of their once very nice and large tails and also now (past few days) all the fish are showing signs of ich (little white dots covering them and showing up more today then yesterday). What should I do, I've got Melafix and pimafix and some fizzing Fungal tabs (tankbuddies) and fizzing parasite tabs (also tankbuddies, but they dont say ich in particular). What should I do, treat the fin rot (its looking quite bad and their tails are all bumpy and calloused looking) and the lethargy of the fish sitting on the bottom, or should I treat the ich, or both at once with ich tabs and melafix? What do you think? Thanks Oh yeah, the temp of my water is 75 and the ph is 7.4. Thanks One last thing, what about surgically cutting off the veil tails tails...would that make them grow back cleaner and nicer...or will they always be ugly looking from now on? thanks.

Jay

I would not cut off their tails. I don't think that would be too nice for them so just don't do it.

Exactly what is the ammonia level in your tank? I would say that you definately need to get another tank up and running to remove some of the fish from the big tank. Also, pleco's do not do well with goldfish.

Now, I would probably treat the fin rot and lethargy first, those things are rather serious. I would say that the ich could wait a week or two. Do a huge water change before adding the meds. Check the ammonia every day making sure it is not rising.

Good luck!

OK
So how do I deal with the tattered looking tails once this is all over with? I've read in these forums that ich can be very bad for the fishes health...I should just let the ich treatment wait untill I've got the finrot and lethargy under control? The ammonia level is about 4.0 right now and I'm about to do a 25% water change to bring down the nitrate also. Would tank buddies fungus be good, or melafix, or what should I use to treat the rot/lethargy? Thanks

Ammonia of 4.0 will kill your fish. It's also prob why the ich started in the first place.

I'll bet alot of your fin rot issues are sue to water quality issues & so I'd try to get those params more in line. A 25% change may not be enough. Try to keep the ammonia as close to 1.0 while you're cycling as possible. You may need to do multiple water changes in a day or a larger one & they may need to be done daily for a bit. You'll have to see where your numbers are.

You have to treat for the ich or you'll kill your fish. (In a week or two in an untreated tank the ich can get really get out of control). I would try for pristine water conditions for the rot at this point & get some EITHER ich meds or salt in there (but NOT both - too much osmotic stress for your babies). You will have to treat the entire tank for ich. If you use a product with methyline blue you will need to keep the tank completely covered as the light will deactivate the meds. Check out the threads in the other disease section on treating ich. I;ve always had good luck with Quick Cure but I dunno if the plecos handle it well.

I'll bet the lethargy is also directly related to your water conditions too.

Good Luck!!!
Jenn

PS With ammonia levels at 4.0 you'll likely have ammonia burns too. THey start out brown & turn black as they heal (so don't panic if you see them)

GOod Luck!

Jenn

Hi ,I totally agree with Jenn.You need to start those water changes immediatley.And ,if the ammonia level doesn't kill your fish first,the Ick certainly will so that would be my next worry after changing out the water. Ick is one of the fastest killers of fish. The only thing is that when Jenn talked about the meds,I think that she may have meant to say that any ick meds with Formalin,or Malachite Green,needs to be protected from the light as light will deactivate those---Meth. Blue is to treat fungus. As jenn also said,chances are that your fish'es fins will start healing on their own and the lethargy should also go away too once you get the water params under control--- .....By the way Jenn----- Youv'e come a long way in a very short time!!!!! Good luck with those fish----please keep us posted with how they are doing!!!

Sharon - you are so totally right! I can only plead exhaustion!!! I did mean formalin/malachite green!

Awwww - thanks! It's only because of you guys!

nxumdon - How's it going???

Jenn

Hi
Thanks for all the help. So I purchased some CureIch+ and added 6 cap fulls to my 80% water change (for my 55 gallon), I've brought the temp up to 77 and I've covered the tank with a blanket. Should I remove my bio-wheels or anything at all (I've got one live plant...not worth too much though $2.99)? I'd been using Ammo-lock to help with the high ammonia levels...that would have prevented burns and further help problems..correct? How does prime compare to ammo-lock, as the pet store girl said I should use this instead of ammo-lock and also I should replace my normal water conditioner with prime as well. So, 24 hours from my first does of CureIch I should repeat, correct? And again untill four days after no more ich can be seen...correct? Do you agree? Thanks

Jay

The only thing you should remove is any active carbon. (The carbon in my filters has been there for months so I know it isn't filtering out my meds anymore!)

Just follow the directions on the bottle of CureIch+ - remember to keep checking your water params to make sure all is OK with that. I would continue for a few days (4-5) after you last see the ich due to it's lifecycle.

I've never had any luck with the ammo lock. I just use Prime now as my water conditioner as well as trying to get rid of some of the bad stuff (my tap water comes with .25 ammonia so I am especially sensitive to this issue!)

While cycling pretty much the only thing to do are the water changes to keep the ammonia in line & try to use something like Prime or ammolock that will still allow there to be ammonia - just in a form that won't be as toxic for the fishies!.

You' re still going to have to moniter the water params to see how large of a change to do. If you have any questions about the directions on the meds call the toll free # on the meds. I've always found the companies to be very helpful when discussing their products.

(I also had to do more frequent changes with water than the directions called for due to some very cramped conditions (think 2 commons in 2 gal - it was a pain but daily changes were a part of life then) & the directions called for water changes no more than every 3 days - well clearly I couldn't do that so I had to figure out something else. You do not want that ammonia level to spike that high again (in the 4.0 range) - you're still trying for that 1.0 or less.)

Sorry - plants I know nothing about!

Hope this helps!

Good Luck! Jenn