Hi guys, this is my first post here and I am hoping to benefit from the extensive experience of the members here in hopefully solving my problem.
I have a pond running across the front of my home that is approximately 3.5 feet deep, 3.5 feet wide and 38 feet long. It is serviced by a concrete 3 chambered box filter containing a sump, bio rings and coarse sponge as filter media. The filter is about 4 feet deep, 3 feet wide and about 4.5 feet long. The water is sucked in from one end of the pond and reintroduced at the other end through a cascading water feature and a jet to circulate the water a bit. It has a large stand of reeds growing in the middle from a terracotta pot.
For the past 8 years the pond has existed happily with mainly tropical fish such as tiger barbs, guppies, mollies and a surly red eared slider named Helmut. The water is crystal clear and odourless and every species has bred profusely to produce hundreds of juveniles. The stand of reeds serves as a great nursery!
I don't really do much in the way of maintenance aside from partial cycling twice a year along with replacement of the finest filter sponges.
2 and a half years ago my husband bought a little Red Tailed catfish for me which was only about 3 inches long. We released it into the pond and never saw it again until one day he popped out to say hi and was about ten inches long. He is now about 2.5 feet long and up to a few months ago was amazingly affectionate and playful. We would feed him by hand, pet him and he would come to us when we splashed the water.
About four months ago he developed lockjaw and he stopped eating out of our hands and completely changed. He is not as active though he hasn't wasted away so he must still be eating somehow. We netted him carefully to have a closer look and he struggled so much that one of his longest whiskers broke at the base ....
His mouth closed easily when we moved it shut but when we put him back he still swam with it open.
One of our Arowana breeding buddies say that it is probably the water. My question (finally) is this. Could it be a filtration issue that caused the jaw issue and if so what happened recently that was so different than the past eight years. Should. I add or remove anything from the filter box? Should I cycle more frequently? Will the whisker grow back?
Sorry for the mega long winded posting, this RTC has become part of the family with visitors greeting and feeding him all the time. We want him to be comfy and happy as possible. Thanks in advance.
I have a pond running across the front of my home that is approximately 3.5 feet deep, 3.5 feet wide and 38 feet long. It is serviced by a concrete 3 chambered box filter containing a sump, bio rings and coarse sponge as filter media. The filter is about 4 feet deep, 3 feet wide and about 4.5 feet long. The water is sucked in from one end of the pond and reintroduced at the other end through a cascading water feature and a jet to circulate the water a bit. It has a large stand of reeds growing in the middle from a terracotta pot.
For the past 8 years the pond has existed happily with mainly tropical fish such as tiger barbs, guppies, mollies and a surly red eared slider named Helmut. The water is crystal clear and odourless and every species has bred profusely to produce hundreds of juveniles. The stand of reeds serves as a great nursery!
I don't really do much in the way of maintenance aside from partial cycling twice a year along with replacement of the finest filter sponges.
2 and a half years ago my husband bought a little Red Tailed catfish for me which was only about 3 inches long. We released it into the pond and never saw it again until one day he popped out to say hi and was about ten inches long. He is now about 2.5 feet long and up to a few months ago was amazingly affectionate and playful. We would feed him by hand, pet him and he would come to us when we splashed the water.
About four months ago he developed lockjaw and he stopped eating out of our hands and completely changed. He is not as active though he hasn't wasted away so he must still be eating somehow. We netted him carefully to have a closer look and he struggled so much that one of his longest whiskers broke at the base ....
His mouth closed easily when we moved it shut but when we put him back he still swam with it open.
One of our Arowana breeding buddies say that it is probably the water. My question (finally) is this. Could it be a filtration issue that caused the jaw issue and if so what happened recently that was so different than the past eight years. Should. I add or remove anything from the filter box? Should I cycle more frequently? Will the whisker grow back?
Sorry for the mega long winded posting, this RTC has become part of the family with visitors greeting and feeding him all the time. We want him to be comfy and happy as possible. Thanks in advance.