What Fish species do you think has the most problems?

[Hally M.]

What fish do you guys think has the hardest time staying healthy? I would say Betta’s because of personal experience, the type of stores that sell them, and also just seeing how often there’s sick Betta posts in the disease category. I feel like every time I peek in there there’s a new post about a mystery Betta disease, it’s so sad. I wonder why though. Why have they become so sensitive??

 

What other fish do you seem to have the most problems with??

[Flumpweesel]

I had issues with danios where they all developed bent spines (bought 12 a mix of zebra, pearl and leopard) they were my first not goldfish and this experience put me off them forever.

12 "L" shaped fish struggling around the tank did not bring joy.

[TheSwissAquarist]

I’d say:

1) Fancy Goldfish, especially the ‘tubby’ varieties (oranda, etc)

2) Bettas, the current gene pool needs new blood.

3) Mollies need to be raised in freshwater at a farm before being shipped and sold.

Edited October 19, 2022 by TheSwissAquarist

[Hally M.]

I’m yet to keep Danios but I’ll keep that information tucked in my brain. 
 

also speaking on the Mollies I couldn’t agree more!

[Damo.Lo]

I’ve had trouble with cardinal tetras and guppy’s but I don’t know if it was a me problem or another issue 

[Pepere]

I would say the long flowing fins of the Bettas don’t help…

and the overwhelming popularity of them  and essentially entry level aspect to their keeping certainly makes problems worse and makes them seem more prevalent.

 

Ie many people who get them have no idea of best practices, and  with so many keepers of them there are so many more questions abounding…

Personally, I dont get the appeal of them.  I also dont quite understand the appeal of the “Fancy” gold fish.  I am not criticizing mind you, I just do not experientially understand the appeal, it is quite foreign to me.

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 10/19/2022 at 12:14 PM, Pepere said:

and the overwhelming popularity of them  and essentially entry level aspect to their keeping certainly makes problems worse and makes them seem more prevalent.

I couldn’t agree more on that count! 

[JettsPapa]

Dwarf gouramis (Trichogaster Ialius)

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 10/19/2022 at 3:42 PM, JettsPapa said:

Dwarf gouramis (Trichogaster Ialius)

Why?

[Pepere]

Dwarf Gouramis disease, untreatable, 100% fatal, estimated roughly 50% of Dwarf Gouramis will contract it.

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 10/19/2022 at 3:53 PM, Pepere said:

Dwarf Gouramis disease, untreatable, 100% fatal, estimated roughly 50% of Dwarf Gouramis will contract it.

Thanks for telling me that! I'm currently at a fish store choosing between a betta or one of those!

[AquaHobbyist123]

Dwarf Gouramis, because they are inbred to create the many vibrant colors, have health issues, including Dwarf Gourami Disease (which is what mine died of).

[AquaHobbyist123]

Many problems in fish result from extreme inbreeding because Colorful fish make more money.

Edited October 19, 2022 by AquaHobbyist123

[JettsPapa]

On 10/19/2022 at 8:54 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

Thanks for telling me that! I'm currently at a fish store choosing between a betta or one of those!

Bettas have their share of problems also, but I would choose one of them over a dwarf gourami.  However, honey gouramis are a good alternative, and can (and should) be kept in groups, which often isn't possible with dwarf gouramis.  Pearl gouramis are another good option, though they're a little larger, so need a larger tank, and like honey gouramis they do best in groups.

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 10/19/2022 at 4:50 PM, JettsPapa said:

honey gouramis are a good alternative

If I were told to give a top 10 first fish to a newbie, honey gouramis would be at 3rd or 4th place; they’re so fun!

[Hally M.]

Wow I had no idea about the dwarf gouramis. I feel like I dodged a bullet because I almost purchased some. 
 

does anyone have issues with wasting disease with the livebearers specifically guppies. I’ve always had an issue with keeping them healthy and being able to prevent the dreaded shimmy’s. Not sure if it’s the store I purchase them from or what. But I just feel guppies are such a hassle for me. 

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 10/20/2022 at 8:36 AM, Hally M. said:

the livebearers specifically guppies. I’ve always had an issue with keeping them healthy and being able to prevent the dreaded shimmy’s. Not sure if it’s the store I purchase them from or what. But I just feel guppies are such a hassle for me. 

Do you have hard water? I have noticed that in soft water more tend to die. Try adding crushed coral to your filter if you want to give it another shot.

[JettsPapa]

On 10/20/2022 at 1:36 AM, Hally M. said:

Wow I had no idea about the dwarf gouramis. I feel like I dodged a bullet because I almost purchased some. 
 

does anyone have issues with wasting disease with the livebearers specifically guppies. I’ve always had an issue with keeping them healthy and being able to prevent the dreaded shimmy’s. Not sure if it’s the store I purchase them from or what. But I just feel guppies are such a hassle for me. 

Assuming you have hard water with relatively high pH, try finding some from a hobbyist breeder instead of the ones that are mass produced commercially.  If you have a locally owned fish/aquarium store some of them buy locally, but the big chains generally don't.

 

Or you might find some online.  I haven't listed them yet, but I have a few strains of guppies and am starting to sell a few.

[Hally M.]

That’s the thing, I have crushed coral and would use wonder shells consistently because my water could be harder. I moved where we had really really hard well water and than once we did our first water change in the new home I’ve never had much success with guppies. The ph here is around 7.8 my Gh and Kh seemed good as well. 

[PotatoFish]

Dang, never knew about the Dwarf Gourami disease either...as the others said, I'm kind of glad I dodged that bullet. I decided to add a hillstream loach and 2 kuhli loaches instead. Little Man likes snakes and sharks (including shark rays, whose shape resembles hillstream loaches).

As for zebra danios, I am VERY selective at the store and only get the ones with spines that are not kinked. It drives some employees nuts when I make them catch the leopard danio variation WITHOUT any spine problems (S or L bends). Make sure to check the spine from above also.

 

To answer the original question:
Mollies

I think that the issue is that they just end up falling apart, probably from being raised in brackish water before coming to me. 

 

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 10/22/2022 at 4:47 PM, PotatoFish said:

Dang, never knew about the Dwarf Gourami disease either...as the others said, I'm kind of glad I dodged that bullet. I decided to add a hillstream loach and 2 kuhli loaches instead. Little Man likes snakes and sharks (including shark rays, whose shape resembles hillstream loaches).

As for zebra danios, I am VERY selective at the store and only get the ones with spines that are not kinked. It drives some employees nuts when I make them catch the leopard danio variation WITHOUT any spine problems (S or L bends). Make sure to check the spine from above also.

 

To answer the original question:
Mollies

I think that the issue is that they just end up falling apart, probably from being raised in brackish water before coming to me. 

 

I managed to breed some in freshwater (before they died 😢) and I have a small colony of 8 fully converted ones of which I hope to breed more in the future. I think the trick is to get the really might-pop-any-day-now female so that the fry are immediately used to pure freshwater.