xXInkedPhoenixX

Sorry no pics for this short update but I'll be doing water changes and dosing meds tonight -so hopefully pics tomorrow. However just wanted to note a few good things: Last night's feeding of Daphnia was a little comical with GloBetta girl. She's been grabbing them off the surface fine- which is good on its own- but one of the pieces was rather large and she grabbed that first. I was watching her try to eat it for several minutes shaking her body back and forth into a U shape and thought maybe she had it jammed in her mouth and could not chew or swallow it. I took the tweezers and tried to follow her around and gently knock it out but like a doggie with a treat they don't want to give up she would turn the other direction which made me think she had it handled but it still wouldn't go away. Finally I decided to hand catch her and remove it if I had to- she let me pretty easily catch her and I was bringing her up towards the surface and the food came out. I grabbed that piece and gave her a few more small ones. Seriously she has some personality that one. This morning during bloodworm breakfast the white Twintail was swimming very, very well. He's acting more and more like a normal fish. I had dropped a piece of bloodworm and he was easily able to go to the bottom and eat it. No changes with the Crowntail or Dumbo today- though I have to say Crowntail does enthusiastically come to the front corner to be fed if he was in a different corner. He's a good little boy, I hope he makes it through this.

Hi @ricbennett3! I agree. Pet store employees are sadly lacking in their knowledge of fish keeping. They try so I don't try and diss them- some of them are limited to what the store has "taught" them and a lot of them don't even have fish. I had a big box employee tell me Nerites are prolific breeders- this was totally unsolicited advice that I already knew was incorrect- my correcting him gently did not seem to phase him (meaning it looked like he still thought he was right). So all that said, for that fish, yes too small. BUT, I think Bent would be ok where she is, what a lovely home for a fish that most people would overlook or like you said, "cull". Maybe you can add one or 2 other females to the tank to keep her company if you felt really guilty. Or maybe a couple of friendly guppies for some action (not mixed gender though- no breeding!) Of course if the fry you move are very small you might consider who is in there so they don't get eaten- unless you don't mind that.

@Colu I figured, no worries. They're cool little fish, saw one place online though selling them for $30 a pop. That's not a cheap fish and you'd want several.

The Vittatus/common I have found does better in groups of at least 6- they have very low bioloads in my experience. I have about 70 in a 20 gallon (well seasoned with 2 sponge and 1 HOB) and have no issues with water parameters. The Zebras I have do hang out with the Vittatus, and my Zebras aren't always all together. I can't advise on the Orange Oto.

@Colu gives me a lot of credit. I have zebra aka tiger Otos but not Orange ones (had to look those up). I keep them and Vittatus (common) and have had my Vittatus successfully breed (not on purpose). So far no luck with the Zebras accidentally breeding. You can check that out on my Accidental Oto Keeper journal, in the link on my tag below.

I did want to share a collage of the GloBetta girl, top 2 pics are from yesterday. She looks loads better compared to day one pic at the bottom.

Everyone is still with me as of this morning. Everyone eating. Here's the latest update: Red Crowntail male had a at least another Epsom soak before @Odd Duck gave advice on medications. So he got a dose of Metroplex before I realized I was going to redose Kanaplex the next day after a water change. So last night I just did the water change and redosed both meds (slightly less of Metro). Both meds will be redosed tomorrow. He still eats really good (I have to target feed him, last night he ate his daphnia fine but I guide it to him with my finger and he gets fed bloodworms from a tweezer) but doesn't seem to be improving from his current baseline so far but it's hard to say- he might be a little less bloated. I think it's more important to have super clean water so besides the meds the water changes continue. Here is last night's pictures: White Twintail Halfmoon's condition is about the same. He swims around a decent bit. I catch him stuck (on purpose I think) in the guppy grass in his tank on a semi regular basis. I see that sometimes he lists to one side (floats up) when he's in one spot- so I think he appreciates when something like the guppy grass holds him upright. The 2 boys have a harder time staying upright as was their condition when I brought them home- however Twintail here has greatly improved from when he was only able to lay on his side. He eats totally fine- though I also target feed him his bloodworm he's pretty capable of eating the floating daphnia but I help him too- just not as much as the red Crowntail. Yesterday he got his 50% water change and I decided to treat him with Metro and Kanaplex like the Crowntail. Does he look a little "bent" to you all? I can't really tell- sometimes he seems like it and other times he does not.... Happy to report that GloBetta girl seems to have come out of her slump. Since changing her tank and dosing Kanaplex she's more active and interactive. She eats better too. I don't see her sitting on the bottom of the tank- she's mostly out and about. This is all a great improvement to a few days ago prior to the tank change. She's got super translucent fins that are harder to see especially with the IAL tea water- but you may be able to see she's not nearly as clamped as she was when i first got her, dare I say she has gotten some of her red fin coloring back- I'm most happy about her rear fin being spread whereas if you look at her first pictures they were completely closed- and she looked like a little neon worm. She's got a great personality. I did her 50% water change and dosed her 2nd of Kanaplex. Purple girl doing great, she's also on her 2nd dose of Kanaplex after a 50% water change. She takes her food rather violently- pretty sure if I cared to I could train this one to jump out of the water to get her food but I don't tend to encourage jumpers lol. I love her little Dumbo fins- they don't seem to slow her down! So really hoping for some improvement on the boys since starting Metroplex. I want this to be a win for all of them, though I often wake up or come home wondering if I'm going to find that either of the boys have passed but always pleasantly surprised they are such fighters.

Hello @2022jlv, welcome to the forum. Sorry you're having trouble. Others will have an opinion but in this hobby there are many ways to approach a problem here is my view: It should be possible to treat both at the same time. During this time it's very important to keep the water as clean as possible, because without a nitrate reading this tells me your tank may not have been cycled- which can cause stress in the fish thereby causing illness/immune system issues- and/or your fish came in sick already which hasn't helped you. Know that extremely weak fish may not survive the treatment. I would check ammonia and nitrite every day if I were in your shoes and if it is high I would do a water change and redose meds if I had to. If the fish seem otherwise strong and active you might consider doing the whole med trio, but that's something only you can assess. If I were in your shoes I would: Hold off on feeding or feed VERY sparingly every other day. Before adding the second medication I would do a big water change- then dose the new med and possibly redose the 1st at least a little bit. Then check ammonia and nitrite levels every day- if those numbers are in the danger zone I would do a water change. If you don't have a cycle like I suspect you are now doing a fish-in cycle with medication. It's possible but it will take work on your part.

Welcome to the forum @Matilyn!

Hi Jerry! Welcome to the forum- a positive and great place to get information and/or share your own knowledge! Thanks for being here!

Agreed with @KBOzzie59- I have purchased several of these and usually remove them as I can use them as multiple plants or if using as one plant less restrictive to the plant itself. Leaving it there probably won't do any harm at all if you're tempted not to.

Tank cleaning. Sometimes it takes me longer than I predict because I enjoy it. Two hours to clean 5 tanks and 4 QT. Koianu Reefs always trying to get my full attention- he got his tank vacuumed. The prefilter sponge keeps falling off his HOB- this creates more flow. He acts as if he can't fight it sometimes and other times he sits there mid stream. Little clown. Punk the Bolivian Ram had a couple of gallons sucked out of his tank and I had to replant several stems of Ludwigia Super Red as he seems to be the culprit that uproots them, though I've never witnessed it. He looks rather guilty.

Punk is my first Cichlid but in observing him I have to say I think it's best to only have one unless you're trying to breed. Especially in my case since he's in a 20 tall there is not a whole lot of "turf" for him to claim. They say they are peaceful and I'd say yes for the most part but they are territorial- he'll chase off my rasboras and/or neons when they offend him- but I've never seen him nip anyone. If I had a bigger/longer tank I'd only consider getting more again if I were breeding but also if I could do enough line of sight breaks in the tank and satisfy their territory needs. Otherwise a solo Bolivian is a joy to have IMO. I keep mostly easy plants because I don't fertilize or do anything fancy. Most all my plants are easily found, and nearly all of them are easy to propagate and "make more". I have quite a few bladders but while they used to bother me they don't much anymore. I tend to overfeed that tank since Punk moved in- it's something I'm learning to adjust and the population will go down again. In the meantime they keep the tank sparkling and the nerites do fine so I'm not super concerned. You're right though- they can get quite out of control! I like it when people name their tanks- for me I've done it because it's easier to refer to them when talking to other people- not as boring to me as "my tetra tank"- not that there's anything wrong with that.

Ok! We are now officially a week and a day into this "Betta Rescue" saga. I'm happy to report- all are still with me! Here are their individual updates for today: We'll start with red Crowntail male. He's on day 2 of Epsom soaks- I've only been doing them for 10 minutes, I am cautiously optimistic they are helping some. Today while doing his 50% water change he was in his soak which is where today's pictures will come from. He was quite mad at me and likely stressed from being moved and put in saltwater but hopefully it's for his own good. I hand catch him and place him. Anyway, waterchange and dose 2 of Kanaplex along with Aquarium salt and a new piece of IAL as well as the usual IAL tea. He ate his bloodworm with enthusiasm today- still can't stay upright but he sure tries. Purple Dumbo girl still doing great. She got her 50% water change today, dose 2 of Kanaplex, new IAL piece and aquarium salt. She is a good little eater. She is so pretty- wish she would stay still for pics! White Twintail Halfmoon boy is getting better about swimming normally- he does spend a decent sum of time on the top of the tank but I catch him swimming normally without struggle in the middle and bottom of the tank occasionally too. This is a great improvement to what he was when I brought him home. He ate his bloodworm easily today and got his 50% water change, dose 2 of Kanaplex, new IAL piece and aquarium salt like the others. Last but not least little GloBetta girl- last night I was able to swing by the big box and get another, larger critter keeper for her. Now she's in a 3 gallon keeper but in about 2 gallons of water as opposed to 1 gallon before. Purple girl next to her is in a 2 gallon keeper now the smallest of the 4 containers as the other 3 are the 3 gallon type- but since she's the tiniest I feel ok about that for now and all 4 fish are in the same amount of water. So this morning her water change consisted of a total habitat swap, more water volume, a new piece of IAL (but kept an old piece for the BB to the new tank), dose 2 of Kanaplex, aquarium salt as per the others. She was pretty active last night up through today- I think she's feeling better- hoping that Kanaplex is indeed helping all of them. She ate well off the bottom of the tank this morning (pieces of bloodworm) and has been acting more normal- exploring her tank. Hopefully her red coloring will come back a bit more now. Her tank water is a bit lighter in color than the others because of the tank swap right now. I'm hoping for continued improvement of all of them. Having this level of improvement in a week I think is pretty good.

Yes @Lauren A that's my Bolivian Ram "Punk" he lives in my "Angry Man" tank but that picture was taken when he was nervous and shy in QT after I got him from another fish keeper who was breaking down his tank. He is adorable! Kind of like a giant Betta! 🙂

Great project @Eliot J, welcome to the forum, looking forward to your posts!

You are right @rockfisher as part of the first responder industry- people who have been involved in tragedy and/or disasters are often quickly forgotten. We (as humans) are often left to fend for ourselves. Often I'm very guilty of never asking for help- some of us take on more than we should. It's going to take years for FL to recover and I hope it does beyond the level it was before the hurricane. It seems you have some good people in your neighborhood-- foster that- hold each other up- nobody else will understand what you went through, what you are going through now and what you've been through in the future more than they will. Don't be afraid to reach out your hand- people are more willing to help than you know- but they don't always know who needs it. Take care of yourself and I hope your friends on the Island made it.

I would try and feed her some daphnia since she hasn't eaten in 5 days. Just a few small pieces.

I have always thought the idea of joined dual master suites was a good idea and would save a lot of marriages (husb/wife gets their own bedroom, bathroom, closets so they can do what they want with them nobody can complain about socks on the floor, cosmetics on counters, decoration disagreements or too many pillows but can still visit each other of course)- but I dunno @Minanora separate houses is taking it kinda far! 😄

Ok kids, I got home tonight to feed them. All 4 ate pretty well on the freeze-dried Daphnia- here is the individual updates. I have actually started with Kanaplex treatment on all of them today.... We'll start with the best news first, Purple Dumbo Girl doing well still. She ate quite a few pieces of Daphnia tonight. I did a 50% water change on her 2 gallon QT tank, added some salt- then decided to add the Kanaplex. Mostly because at this point (she was the last to be fed, changed and treated) everyone else was getting medicated and I want to make sure she continues to do well. Kanaplex doesn't have any ill effects on biologicals so it's not going to hurt her or the tank- and it will likely be the only med I'll give her- and only one round and done. Here she was tonight: Next we have GloBetta girl. Like I've said before, she's a total mystery to me. She was casually floating about her tank when I got home an improvement since -early this morning she refused to come off the bottom of the tank- or allow me to witness her eat! She seems to have regained some color in her tail tonight- she is a very moody little one- or sick- but she baffles me. She is sadly in my smallest QT- only around a gallon or a bit less- I need to go to the big box and grab another keeper and put her in something bigger and only use that one for plants- I forgot to look yesterday- totally my bad. Anyhow she ate pretty good actually I put quite a few pieces of daphnia in her tank and she actually ate off the surface so I was happy to see that. I turned down the airstone in her tank as she seemed bothered by the flow it created- so maybe that will help. She was treated with Kanaplex (salt and IAL continuing)- hopefully that will help perk her up. This was her actually moving about tonight: The white Twintail Halfmoon male is still showing improvement bit by bit. He was still hanging out at the top of the tank when I came home but was pretty active as I fed and changed 50% of his tank water (adding salt and Kanaplex). He ate the daphnia rather eagerly and had quite a few pieces. The Indian Almond Leaf water doesn't allow me to see their true colors but I have a feeling if he makes it through this he's going to be a white irridescent beauty, he's got quite a few colors in that body and tail(s) of his, I see streaks of irridescent blue and purple. I medicated his tank with Kanaplex. Here's a peek at him while he was concentrating on his meal: Sadly last but not at all least is this little red Crowntail male. He's trying so hard. Still has the same issues I've been talking about, stays mostly in a corner to stay upright but so eager to interact and eat. He actually did pretty good catching most of the daphnia that I guided towards him. He's not able to swim too well so he's not a great hunter- but if I get the food close enough he is able to eat well enough. I think he had a pretty decent sized meal. He is why I started Kanaplex tonight on all of them. I saw this kind of bloated and pale part of his body, I checked and it seems to be to both sides and pretty even, not asymetrical. I didn't notice it before but it's so hard to see him clearly so I admit to not knowing how long it's been like this. It's in the back part of his body so I'm not sure- intestinal area? @Odd Duck @Colu what do you see? I kind of hmm'd about which med to use and having had good experience with Kanaplex in the water column with past treatment on other fish (including my beloved pop-eye patient) I just went with it. I have pretty much every other med including Metroplex which I thought about for a minute too. The pic is pretty decent showing that I'm not seeing any pineconing, no fin rot that I can see- his tail and fins look pretty good- but maybe this is why he isn't able to swim right- something making him bloat. So yes, started Kanaplex after doing a 50% water change with some salt and of course continuing the IAL.

First of all, welcome to the forum @Jumperson, but I'm sorry this is the way you had to start here. To help "diagnose" out of curiosity did you treat also by raising the temp if you use a heater or what does your tank run at temp-wise. I'm wondering if it was Epistylis- which looks a lot like Ich, can be more stubborn and sometimes harder to treat- it's exacerbated by treatment with heat and spreads faster. Do you happen to have any pics of any of the fish pre-death with the spots?

@Odd Duck I think I will be starting the Kanaplex on 3 of them. I'm holding off on Dumbo girl, she seems fine and I hate medicating when there is seemingly nothing wrong but she's in for a long QT. As usual thanks for your support and advice.

Lovely @Chick-In-Of-TheSea! Yes I saw your Bolivian being a clown, haha! Beautiful babies @Guppysnail, they found a good home!

I got my coconut hut from Etsy too (I have a couple!). Awesome tank @Lauren A!

Congrats winners!