Need advise before buying new loaches

[jhz]

Hi everybody, we're new here and so need some advise!
We had to special order some dojo loaches from our local petco, they said they wouldn't be in till last Friday. So the day before they came in we bought a new tank, set it all up, used some water conditioner..

Anywho, we bought three. By Sunday night two of them had died, and the third was on it's way. They were acting funny, laying upside down on the bottom, breathing funny. It wasn't until Monday morning that I noticed little white bumps on the last remaining, but dying loach. ( Ick maybe??)
I took them back to petco, the remaining loaches at the store had died aswell. All the man who tested the water would say is that the water is fine.
Which finally leads to my question. I found a straight up aquatic store not too terribly far away that has some gold loaches. I want to go get a couple of them A.S.A.P. ( LIKE TOMORROW) I am scared that the new ones will die too, if it was ick, then what do I do to make sure the water is ok before I put the new ones in it?? I have a 6yo in tears here, I sure appreciate any input.

[grizzlyone]

It might help if we knew where you were.

It does make a difference on what advice you might be given.


Cheers,

Kevin

[Total Package]

You need to cycle the tank first. This means giving the tank time for a bacteria colony to form that will convert ammonia to nitrite to nitrate. Ammonia and NitrIte are highly toxic to fish. Typically, this can take a few weeks. Loaches aren't IMO a good species to do a cycle with.

There is a good post about how to get a cycle going here.
http://www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861

Now, since the other fish died as well, it's likely they were sick or weak to begin with so the cycle problem may not be the whole reason.

For Ick treatment, there is a sticky up top. If you have zero fish left, the easiest way to rid the tank of ick would be to up the temperature to 85F+ or so and let it sit for two weeks+. You can medicate it as well with some fish store remedies for Ick to ensure you get it all.

[shari2]

Welcome to LOL jhz.

Sorry to hear about your fish. i know what it is like to have kids that get upset ...

If you are new to fishkeeping you should read up on cycling a tank. Loaches are not good fish for newly set up tanks, even if they come to you healthy.

See here:
http://faq.thekrib.com/begin-cycling.html

[jhz]

Oh, sorry bout that! Guess I got in too much of a hurry, my name is Jessica, and we live in north Louisiana.

[Total Package]

It's very easy to get into it too fast. I did it to with my tank and lost some fish. Nobody wants to set up the aquarium then wait a few weeks, but it's the best way to do it.

[jhz]

Thanks a bunch everybody, and yes I am new to fish keeping (obviosly huh). I did read about the ick treatments. There are no more fish in the tank, only bought it cause we were getting the loaches. Is cycling something you do to all new tanks or something? Sorry for sounding like a complete idiot here. We, especially my son, have been wanting some fish. So I called myself doing some research first and read everywhere about how great the dojo loaches are, and how resiliant they can be. I thought they were good for beginners. I'm really not sure what to do now

[shari2]

Happy Fat Tuesday Jessica.

I know it's hard with kids who want instant gratification to be patient with setting up a fish tank. They don't understand why they have to wait.

But if you don't want to have a series of major mishaps and loss of fish (along with the stress of dealing with traumatized kids) patience in the beginning especially, is necessary. It also gives you time to get artistic with aquascaping, and choosing fish, etc.

What size tank did you get and what kind of filter, heater, etc do you have?

If you're interested in looking at a bunch of different kinds of loaches and their specific needs you could have a look around the species index here:
http://www.loaches.com/species-index
hth

[jhz]

Why thankyou. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

I just got one of those 10 gallon tanks that comes with the aqua-tech 5-15 filter, water cond. food ect, for the time being. I was planning on getting a bigger tank, with a better filter and stuff next month.

Ok, I'm sure I am totally killing you all by now, and I do sincerly apologize.
Say I take everything out of the tank, wash it all real good. Put new water, conditioner, and treat it for ick. Then wait two weeks. Would it be ok then to get the gold loaches?

[shari2]

No, I wouldn't recommend it. Weather loaches both Misgurnis anguillicaudatus and M. mizolepis get rather large and need plenty of swimming room. They are cool water species.

A 10g with a sand substrate could house a bunch (5 or so) of khuli loaches (see any of the Pangio species in the index). Some khulis and a small group of the smaller sized tetras would make a nice tank. Khulis are also 'snakey' type fish and fun to watch. They are tropical fish and would need a heater in the tank.

[jhz]

oh, and do the cycling thing too, I forgot that part...then would it be ok?

[jhz]

Right, I read that they do get pretty big, I just can't afford a large tank till next month (income taxes ya know) The ones I bought were only about 3-4 inches.

I feel terrible about our loaches, I just thought I was doing everything ok. I had no idea about cycling and all those things. Thanks for helping.

[hemi]

go to your local fish store
and ask if they have BIO SPIRA
if they do
make sure they have it in a freezer
because if it isnt kept in a freezer it is useless
buy a few fish with it
get home
add the required ammount of BIOSPIRA
wait about an hour
your fish will be fine in the bag floating in your tank

after about 30 mins
you can add your fish

the biospira come in a bag rated for 90 gallons
it cost aroun 30 bucks
and works great
for your 10 gallon tank
id say add half the bag
then you know your set

dont try to save the rest of the bio spira
it isnt worth it
as the oxegen messes with it somehow

and when you get the new tank next month
dont rush it
i mean you could always buy more bio spira for it
but learning how to cycle a tank is important in fish keeping

[Buzzy4p]

Well,
first loaches are not good starter fish,
the slightist bit of anomina will kill them. Did you have ur water at least 78F?????

[crazy loaches]

Did you have ur water at least 78F?????

Dont forget that dojo's are coolwater fish like shari already said and should not be kept in temps that high. They can live in tanks that high but not good for long term health.