Fish flashing and twitching

[Boogie69]

I bought a Melanochromis Maingano cichlid a few days ago and added it to my community tank and when i checked this morning it was dead..this is the second time its happen to me with the same kind of fish..after i took it out i did a 30 percent water change (added some stability & stress coat) then took a sample of my water to the lps and water conditions were good. Everything else seem ok until later that night my other fish started flashing and twitching. Should i treat the tank for parasites or do another water change? I have a 90 gallon with
1 siver gar, jd, jewel, rd, fh, texas cichlid, green terror, lab, & a blue catfish..i know they dont really mix but they are all juvenile with no fins nipped or serious aggression yet also no change in temperature during the water change..its still at 79 degrees

 

[GamerChick5567]

Did it seem like there was anything wrong with the fish that died physically? If there was flashing and scratching maybe it was ich or something that you missed?

I would also pick up a master test kit. If your lfs used strips maybe the results weren't accurate. Seems like the bioload might be quite heavy even though the fish are juvies. You may also want to test your tap water as well for ammonia, and I would pick up some seachem prime too. Reduces toxins to a less toxic form while preserving your cycle. Perhaps some parameter spiked while you changed the water if you stirred your substrate also? A while ago I accidentally hit a nitrite pocket since I have deep sand and killed 2 siamese algae eaters, oops. I would do another water change to be safe.

Sucks about the fish. :C

 

[Rox]

Could be a faulty test from the LFS. Get a test kit and sell off some of those fish because a 90 gallon is not going to keep them even while they are juveniles. You are very overstocked and the max size of some of those fish ALONE isn't going to be able to live healthy in a 90 gallon. Don't be surprised if one day something like that Red Devil or Flowerhorn snaps and you have a ton of fish floating >.<

 

[GamerChick5567]

I agree about the stock level. The bigger ones (especially the gar and red devil) you will want to rehome soon. Maybe the fh would be ok for a while but I would put him in a separate tank personally. Also what type of catfish is it? If it's something like a channel cat he will need an absolutely massive tank. Also, is the gar a hujeta gar/pike characin? I looked up silver gar and it popped up. In that case it would probably be ok but watch for aggression.

Keeping the lab, jd, and gt and your jewel though should work ok with some dithers. I have africans and new world cichlids in my 90 with very little issues with the dithers in there. Just keep up on the water changes though too. And I do have 3 strong filters on it also haha.

 

[Boogie69]

Did it seem like there was anything wrong with the fish that died physically? If there was flashing and scratching maybe it was ich or something that you missed?

I would also pick up a master test kit. If your lfs used strips maybe the results weren't accurate. Seems like the bioload might be quite heavy even though the fish are juvies. You may also want to test your tap water as well for ammonia, and I would pick up some seachem prime too. Reduces toxins to a less toxic form while preserving your cycle. Perhaps some parameter spiked while you changed the water if you stirred your substrate also? A while ago I accidentally hit a nitrite pocket since I have deep sand and killed 2 siamese algae eaters, oops. I would do another water change to be safe.

Sucks about the fish. :C

Sorry for the late response..everything is back to normal now. Maybe that fish i bought was already sick but never again will i add another fish with out quarantine. I did another30percent water change and added stabilizer. I plan on purchasing my own test kit soon but when i bring in my water to the lps they use 4 different tubes to test for everything and the water quality is where it should be..still dont know the exact name for my catfish ill try to post pics

 

[GamerChick5567]

Yea, not quarantining is a risk with those impulse buys haha. I keep a 10 gallon handy that I can set up in 15 minutes if I absolutely need to bring something home. I keep extra media in my other filters just in case. I would leave it up all the time but I'm on a budget and running a heater and lights in there isn't cheap haha.

 

[duanes]

Not quarantining fish leaves you open to all kinds of problems.
It may have had a benign bacteria, or one pathogenic protozoa, but the stress of transport and a new tank, and different water chemistry may have brought its immunity into question. And this can happen very quickly (over night) to a stressed fish.
There may have been bacteria in "your tank" that your established fish were immune to, but not the new one, and then because the new fish became infected, the immunity of your established fish became compromised.
Any time I get new fish, I quarantine for about 3 months. And during that period, I add water from the tank they will be going in, to slowly acclimate them the conditions they will be living in. This helps the new fish build resistance to any bacteria, and keeps established fish from acquiring disease.
A friend of mine at a public aquarium quarantines all new fish for at least 6 months.
All it takes is one pathogen, and an entire tank can be wiped out in an epidemic.
Having a cheap 10 gal quarantine tank at the ready with an air stone and DIY box filter is well worth stress of saving a lot of dead fish, or expensive chemical treatments, that are often too little too late.