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Last edited by satu on Sun Feb 22, 2009 8:01 am; edited 1 time in total

Hello and Welcome!

Please answer the following questions and definitely tell us what you are trying to feed this little guy.  


-- Help us help you. Just submit this note into your post anytime you need help. Please fill in the blanks below, enter in a question mark - ? - if you don't know the answer. --
1. Ammonia/Nitrite/Nitrate
2. pH/GH/KH
3. Temperature
4. Tank size/Filtration
5. Water change amount/frequency
6. Water additives/Medications
7. What, how much and how often do you feed your fish?
8. Tank inhabitants
9. Any new fish added to the tank? Who and when?
10. Any unusual behavior or symptoms?
11. How long has the tank been in operation?
-- Thanks! --

Hi and thank you for replying.

Here are the answers for your questions:

1. Ammonia/Nitrite/Nitrate: I'm not sure exactly what the results are as my boyfriend's done the water tests, but he says all the water test results have been excellent. So all those levels should be really good and "beautiful lights colors" like my boyfriend says.

2. pH/GH/KH: ?

3. Temperature: about 25 degrees Celsius.

4. Tank size/Filtration: Size about 21 litres. Filtration: In-built filter.

5. Water change amount/frequency: Water changed every 2 weeks, about 30% of the water at a time.

6. Water additives/Medications: Whenever changing the water, we put a bit of stress coat and for medication we've given Interpet Aquarium Treatment #9 Anti Internal Bacteria.

7. What, how much and how often do you feed your fish?
We feed the fish twice a day with bloodworm in the morning and Aruarian Tropical Flake Food in the evening. Both times we give a bit of King British Catfish pellet food for the coradora (if he hasn't eaten a lot of bloodworm).

8. Tank inhabitants: 3 male guppies, 2 female mollies and one coradora.

9. Any new fish added to the tank? Who and when?
We added the 2 mollies about 5 weeks ago.

10. Any unusual behavior or symptoms?
The sick guppy is staying close to the surface again with his tale drooping down and isolates himself. He doesn't eat at all. He seemed a bit better for a couple of day - more swimming around and socialising, still didn't eat, but a few hours ago he started staying near the surface again and doesn't swim. It's not swim bladder as he can swim normally when he wants to.

11. How long has the tank been in operation?
The tank's been in operation for a bit over 2 months.

I hope this helps you guys to give some advice, which would be more than appreciated.

Thank you,
Satu

Part of the problem you guys are going to have with this tank is that it is already overcrowded.  I doubt it looks like it to you, but in space needed for your fish, it's crowded.  We typically use the "inch per gallon" rule for livebearers.  So, currently your tank looks like this:

3 guppies = 6 inches
2 mollies = 8 inches
cory = 2 inches

So...in a tank that should never hold more than 5-6 inches of adult sized fish, you've crammed 16 inches in there.  (Based on adult size, not "now" size.)  

Additionally, your cory needs friends.  They don't do so well by themselves...but you definitely don't have room to add anymore cories to this tank.  Ideally, you would get a 20g long tank and move these fish.

If you can't upgrade the tank, I would return the mollies and the cory to the fish store.  You can probably make the guppies work in this tank if they were the only fish.

The guy who isn't eating may be ill, or simply may be over stressed by the current conditions.  I would try tempting him with some yummy, frozen fish foods and seeing if he will eat at all.  If he will eat the more tempting foods, then he likely isn't sick, but rather is stressed.

Please get your boyfriend to retest the water and post the exact water params for us.  It's hard to assess if there are additional stressors in play here without those figures.

Hi,

Thank you for your reply. I read it already days ago, but haven't had the chance to reply.

Yeah, I can see the tank's too small for all my babies. We've been planning to get a bigger tank. I can't even consider the option of taking anyone back to the shop. I'm too attached to them.

Our coradora doesn't seem lonely. We know they should have a friend, but he's very active and doesn't look bored or lonely. Therefore we haven't got another one. My boyfriend says that he's much more active than any of the ones at his work who just sit on the bottom of the tank and don't do much at all. Albert (my cory) is very actively all the time going back and forth and doing cory things.

The little one who didn't eat, Otto, We separated him for a couple of days in a breeding net so the others wouldn't stress him by chasing. He started eating a little. We also gave him the anti internal bacteria treatment. He seems a bit better. Last night we let him go with the others and tonight he went a got a few bites as soon as I dropped food in the tank. I think he's getting better. The only problem is that he still spends time near the surface, not much though, and his tail is hanging down as if it was too heavy. I saw another one of the guppies do the same today so I'm not sure if it's normal??? Or if the other one is getting stressed too. Generally he seems better.

We will test the water again and clean the tank. The water was tested not even 2 weeks ago and it was good, according to my boyfriend. We will do another one on Saturday. The thing is we're going on a holiday next week for 8 days and a friend of mine will come a couple of times to see their weekly food pyramid is releasing food and that everything is fine, but I'm so worried that something will happen when I'm not there to try to do something about it.

Once again, thank you for your help.
Satu

It really sounds like this tank could quickly become a nightmare.  You have a fish who isn't eating well and is acting lethargic...he's likely ill.  You have another fish starting to show symptoms.  My guess is you are looking at a bacterial infection in the first fish which may be contagious...and would easily spread in the stressful situation of the small tank and overcrowding.  The fish need a bigger tank ASAP.

Also, testing the water needs to be done weekly.  With a tank that is this overcrowded, more frequently is an even better idea.

Also, please don't use those water pyramid things.  They are notorious for fouling the water and messing with the pH...neither of which you can afford in this tank.  Your fish would be far better off to have no food available in the tank and maybe have a friend stop by once or twice to feed them a small amount.  Until you get them in a decent sized tank, they need minimal food to limit the waste production in the tank.  I would even cut down on your normal feedings to once a day or once every other day at this point.