Mystery Death?

[cmsbthebest]

Hey everyone, I woke up this morning and found one of my Denison Barbs dead. This was a bit surprising, but I had noticed some signs that something may have been up with him.

He was about 2 inches, and I had him for about 7 weeks. Ever since I got him, he ate less than the other Denison Barbs, and seemed to eat less and less as time went on and the tank became more crowded. He was also a bit more lethargic than my other Denisons and never really schooled with them too much. He was also a bit skinnier than the others, but I always chalked that up to the fact that he ate less.

There were no external signs of Bacterial or Fungal infections, he was coloring up pretty nicely, and I have not lost a single other fish other than a few Neon tetras that mostly died right after I got them.

Tank specifics:

75 Gallons, planted

0/0/0-5 with a pH of about 8.2 (which I know is a bit high), 79ish degrees

My tank has a bunch of Cardinal tetra, so if there was any sort of Bacterial infection, I feel like they would have been showing signs and a few would have died.

Anyone have any idea what could have happened?

 

[tlindsey]

Hey everyone, I woke up this morning and found one of my Denison Barbs dead. This was a bit surprising, but I had noticed some signs that something may have been up with him.

He was about 2 inches, and I had him for about 7 weeks. Ever since I got him, he ate less than the other Denison Barbs, and seemed to eat less and less as time went on and the tank became more crowded. He was also a bit more lethargic than my other Denisons and never really schooled with them too much. He was also a bit skinnier than the others, but I always chalked that up to the fact that he ate less.

There were no external signs of Bacterial or Fungal infections, he was coloring up pretty nicely, and I have not lost a single other fish other than a few Neon tetras that mostly died right after I got them.

Tank specifics:

75 Gallons, planted

0/0/0-5 with a pH of about 8.2 (which I know is a bit high), 79ish degrees

My tank has a bunch of Cardinal tetra, so if there was any sort of Bacterial infection, I feel like they would have been showing signs and a few would have died.

Anyone have any idea what could have happened?

I suspect the Denison Barb was probably infected with an internal parasite.

 

[Drstrangelove]

In July (mostly in the last 3 weeks) you had multiple posts about ich. Some Denisons were in the same tank.

Anyone have any idea what could have happened?

Yes. It died from ich, or at least from an ich related injury such as gill damage.

 

[cmsbthebest]

I suspect the Denison Barb was probably infected with an internal parasite.

This is my leading theory as well

In July (mostly in the last 3 weeks) you had multiple posts about ich. Some Denisons were in the same tank.



Yes. It died from ich, or at least from an ich related injury such as gill damage.

That would be interesting. I haven't seen any signs of Ich in the last few weeks after treating the tank for a few weeks. This Denison Barb also exhibited no signs of Ich, but I know it can be inside the gills and not visible.

I have antibiotics on hand, would you guys recommend treating the tank with it?

 

[tlindsey]

This is my leading theory as well



That would be interesting. I haven't seen any signs of Ich in the last few weeks after treating the tank for a few weeks. This Denison Barb also exhibited no signs of Ich, but I know it can be inside the gills and not visible.

I have antibiotics on hand, would you guys recommend treating the tank with it?

If you don't see any flashing, labored breathing, clamped fins, and all the fish are eating I personally wouldn't medicate.