Great This Again -_-

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divemaster99

divemaster99

Dovii
MFK Member
Jan 10, 2014
4,795
385
107
Pittsburgh, PA
Some of you may remember from back a few months ago I was making threads about my raph being sick and not eating for 2.5 months. Well that cured up a while back but that same 75 got hit with another internal parasite AND ich at the same time and it's just starting to heal up in all the other fish and even though there's no signs of it being present in this fish (same as my raph), I can't get my 6" Yellow Bullhead to eat. He stopped eating two nights ago and still won't eat. Is is the same thing that was going on with my raph: he'll take in his food chew it and en spit it out. I mainly feed him shrimp pellets: won't eat them. So I tried cocktail shrimp: won't eat that. Finally tried nightcrawler: won't eat that either! It's kind of sad since he's trying to eat just for some reason he can't get food down to his stomach. With my raph it just went away after about 2.5 months but he was very weak and reclusive in this time and I don't want that to happen to the bullhead. I've already treated the tank with aquarium salt and metronidazole but I can't use heat since my heater is broken and I still need to get a new one (been putting it off since I don't need one in the summer). Any ideas how to cure this without going to the extreme?if necessary I'll make a mixture of meds and salt with some water and use a syringe to squirt it into his stomach from his throat but I'd rather not hold a spiny catfish and then jam a large eye dropper down it's throat if possible so any ideas are welcome!
 
Don't feed for a few days do a large water change clean your filter out. The medication alone can stress the fish out. 2 days of not eating is nothing to get worried about. Post water params if you can.


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Trouble like that never comes about for no reason. In 99 out of 100 cases, it appears to be water related. Ammonia and/or nitrite stress.
 
Can't test water now but I will when I get home. Also going to do a 50-70% change later and clean my filter.
 
Just tested water and I'm about to do a 70% change. Going to have to do two 50%s every week until I get rid of some fish I suspect since there's so many messy fish in the tank.

Temp: 76-77 F
pH: 7.6
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 80 :(
 
Glad to see NH3 and NO2 zero. NO3 is, obviously, a problem. Would not be too horrible short term (still highly undesirable) but long term it will hurt the fish for sure.

Keep in mind, all major rivers in the world read zero NO3 by that API liquid test kit (which BTW does not measure NO3 absolutely and reliably at all, mostly more or less relatively) and even by rigorous analytical methods.

Please, Dive, measure the water regularly and also at the very first sign of something unusual, troublesome, etc. Measure it twice and include tap water for reference in each kind of measurement. Due diligence. I know you know this but sometimes we don't do what we know, myself first and foremost.
 
Thanks tbtb. Just changed 70% and cleaned the filter. I'll keep on top of water changes now. Before I added the bullhead 50% once a week was enough to keep it under 30 but now I see that's no longer the case. I'm debating whether to get rid if the danios, I'd take out the cichlids but I can't catch them.
 
Well here's how feeding went tonight. Started with a chunk if frozen bloodworms, wouldn't take it and when I out it in with him he picked it up and carried it out of his cave. Then fed shrimp pellets which he ate 1/2-2/3 of.
 
Got him eating again. Ate 12 shrimp pellets last night. I'll be two 40-50%s a week from now on.
 
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