Ok...now my GSP is even more grey, and he was curled up in a ball almost black.
I gave him some melafix and upped his salt...
I hope I didnt burn him when I dumped in the salt, it was dissolved but I am sure was concentrated when it swirled around.
on the upside he ate like a pig...that was a plus today.
Should I continue with the melafix ?
Thanks!!!
GSP still sick...help
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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Pufferpunk
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Re: GSP still sick...help
What's the SG? You can't just indiscriminently add salt. How long was it mixed? What are the parameters now?
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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zombiefetus
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Re: GSP still sick...help
you need to be more careful when adding salt, if you change the s.g. by more then about 0.002, you'll cause the tank to cycle again.
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t1gerbee
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Re: GSP still sick...help
give us the background again, keep up large water changes, matching the temperature and the salinity..
PRE MIX the salt in half a bucket of hot water until fully dissolved, (doesn't feel gritty) then add more cold water to the bucket until the temperature matches that of your tank..
thn slowly pour it into your tank...
PRE MIX the salt in half a bucket of hot water until fully dissolved, (doesn't feel gritty) then add more cold water to the bucket until the temperature matches that of your tank..
thn slowly pour it into your tank...
1 x 90G Juv stars and stripes puffer, Ceylon Puffer + GSP + 2 black clowns
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t1gerbee
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Re: GSP still sick...help
ok, found your other posts...
gets confusing with different threads... better keeping to one so we can follow progress...
if you are adding salt without testing the you've probably swung your salinity, which could swing your pH and wipe out your good bacteria...
large water changes... matching SG and temp... see if that helps...
do it now, as if your cycle has crashed he will be suffering ammonia poisoning.
Whata re your parameters?
gets confusing with different threads... better keeping to one so we can follow progress...
if you are adding salt without testing the you've probably swung your salinity, which could swing your pH and wipe out your good bacteria...
large water changes... matching SG and temp... see if that helps...
do it now, as if your cycle has crashed he will be suffering ammonia poisoning.
Whata re your parameters?
1 x 90G Juv stars and stripes puffer, Ceylon Puffer + GSP + 2 black clowns
1 x 30G LPS Reef
1 x 30G 1 x Blind goldfish
1 x 30G LPS Reef
1 x 30G 1 x Blind goldfish
Re: GSP still sick...help
Ok, Here goes...
I did do a salinity test...dont worry, I have a hydrometer and I use it...The salinity is now 1.010...exactly the same as before the water change...it was a bit lower (1.008 after about 6 hours after the water change) before I added the salt which was dissolved in water...but probably not as well as it could have been.
Parameters
Nitrate = 0
Nitrite = 0
PH = 8.4
Alkalinity = 300
Ammonia = 0.6
The temp is 77...which is too cold, I know...I think his heater is broken...I turned it up last night and this morning it is still 77, so I turned it up again and hopefully it will be warmer when I get home from work...I am going to stop and buy him another one on the way home...just in case. It may have been moved when I was cleaning, but I didn't think so at the time. This may be the problem...
On the upside...He was swimming around this morning when I woke up and his belly is only slightly grey...
Do you think I need to give another dose of melafix or leave it alone for the moment?
Thanks for all the help!! Mr. Tubbs greatly appreciates it!!
I did do a salinity test...dont worry, I have a hydrometer and I use it...The salinity is now 1.010...exactly the same as before the water change...it was a bit lower (1.008 after about 6 hours after the water change) before I added the salt which was dissolved in water...but probably not as well as it could have been.
Parameters
Nitrate = 0
Nitrite = 0
PH = 8.4
Alkalinity = 300
Ammonia = 0.6
The temp is 77...which is too cold, I know...I think his heater is broken...I turned it up last night and this morning it is still 77, so I turned it up again and hopefully it will be warmer when I get home from work...I am going to stop and buy him another one on the way home...just in case. It may have been moved when I was cleaning, but I didn't think so at the time. This may be the problem...
On the upside...He was swimming around this morning when I woke up and his belly is only slightly grey...
Do you think I need to give another dose of melafix or leave it alone for the moment?
Thanks for all the help!! Mr. Tubbs greatly appreciates it!!
Re: GSP still sick...help
One last thing...he is hanging up at the top a lot...I know this is a sign of low oxygen but I have a strong bubble disk int the tank and it runs 12 hours at least a day...
thanks
thanks
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t1gerbee
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Re: GSP still sick...help
maybe he just needs time to settle down, the SG has been a bit jumpy and so has the temp so maybe he's just a bit stressed out..
the tank 'may' also be slightly warmer at the top if you have lights...
i'm sure i've also read about some GSP having issues with melafix and it causing puffers to have laboured breathing.. i'm sure i'm not mis-remembering that..
is there a specific reason why your using melafix that i missed, any open cuts? wounds? ...
the tank 'may' also be slightly warmer at the top if you have lights...
i'm sure i've also read about some GSP having issues with melafix and it causing puffers to have laboured breathing.. i'm sure i'm not mis-remembering that..
is there a specific reason why your using melafix that i missed, any open cuts? wounds? ...
1 x 90G Juv stars and stripes puffer, Ceylon Puffer + GSP + 2 black clowns
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Nick
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Re: GSP still sick...help
Problem: Ammonia = 0.6
Do 75% daily water changes until this goes down to and stays at zero. Ammonia often causes fish to gasp for air near the top of the tank.
Do 75% daily water changes until this goes down to and stays at zero. Ammonia often causes fish to gasp for air near the top of the tank.
No matter how magnificent your successes or devastating your failures, the worlds' approximately 5 billion impoverished people could not possibly care less.
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t1gerbee
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Re: GSP still sick...help
you're right..
sorry, didn't spot the ammonia reading.
sorry, didn't spot the ammonia reading.
1 x 90G Juv stars and stripes puffer, Ceylon Puffer + GSP + 2 black clowns
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Pufferpunk
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Re: GSP still sick...help
How fast did you raise the tank from FW to 1.010? How did you cycle the tank & how long ago?
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
Re: GSP still sick...help
I never raised it from freshwater...he has been BW since I got him 2 years ago...it has always been steady between 1.008 and 1.010.
I got home today and he is much better...not grey at all..and hanging around at the bottom of the tank as usual when he is sleeping...it is still cold...77degrees, so I am thinking the heater is broken.
I used melafix because I thought I had maybe burned his skin with the salt.
I will do another water change until I get the ammonia down.
Thanks...and I will keep you posted!!
I got home today and he is much better...not grey at all..and hanging around at the bottom of the tank as usual when he is sleeping...it is still cold...77degrees, so I am thinking the heater is broken.
I used melafix because I thought I had maybe burned his skin with the salt.
I will do another water change until I get the ammonia down.
Thanks...and I will keep you posted!!
Re: GSP still sick...help
Well, I got home today and he was VERY sick. He was sitting at the bottom of the tank as if sleeping but didnt come to the front of the glass to greet me and beg for food like he always did... I got the new heater, changed some water...and the temp is now around 84. Ammonia is 0 and salt is back at 1.010. I think most of the melafix is out of the tank and all other levels are on target (as posted above).
Hopefully he will be better tomorrow...he is still breathing, but is not swimming around much...I am going to offer him some bloodworms, but when I changed out the water he didnt investigate the tube like normal...
All the melafix, salt, water changes and ammonia levels together must have caught up with him.
I am worried about damaged internal organs.
I will keep you posted.
Feeling sad as I really love him.
Hopefully he will be better tomorrow...he is still breathing, but is not swimming around much...I am going to offer him some bloodworms, but when I changed out the water he didnt investigate the tube like normal...
All the melafix, salt, water changes and ammonia levels together must have caught up with him.
I am worried about damaged internal organs.
I will keep you posted.
Feeling sad as I really love him.
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Pufferpunk
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T miurus
A modestus
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C valentini
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C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
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Re: GSP still sick...help
Continue testing for ammonia, nitrite & nitrate daily & do WC accordingly. Melafix won't hurt & is the only med I'd add at this point, to reduce stress.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
Re: GSP still sick...help
Unfortunetly I woke up this am and he was really bad...I had to euthanize him with the clove oil...there was no way he was going to get better.
Not really sure what happened...I had him for 2 1/2 years with no problems...and then all of a sudden this...
I am going to go to my LFS and see about getting another one...if not does anyone know how to change the BW t6o fresh for my dwarf puffers?
Thanks to everyone who tried to help me...
My tank sure does look empty.
Not really sure what happened...I had him for 2 1/2 years with no problems...and then all of a sudden this...
I am going to go to my LFS and see about getting another one...if not does anyone know how to change the BW t6o fresh for my dwarf puffers?
Thanks to everyone who tried to help me...
My tank sure does look empty.