I need you guys to help me now more than ever before. I know that my 10 gallon tank is too small. However I need to find out whats with my GSP. It all started when I began to feed him intermittently. I would feed him as little as once a week or every 4 days! I did this for about 2 months or so. In the beginning he was still plump healthy looking and looked happy. I enjoyed how he never turned dark colors and was never hanging out by the filters. He would greet me every time I looked into the tank due to his starvation. All of a sudden last Thursday my two hermit crabs are dead, my GSP is skinny and black colored on his tummy and he keeps getting sucked into the filter pipes. I don't know whats going on. I think my Ammonia is about less than .25 and my nitrates are probably less than 10. Nitrites are 0. I think it could be a parasite. I guess it could also have to do with that starving diet I put him on. I wanted to simulate the wild environment and let him go days with out eating. I also liked the added benefit of low ammonia and nitrate levels. However I have since last Thursday began feeding him every 48 hours and soaking his food in jungles parasite tablets.
Check out my youtube vids to see his current state.
http://youtu.be/0v8EECdpWXI
http://youtu.be/5Gm7QJmeZtY
My GSP is skinny and drifting.
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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titanoboa100
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bertie 83
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
Small active puffers like gsp should be fed every other day at full size and upto 6 times weekly whilst growing. The fact you are showing ammonia is a big problem, what's your waterchange schedule? What are the test results of your tap water? To rule out a faulty test kit test some bottled water. You will likely need to do some huge waterchanges to help him. It might be he has now outgrown the 10g
It's amazing how easy maintenance is. If done regularly and thoroughly
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RTR
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
Remember that most hobby test kits do not and can not distinguish betwen ammonia and ammonium ion. A positive ammonia reading in meaningless if a good conditioner/dechloinator has been used in the last 24 hours. If such treatment has not been used, you need to do more frequent (daily) water changes of 50%b or more until your filter bacteria recover and ammonia is undetectable 24 hours after a water change.
The tank is much too small or the fish is severly stunted. A ten will do for QT for a new and tiny GSP, but that needs upgrading after QT.
Please decribe your filter and it's upkeep as well as your water change schedule.
The tank is much too small or the fish is severly stunted. A ten will do for QT for a new and tiny GSP, but that needs upgrading after QT.
Please decribe your filter and it's upkeep as well as your water change schedule.
Where's the fish? - Neptune
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titanoboa100
- Dwarf Puffer
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
I do a weekly 3 gallon water change. I have two filters running one aqua tech 10 gallon filter and a aqueon 15 gallon filter. Both filters are just the carbon pads. I forgot to mention that I began to wash my carbon pads 3 months ago and maybe thats why I have lost significant bacteria. I thought I would have kept my bacteria from my sand bed.
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bertie 83
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Loaches, Clown loaches ,Eels, various shrimp, tangs,wrasses, damsels, chromis - Location (country): Brighton, England
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
99% of your tanks nitrifying bacteria live in your filter, you should have proper foam pads in there not just carbon, never wash filters under a tap you need to do it in tank water. With a gsp in a 10 g I would be doing 3G waterchanges daily.
It's amazing how easy maintenance is. If done regularly and thoroughly
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titanoboa100
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
Should I get some bacteria in the bottle like start right? Will my bacteria recolonise if I stop washing the filter pad?
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scpion
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
U should dump the carbon and replace them with at least foam pad. And yes. Use the safe start.
I am not a Troll, I am just pissed..!
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RTR
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
I would not suggest dumping the carbon until foam has been in place for some time to preserve any bacteria present, and I would add Starteight also.
To expand and clarify bertie's message about 99% of the nitrification bacteria being in the foam - that is correct IF the foam and water changes are handled properly. If not handled properly, the nitrification bacteria will still be present, but scattered and much harder to support relyably.
HTH
To expand and clarify bertie's message about 99% of the nitrification bacteria being in the foam - that is correct IF the foam and water changes are handled properly. If not handled properly, the nitrification bacteria will still be present, but scattered and much harder to support relyably.
HTH
Where's the fish? - Neptune
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Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
IMO, that filter is total CRAP! Buy your fish an Aquaclear 70 (or larger) & pour Safestart into the filter.
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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bertie 83
- Moderator
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Danios, Tetras, Redtail Rasporas,
Harlequins, CAE's, Yoyo
Loaches, Clown loaches ,Eels, various shrimp, tangs,wrasses, damsels, chromis - Location (country): Brighton, England
- Location: brighton , england
Re: My GSP is skinny and drifting.
Filter pads should be regularly cleaned on a rotation basis in tank water. Your bacteria will recolonize, but add foams.
It's amazing how easy maintenance is. If done regularly and thoroughly