Robbo2232 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Hello friends! I have noticed a Green Terror with stringy white poop hanging off it and hiding, for the past few days, now I have two bristle nose dead in the tank.. all water condition's appear to be normal the only thing I have done is to add a old sponge to my filter which I washed out before I put into the tank. I haven't used this sponge for about a year. I was thinking that there could be something left on the sponge, but the poop makes me think that there could be worms in the tank. any ideas? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Salita Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 appear to be? does this mean you have tested the water? Certain worms can be seen visually at the anus of the fish. Worms wont generally result in rapid death of the fish. Have you removed the sponge? I would suggest removing the sponge, doing a water change and testing the water at least for its ammonia content every few hours to see what is going on... can you keep us updated on the results of the tests? Also, how was this sponge stored? Could it have some sort of chemical residue on it from laying around in the shed, or something similar? Washing it out may not have removed all the organic matter left in it from a year ago, which is now rapidly decomposing since having been put back in the water. I would remove it. cheers, Jason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo2232 Posted January 6, 2009 Author Share Posted January 6, 2009 yes I did test the water, Ammonia was ok, but came home last night and tested again, it has increased now at 3ppm. I did a big water change and removed the filter, I will do another test when I get home from work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Salita Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Ok. As you probably know, the presence of any level of ammonia means the cycle is somewhat off. Depending what your ph level is, if you can drop it a little it will relieve the stress of the ammonia a fair bit. Green terror should cope with ph neutral or just under well. I would cut down feeding to absolute bare minimum if at all for a few days. Make sure there is no uneaten food. This is important. I dont know what other kind of filtration you have, but if its a cannister, gives the hoses a clean out. I have seen organic matter build up in them over time and eventually cause an ammonia spike. Vac your gravel.... once again, can be a base for organic matter and gas buildup sometimes. Keep up those water changes. Another idea if you are really keen is to get some easy life or even better some chemi-pure. These will ensure nitrogen buildup is kept in check. cheers, Jason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo2232 Posted January 7, 2009 Author Share Posted January 7, 2009 I have stopped feeding until this morning as ammonia was at 0.1ppm. yes I do have a canister filter running I will check the pipes. I do 25 - 30% weekly water change, I suppose it was that filter sponge that caused the spike. I will keep an eye on the green terror and see how he is going at the moment he is still hiding and has the stringy poop hanging there. Thanks for your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosco Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 Generally I would associate this with a fishes stomach not working properly due to a bacterial build up. In Trophs this is a sign on bloat and is usually fatal with them. If I saw that and the fish was still eating not feed the fish for a day and soak the food in half a metro tablet. and then continue the soaked food for a week. If the fish is not eating (ie taking food in and spitting it out) I would give daily epsom salt baths with a metro or similar drug. The dose that I would use is 1 200mg table per 20 litres and add say 2-3 tablespoons of epsom salts. I would add an airstone and leave the fish in there for and hours or so and do this for several days. You could also use cloat or any similar drug. The thing to watch is sudden drop in temps and O2 stavation. If you have heaps of drugs you could dose the tank but I tend not to that just in case it kills the good bateria in the filter. Although most drugs wouldn't the fish is under enough stress you don't need an ammonia spike to make things worse. Like Eddie has mentioned an ammonia spike was probably the catalyst for the illness but now you should treat the fish. cheers rosco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo2232 Posted January 8, 2009 Author Share Posted January 8, 2009 I could set up a bucket and get some Epsom salts, but where can I get these drugs! I have asked my local vets but they don't want to help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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