dying fish

kev747 · 05-02-2006, 05:04 AM

Hi,
I have had 4 of my comet fish die in my aquarium over the last week after stupidly introducing 3 new fish,one of which died in excactly the same way.They appear to breath heavily on the bottom of the tank and within a few hours are dead,lying on their side.They water quality appears ok and there are no marks whatsoever on the fish.Is this likely to be internal bacteria infection?

What angers me the most is that all the resident fish are over 10 years old and have been wiped out within a week.Out of 6,there are only 2 left which may be infected already.The two remaining new fish look fine though.Thanks for any replies.I'am really angry about this and am planning to go back to the shop and see if there are any dead fish in the tank I got them from.

**fish_doc** · 05-02-2006, 07:54 AM

How big is the tank you have them in and what size are all the fish?

Unfortunally you seemed to have learned the hard way, as to why you need a tank for new or sick fish. (hospital/isolation tank) Fish in any store will be stressed. They were usually just spent days in a small bag in the dark getting moved around in a truck. Then they get dropped in a overcrowded tank until moving into a smaller bag then getting driven to their perminant home. That creates alot of stress on any fish and several environmental situations that can cause stress and disease. You would be luckey to find a fish store with nodead fish. Although the better stores tend to pull them as soon as they see them.

jwddboy · 05-02-2006, 10:19 AM

Yeh... could be bacterial. Could also be a huge number of other things brought in on the new fish. How is oxygen in the tank? Did adding the extra fish depleat oxygen capacity in the tank by a sifficient ammount do you think?

garfieldnfish · 05-02-2006, 04:01 PM

Since you had the fish for 10 years, I am not going to ask the obvious questions of tank size, water values, etc. Looks to me tlike the new fish brought something into your aquarium, i.e. bacterial infection, parasites etc.
I never quarantine my new fish either and that is a nightmare I am always afraid of facing.
The rapid breathing could be an early sign of ich. I had 2 fish die of that recently in one of my tanks (one of them was a newly bought fish) right after that the entire tank got ich and I just barely managed to safe the remaining fish.

kev747 · 05-03-2006, 09:14 AM

Thanks for replies,my two remaining 12 years olds are hanging on in there and I have changed much of the water over the last two days to be safe.
The place I got the new fish from is one of those pet store supermarket jobs due to an absense of any decent fish shops in the area.Its run my kids on minimum wage so I guess its no surprise they dont care.Last year when I went the whole coldwater section was not for sale as every tank had diseased fish.

I'll try and find a more reputable shop for next time.

IrishKittenOWar · 05-04-2006, 10:35 PM

im sorry and good luck with your fish i hope that they make it just fine.. i know it is hard to loose fish especially since you have had them ad long as you have and grown attached to them

kev747 · 05-05-2006, 10:16 AM

Thanks Irishkitten
The biggest of the two older fish now has popeye and reddy pink around the gills.Its still breathing fast although the other fish are OK.I think all I can do is try a medication from the shop.

Alin10123 · 05-24-2006, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fish_doc

How big is the tank you have them in and what size are all the fish?

Unfortunally you seemed to have learned the hard way, as to why you need a tank for new or sick fish. (hospital/isolation tank) Fish in any store will be stressed. They were usually just spent days in a small bag in the dark getting moved around in a truck. Then they get dropped in a overcrowded tank until moving into a smaller bag then getting driven to their perminant home. That creates alot of stress on any fish and several environmental situations that can cause stress and disease. You would be luckey to find a fish store with nodead fish. Although the better stores tend to pull them as soon as they see them.

Agreed! All of those fishtanks in the stores are connected via a central filtration system. So basically... if one fish has an internal parasite, chances are that it's all over. It's almost certain that your new fish you just brought home have some soft of bacteria or parasite that's looming around. A quarantine tank isn't all that expensive, nor does it have to be really big. You could get one that's just a few gallons since like one of those kits they have. You wouldn't even need the gravel. It would just have to be cycled. No need to worry about future size of the fish either since it'll only be in there 2 weeks before it goes into the main tank.

**TheOldSalt** · 05-26-2006, 06:51 AM

The biggest goldfish in a system will usually be the first to die when something goes wrong, since they're the ones that need the most oxygen.

05-02-2006, 05:04 AM	#1
kev747 Junior Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 4	dying fish Hi, I have had 4 of my comet fish die in my aquarium over the last week after stupidly introducing 3 new fish,one of which died in excactly the same way.They appear to breath heavily on the bottom of the tank and within a few hours are dead,lying on their side.They water quality appears ok and there are no marks whatsoever on the fish.Is this likely to be internal bacteria infection? What angers me the most is that all the resident fish are over 10 years old and have been wiped out within a week.Out of 6,there are only 2 left which may be infected already.The two remaining new fish look fine though.Thanks for any replies.I'am really angry about this and am planning to go back to the shop and see if there are any dead fish in the tank I got them from.

05-02-2006, 07:54 AM	#2
fish_doc Advisor to Neptune (Mod) Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Northern Illinois Age: 40 Posts: 3,835	How big is the tank you have them in and what size are all the fish? Unfortunally you seemed to have learned the hard way, as to why you need a tank for new or sick fish. (hospital/isolation tank) Fish in any store will be stressed. They were usually just spent days in a small bag in the dark getting moved around in a truck. Then they get dropped in a overcrowded tank until moving into a smaller bag then getting driven to their perminant home. That creates alot of stress on any fish and several environmental situations that can cause stress and disease. You would be luckey to find a fish store with nodead fish. Although the better stores tend to pull them as soon as they see them. __________________ Dave (fish_doc) A World of fish

05-04-2006, 10:35 PM	#6
IrishKittenOWar Finder Of Lost Things Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Columbia, Mo Age: 25 Posts: 79	im sorry and good luck with your fish i hope that they make it just fine.. i know it is hard to loose fish especially since you have had them ad long as you have and grown attached to them __________________ My Family: 2 children, 1 hubby, 3 gold white clouds, 4 white clouds, 3 embers, 3 bloodfins, 10 serpes, 4 pristella, 1 headlight tail light, 3 males guppies, 7 female guppies, 1 fry, 1 L128, 1 L333, 1 L066 pleco, 1 "Gibby" pleco, 1 bristle nose, 1 L106 , 1 L091, 2 bronze corys, 3 false bandit corys, 6 siamese algea eaters, 2 betas, 1 Tiger loach, 3 african dwarf frogs. 1 baby leopard angelfish, 1 red tailed shark, 1 upside down cat, 1 Tadpole

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
That is ONE BIG FISH!	Pareeeee	The Water Hole	11	10-01-2006 09:26 PM
fish dying	adamjacobs	Cichlids	5	11-18-2005 07:27 PM
Fish FOR Beginners	Fishfirst	Beginner Saltwater	11	08-13-2005 01:47 AM
Need Suggestions for "plasma" tank	Lawladykerri	Introductions	32	08-10-2005 03:27 PM
Velvet Disease	Huugs	Diseases	17	07-04-2005 02:11 PM

Members currently in the Chat:0
	Users In Chat Room: There are several users in chat now! Don't Be Shy - click here and come on in!

05-02-2006, 10:19 AM	#3
jwddboy Fishy Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 18	Yeh... could be bacterial. Could also be a huge number of other things brought in on the new fish. How is oxygen in the tank? Did adding the extra fish depleat oxygen capacity in the tank by a sifficient ammount do you think?

05-02-2006, 04:01 PM	#4
garfieldnfish Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 661	Since you had the fish for 10 years, I am not going to ask the obvious questions of tank size, water values, etc. Looks to me tlike the new fish brought something into your aquarium, i.e. bacterial infection, parasites etc. I never quarantine my new fish either and that is a nightmare I am always afraid of facing. The rapid breathing could be an early sign of ich. I had 2 fish die of that recently in one of my tanks (one of them was a newly bought fish) right after that the entire tank got ich and I just barely managed to safe the remaining fish.

05-03-2006, 09:14 AM	#5
kev747 Junior Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 4	Thanks for replies,my two remaining 12 years olds are hanging on in there and I have changed much of the water over the last two days to be safe. The place I got the new fish from is one of those pet store supermarket jobs due to an absense of any decent fish shops in the area.Its run my kids on minimum wage so I guess its no surprise they dont care.Last year when I went the whole coldwater section was not for sale as every tank had diseased fish. I'll try and find a more reputable shop for next time.

05-05-2006, 10:16 AM	#7
kev747 Junior Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 4	Thanks Irishkitten The biggest of the two older fish now has popeye and reddy pink around the gills.Its still breathing fast although the other fish are OK.I think all I can do is try a medication from the shop.

05-26-2006, 06:51 AM	#9
TheOldSalt Darth Ichthyos Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 4,361	The biggest goldfish in a system will usually be the first to die when something goes wrong, since they're the ones that need the most oxygen.

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)