Fish Help!!!

[fishies123]

I have 2 Parrot Cichlids and I have had them for about 2 months now. I had them in a ten gallon tank and one was picking on the other so i seperated them and have two ten gallon tanks for each of them. When my cichlid (Hershel) was picking on my other cichlid (Petunia), Petunia started to look bad. Not in a ill looking way but she would always sit in a corner at the bottom of the tank and every time she would come out, Hershel would swim over really fast and push her around. Now that i have seperated them, they are both doing well. Petunia is a lot more active, although I have noticed some things that concern me, and want to make sure i can fix it if it is a problem. The first thing is that she is a lot paler than she used to be. When i got her (Im not sure the sex of either of my fish) she was a bright orange and now she is almost transparent. She is acting fine though. The other thing is that i just noticed these white spots on her fins. I searched pictures of ich and I really dont think it looks like it. In the pictures i saw, it was mostly all over the body and looked as if it were not a part of them. Her spots are almost in a patterned like form and look to be a part of her fin. I want to make sure I fix this if it is a problem.


If anyone could tell me if these spots are harmless or not I would really appreciate it! I love my fishies!

 

[no.1chuy]

what temp are you keeping the tank at?

 

[no.1chuy]

also do you know the levels of ammonia nitrates and nitrites?

 

[ValRasbora]

ten gallons isn't enough for a parrot. They can grow 8", and in a ten gallon they would probably not be able to turn around in such a small tank!

 

[no.1chuy]

oh just remember about this site parrotcichlid.com has some good info on the blood parrot. but yeah just like val said these guys get big and ten gallon isnt enouf for even one fish. also they are social and like to be with company of their own of other similar sized fish. maybe the small tank could be to blame for the agression issues which stressed the other bp caused the color loss. or you may have bought one of the dyed ones and its just losing its dyed color

 

[Newman]

you parrots will die a premature death if you keep the couped up in small tanks...their organs will grow normally but their bodies will be stunted by the space available, and so they face a very slow and excrutiating death...
that site chuy provided is awsome info on your parrot cichlids!

 

[fishies123]

thanks guys! They seem to have plenty of room in their tanks. do you think they would stop picking on each other if i got one really big tank and put them both in it? I know that it is common for Cichlids to be aggressive. Also, my water temp is usually around 75-78 because i have a heater in each tank. I also have an ammonia thing that goes inside the tank and it turns a color and its at the color that its supposed to be at for decent water. Ive used the salt stuff and i always put some of that water cleaner liquid in the water before adding it to their tanks. When i do water changes i usually put in a Ph level water corrector in it. Its a little dissolvent pill like thing...like an alkeseltzer. I am on break for college and when i go back i just want to make sure i have enough room. I just thought of another question. Im thinking about buying two little portable tanks for when i take them back to college. Will they last around 3 hours in one? It was a major hassle taking them home because we took out half the water in the tank but it was still really heavy and splashed a lot. As of now my fish are only about 2 1/2 inches, about a little smaller than my pointer finger. Does my fish pictured look like she has ich? Thank you for your help!!!

 

[no.1chuy]

its too hard to tell from the pics but ick can only be on the fins, like when i got ick in my tank it started off on just the fins then spread to the body. but if you think you got ick just raise the temp to 82 and you said you already used aquarium salt ick cant live in temps above 80 or in water with salt. and i wouldnt use the ph ajustor that might stress the fish cuz it makes the ph go and down it would be more healthy to just keep it stable anyways bp arnt picky on water ph. and a bigger tank would be way better than keeping them in separate 10g tanks. you should get the biggest tank possible cuz these guys get big and like company.

 

[no.1chuy]

and after the ick (if you have any) is gone i would stop using the aquarium salt with every water change there really isnt a need for it but its good to have around in case you get an ick break out.

 

[OrangeCones]

thanks guys! They seem to have plenty of room in their tanks. do you think they would stop picking on each other if i got one really big tank and put them both in it?

They should be in at least a 30gallon tank, larger would be better. They are picking on each other due to being too cramped most likely.

As was asked before, what are the readings for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate? If you do not have a liquid test kit, ask a local fish store to test the water for you and write down the actual numbers. Don't let them tell you the water is 'fine,' get actual numbers for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate and post them here. We're all here to help you help the fish.

Was the 'new' ten gallon tank cycled? Poor water quality and stress will cause the faded colors you are seeing also.

 

[Mixicano]

sorry, didn't have time to read entire post, but from what i saw, i can only offer this... if it is ick it will cover the whole body, not just the fins.

 

[fishies123]

thank you! What does "cycled" mean?

 

[no.1chuy]

means you have established the benifical bacteria in your aquarium. there are some good articles on this site that explain the whole process. look under the beginer part of this forum and take a look at the sticky (first link)

 

[fishies123]

I think it has been. Im not positive though. My only problem with getting that big of a tank is that i live in a dorm so that would take up a lot of room! i have kept the tanks on my desk previously because i usually do all my work on my bed. Im not sure what to do.

 

[Newman]

rehome the fish into a bigger tank...friends' ,family, petstore, breeder, any one who can supply tham with more room. From your account, they dont seem very happy, and you need to read up on cycling. i promise you will have so much more confidence when you understand how to cycle a tank properly, and monitor your water parameters. cycling accounts for more than 50% of all problems that im seeing in new fish-owners...

 

[no.1chuy]

to be honest i dont think a 30 gallon would take up that much more space than the two 10 gallon its probly just gonna be taller.

you should test you water for ammonia nitrate and nitrites maybe you filter didnt do too well during the move and your going throu a mini cycle

 

[fishies123]

my fish seem happy. they greet me when i come into the room and swim around and play with me. I would like to get a 30 gallon the only problem that im thinking of would be transporting it from college to home and from home to college. Would it work if i had that tank but emptied it during the travel and have them in two small portable fish tanks?

 

[OrangeCones]

The college I went to had a limit on dorm-room aquariums, max of 15 gallons (and they'd come in and measure the tank to make sure it wasn't larger), so there may be a limit on size for the OP.

Since the aquarium they WERE in is now empty of fish in your dorm room, the bacteria in there will be dead when you return with no food source for the break. If the tank was properly cycled, the filter you have may be ok, but without testing the water, there is no way to be sure. I agree with Newman, the fish need a larger home, and if you cannot provide it right now, it would best to find them new homes and get fish that will be happy in the smaller tank.

Then do a fishless cycle and research fish that would be better suited for the 10gallon tank.

Good Luck!

 

[fishies123]

I just asked and my RA said there is not max size tank for the dorm. now the question is...what tank do i want? I have 4 other tanks so once i get this one im going to sell the others.

 

[Newman]

idk, w/e you can fit in your dorm? and afford...