Dead Clown Loach :(

[kups]

I purchased five clowns about 2 and a half weeks ago. As I was doing a small water change this morning a dead clown loach floated up into one of my live plants. It looked like it was covered in cotton or something, it just looked awful. I scooped it out and finished the water change. Unfortuantely I am now out of town for the next few days and I'm receiving reports on the fish from my girlfriend who is home with them. I'm worried about the 4 remaining loaches. Is it possible that the loach died simply from the stress of the new tank? The other clown loaches seemed okay although one looked pale. The other fish in the tank seemed fine and the water parameters have been excellent. I did do two 30% water changes a few days apart though about 5-7days ago. After the second water change I noticed that two of the clowns came out of their hiding spot and were breathing rapidly. This went away eventually though and they went back to hiding.
Any help or advice is greatly appreciated.

[shari2]

Hi kups,

How old is the tank?
What is in it?
What are the water parameters?

The 'covered in cotton' makes me wonder if it had been dead for some time...what did the tank smell like?

[Diana]

Ditto Shari: The cottony-looking stuff is fungus that grows on dead fish, and takes a couple of days to reach the point of covering the fish.

At first glace I am going to think there is a water issue here.

Can you post results for tap and tank...
Ammonia
Nitrite
Nitrate
pH
GH
KH
TDS
salinity
any other tests you have?

Pale and/or breathing fast are signs of stress, and one such stress is changing TDS, extremes of pH, ammonia or nitrite.
If the water in the store had different values than in your tank this can also cause stress, and many fish deaths in the first few days are due to the stress of capture in the store and the change in water conditions between store and home.

[NancyD]

I had a dead clown develop a thick sheet-like white coat in only 10-12 hours, never saw anything like it.

I'm sorry for the loss of your loach.

[andyroo]

The slime coats of CL have come up a few times. If it's a slime accumulation it'll be goopy, clumpy or ropy- and will stink. If it's actually fluffy/cottony it'll be something else, probably fungal, possibly came about after death.

If it is a slime accumulation it'll be stress related, possibly water quality or chlorine, possibly physical stress such as trapping in the decorations (would be my guess).
A

[kups]

I just spoke to my girlfriend and another loach died. She found it when she got home from work.

Amonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate less than 5
PH approx 7.6
Water is hard, can't remember exact figures
No salt in the tank
New water is city tap water treated with water conditioner.

The tank has been up and running for about 3 months with 7 zebra danios and 6 young albino bristlenose plecos (all less than 2 inches)

[Ashleigh]

I just spoke to my girlfriend and another loach died. She found it when she got home from work.

Amonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate less than 5
PH approx 7.6
Water is hard, can't remember exact figures
No salt in the tank
New water is city tap water treated with water conditioner.

The tank has been up and running for about 3 months with 7 zebra danios and 6 young albino bristlenose plecos (all less than 2 inches)

If you could get actual readings for pH, KH and GH from your tap water as well as KH and GH from your tank, theres obviously something going on thats stressing your fish, hense the increased breathing. What sort of decor do you have in the tank-bogwood/stones etc?



Ashleigh

[chefkeith]

This could anything and everything. The clowns are fairly new and weren't quarantined, but also the aquarium is only 3 months old.

If this isn't parasitic or bacterial, then my guess is that tank and filter is too small to support the bioload. How many gallons is this tank?
I'm guessing 10.

[kups]

I'm now home and the 3 remaining clown loaches are all alive. 2 were pale with the third showing very bright and vibrant colours. I moved them into a 5 gallon that I've dosed with PraziPro.
I tested the water and GH,KH and PH are all the same for the tank and tap water. The readings were GH - 140; KH - 60; PH - 7.7 (approx.)
The tank is a 46 gallon with an eheim 2215 classic. I've also got a maxi jet 600, elite air pump and fluval 1+ internal filter. The 1+ is now in the 5 gallon tank. I've also got an elite air pump in the five gallon.
I looked at the clowns once I got them into the hospital tank and there was no indication of Ich. My best guess right now is an internal parasite?
If anyone has any suggestions on medications, medicated foods and what not it would be greatly appreciated.

[chefkeith]

Sounds like a nice set-up.

With new fish you sometimes just can't tell what they've been through or what's wrong with them.

I'd do some prophylactic treatments because of this uncertainty. Prazipro is real good. It was smart of you to try that 1st. Maracyn I & II in combination could also help. I'd do that for one week, then use a wide spectrum med.