needlenose gar

[Scuba_Kid]

Ok, so first one of my needle nose gar died for no reason i was worried that he wasnt getting enough to eat because he was in a 180 gal with other fish and he is so small he can only eat cloud fish fry so it makes it hard to make sure he gets the food. So after he died i tested the water ph is 7.6 amonia nitrates nitrites are super low so my water quality is fine. So i got scared and moved him to my 50 gal were i put like 30 of those cloud fish fry so he could eat freely. no other fish in that tank either. I wake up one morning and find out he is dead and he had already been in the tank for three days so i know it wasnt shock or anything! what am i doing wrong? i am so sad since i LOVE these fish and i really want to get another but i dont think i will because i dont want it to die. if you know what happend or have any suggestions PLEASE leave a comment thank you very much.

 

[Scuba_Kid]

anyone?

 

[Otherone]

Hard to say - when fish are really small they are most vulnerable, it could be a whole slew of things. Stress is a common cause, if it were in with larger fish, tempature changes or too much transportation in a short period of time. Parasitic activity is hard to see when small or bad genetic make up can cause pre-mature unknown death. These fish are sensetive to water parameters esp. as juvi's - even small measurable amounts of ammonia by-products or chlorine can kill.

If the 50's still cycled and unoccupied try it again. Only tip I could give you for buying small juvi's is pay real close attention to the fishes bellies before you purchase, if the belly looks like it is sunken or U shaped in the wrong direction you may be buying a sick fish.

 

[KailaJune]

I would try purchasing one that is at least 5 inches long & able to eat fish the size of a neon tetra or larger. Also, check how long the store has had them in stock. If they are new (i.e. a week or less) I would wait a while & check back. Even try putting one on hold ; )

-Kaila June

 

[KailaJune]

*Putting one on hold to make sure it is healthy by time you actually purchase it.