Loaches Online Forum

He's floating around all wobbly and when he stops he just lays there until the other fish bump into him, he'll move again, but not like normal, kind of "flipping" upside down and floating and wiggling...OMG he's never done this before.....what do I do???? Is there any way to save him? Or do I just let him die?

I just tested the tank.

Temp- 66

No3- 100ppm
No2- 0
Hardness- between 120-250 ppm (waters always been hard)
Alkalinity- between 180-240 ppm (always been like this)
PH- 8.0
Ammonia- .25ppm

He's gone...he is giving up. I put him in the quarantine tank to die peacefully.

Wow I feel like i'm talking to myself here!

So I came home from eating early Valentines day supper and the lil guy is still alive in the QT!!! He still swims sideways once in a while. Omg what do I do? It's been almost 4 hours now and he's still the same. He will sit there and not move, then he will flutter about doing circles and swimming sideways or sometimes upside down, running into the sides of the tank etc...obviously half dead.....good grief

I noticed his gills are very inflamed and pink/ red. His gills were always red since we first got him, but now they seem to stick out...I put some salt in the tank with him and a little more cycle. The QT is not filtered or oxygenated right now because I put him in there to die peacefully, not live!!!

Whats going on here?? Someone PLEASE help!!!!

Nitrate of 100 ppm is WAY to high by a factor of 5.
I would be doing pairs of 50% water changes, back to back, morning and evening until the nitrates are below 20 ppm.
Unless this is old tank syndrome. Does not look like it with pH so high.
However, ANY ammonia at that pH will be in its more toxic form, too. Again, water changes!

Amquel Plus can help, Prime might also. Do a couple of water changes, then dose one of these. later, do another pair of water changes, dose whichever you have again. Next day, another set of water changes.

I am not sure how to handle the Dojo, just getting him out of that toxic water is probably helping.

What is the tap water like? Does it have ammonia, nitrite or nitrate? Is this what is causing the problem?