I need some advice

[vetteguy53081]

I dont see this as a water issue but disease and to help pinpoint possible disease, if you see fish swimming in path of q flow or at surface, possible velvet which fish will also breathe heavy as its a gill disease

If you see loss of appetite, scratching, yawning, flickering of fins , sudden darting or hiding - May be flukes.

I suggest a quarantine tank in place and move fish to this tank and allow display to be without fish for at least 6, as much as 8 weeks to allow any diseases to die off and quarantine all new fish going forward

 

[FredaU]

I dont see this as a water issue but disease and to help pinpoint possible disease, if you see fish swimming in path of q flow or at surface, possible velvet which fish will also breathe heavy as its a gill disease

If you see loss of appetite, scratching, yawning, flickering of fins , sudden darting or hiding - May be flukes.

I suggest a quarantine tank in place and move fish to this tank and allow display to be without fish for at least 6, as much as 8 weeks to allow any diseases to die off and quarantine all new fish going forward

I did quarantine him for a month with no issues however I didn’t use any medication. I have had him for almost 2 months now and he still doesn’t show sign of anything wrong. That was why I questioned if it really was disease and not water quality.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I did quarantine him for a month with no issues however I didn’t use any medication. I have had him for almost 2 months now and he still doesn’t show sign of anything wrong. That was why I questioned if it really was disease and not water quality.

Disadvantage of not quarantining is losing valuable time for treatment when needed and advantage is treating for a disease or condition before it arises as you will likely have to start the process now

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Yes a chocolate chip star and snails. They seem fine.

That does point things to being a fish disease then.

 

[MnFish1]

Seems likely that a disease came along with the fish then, and when these things happen we all get a bit depressed and ready to give up or quit the hobby.

What fish are still in the tank, if any? Can you post images of any of the sick, dying, dead, or current fishes for evaluation?

By the way - in my original post I think I implied something I didn't meant to. I said - a fish would not spread a disease in a day - Of course a fish could have added a disease to the tank - so my bad on that. I meant to say

I added a blue damsel to my tank and started losing fish the same day.

Adding a blue damsel would not (through disease) cause a death on the same day. Aggression could be doing it - and I think we both agree that is high on the list of potential problems (in part) - making the other fish more susceptible to disease.

 

[BrettMallette]

Ive had damsels demolish those fish in less than 48 hours through brute force. Small clowns and similar dont stand a chance. Even larger clowns will be an issue with blue devils. Only time ive successfully kept them with similar fish to them is when adding multiple at same time at the smallest size possible. If tank isnt big enough they will put their aggression towards each other instead of other tank inhabitants. They seem not to mess with gobies blennies and similar shape. So i assume firefish would fit that category. Cant rule out disease... but in this case id say aggression. Ditch the damsel.

 

[FredaU]

Thank you everyone for your comments and suggestions. I’m beginning to think maybe it was stress from the damsel but following everyone’s advice to be sure.

While I wait I’m considering what fish to get when I start restocking. The only survivors I have left are 2 firefish (treated with copper power.) I would like a pair of orchid dottybacks, clownfish, Bengai cardinal and long nose hawk fish. Anyone have experience that could give me pros and cons on my choices?