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Why can I not keep fish?

saltkreep88

saltkreep88

I have been in the hobby over ten years but had an ich outbreak six months back. Since then I have been trying to restock but have been struggling. All fish are temp and salinity acclimated by mixing water for about an hour and into qt they go. Some die quickly over a few days and others thrive, eat like crazy, then become weak, stop eating and die. I feed frozen mysis, oyster eggs, nls pellets etc. I though it was parasites so have been doing 2 weeks in prazipro with the same results. Please help, maybe the fish are doomed from the store?


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Mark...

Mark...

In regard to disease, do you quarantine? Do you add fish in order of size and aggression? Try fish from other sources? Are your fish choices hardy types or difficult?
 
saltkreep88

saltkreep88

All new fish are going into qt. I have seen zero aggression issues. I am thinking I should try a new source but they look healthy when bought. Lastly I am trying to stock small fish such as chromis, clown gobies, cardinals etc.


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saltkreep88

saltkreep88

I just don't understand why fish are going from racy active and eating like pigs to dead a few days later with zero external signs.


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Mark...

Mark...

I know the when I was in salt water fish years ago some wholesales caught their fish with cyanide and they would eat and be fine and then die. Not sure this still goes on...I would go to another source and do a long QT while letting display go fallow to rid tank of ich.
 
jgraz

jgraz

May I ask what store?

Some keep salinity so low it is almost impossible to properly acclimate. You just need to flat out start at that salinity. There are 2 such stores not far from you.
 
saltkreep88

saltkreep88

Display has been fallow and has now has clowns in it that I have had for over ten years. It is the fish going into qt I am struggling with. Thanks for the input mark, I know cyanide is still used just don't know on what species.


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kschweer

kschweer

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saltkreep88 said:
Aquarium center, like 1.016. I thought salinity issues would show up fast but maybe not.


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Click to expand...

With salinity that low I would try setting your qt tank that low and slowly raise the salinity in the qt to reef levels over a longer period of time, I would say no shorter than a week. Fish can handle lowering of salinity much better than they can handle raising.


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JRWOHLER

JRWOHLER

I would agree ...since you are that close to hypo salinity just match their salinity and then drop it down for the QT period then raise it back up very slowly. You will kill two birds with one stone that way.
 
saltkreep88

saltkreep88

JRWOHLER said:
I would agree ...since you are that close to hypo salinity just match their salinity and then drop it down for the QT period then raise it back up very slowly. You will kill two birds with one stone that way.
Click to expand...
In your opinion could a salinity change that large kill weeks later. Or would it be almost immediate?
 
jgraz

jgraz

kschweer said:
With salinity that low I would try setting your qt tank that low and slowly raise the salinity in the qt to reef levels over a longer period of time, I would say no shorter than a week. Fish can handle lowering of salinity much better than they can handle raising.
Click to expand...

I concur. Most of these stores that cater to the aquarium trade in general seem to do this to deter sickness in the store. They often come in with a higher salinity and handle the lowering well. Problem is going back up that needs to take time. I frequent 2 store on the on the other side of the Delaware that do this too, both keep them at .017. There is just no way to safely acclimate them without taking days to do so. Your best bet is to find out which day they get their fish in and try to get them on that day before they spend any extended time at the lower salinity. I've had better luck since starting this. Prior to that I had lost the last 5 fish I purchased from these stores either that day or in the days following.

saltkreep88 said:
In your opinion could a salinity change that large kill weeks later. Or would it be almost immediate?
Click to expand...

I've had fish succumb during acclimation, in the days following, and in the case of a sailfin tang, 2 weeks later after stopping eating.
 
Juano908

Juano908

Same thing was happening to me, when I was buying fishes from a local pet shop, fishes only lasted alive on my tank for not more than a week.
I found out later on they keep the salinity level low to avoid sickness.
 
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