Desperate! What can I do to help my peppered Cory Cat Fish :(

[Sandra the fish rookie]

As some of you know, I had to medicate my entire tank with the quarantine trio. So far, most have done okay. but my peppered cory cat fish is just not doing well. he lies on the bottom a lot.. occasionally swimming and then not moving. I checked my chemistry this morning and this evening. Both are the same. Temp 78.9.

Is there ANYTHING.. ANYTHING at all I can do? I purchased a 10 gallon tank today and have it set up but its not cycled. 

I'm so heart broken.. Please any advise is so appreciated. 

[Sandra the fish rookie]

Well, here goes guppy #2. Looking really rough, and of course he too has worms. and my aquarium is absolute discussing after adding all the meds in there.. what a total nightmare. 

I want to just throw in the towel. This just sucks.. sucks.. sucks.. Put a fork in me because I am just done. every time to check in on them.. I become more and more depressed.

[MAC]

Well this is sad to hear. @Sandra the fish rookie I'm sorry this has turned out this way and I feel for ya. I wish I knew what to do for your corydoras but with your water looking good and going through the treatment I don't have much left to suggest. 

I know this episode hasn't been the greatest experience and I can say Ive felt a similar way not too long ago. I had within a few months purchased some beautiful angelfish and a pair of kribensis. Slowly they developed various ailments and one by one passed away. I was extremely disappointed, not only for the loss of fish but the helplessness of throwing the book of collective internet knowledge and research at treating them to no results. It's hard. 

Eventually I settled into the realization that we can only do what we can for the animals when we have them. Sometimes it doesn't work out. 

I hope you don't become too discouraged over this. I can say by being here, asking questions and having genuine concern for the well being of your fish you already are in a top tier of fish keepers, regardless of early misfortunes. 

I hope things start taking a turn for the better soon. 

[Colu]

I would do a water change to remove med  it could be all the med at once that causeing the problem for your Cory  treat for parasites your guppy has Frist and monitor to see if they is any improvement 

[Sandra the fish rookie]

@MAC and @Colu Thank you both so much for your support. I decided last night to stop looking and staring at the tank waiting for the next thing to happen. 

However, woke up this morning.. and my cory cat fish is alive, and much more active.

I am not sure if it was the ICH X or the MaraCyn that he may have been more sensitive to. I am going to continue the deworming process. 

Next question. when this is done, and whoever survives it.. how am I going to get my tank water clear of all this junk!! 

I mean seriously its disgusting in there. My plants are not looking too happy either. basically the whole eco system is just angry with me. 

So what is the story with all these sick fish? I was reading through a few threads, and there seems to be a general theme, that people purchase fish, and they die.. from one thing or another. I just don't remember back in the day there being so many issues with buying fish and they dying all the time. 

Where to most people get their fish? LFS (PetSmart, Petsco etc.), online breeders? I just don't know if anything is a safe bet. There are a lot of people who pay A LOT of money for fish.. just to die? I don't understand it.

[Colu]

You can put active carbon in your filter to remove meds after treatment 

[Sandra the fish rookie]

@Colu Thank you so much!! 

Okay great! Per the protocol I have to re treat in 2 weeks. So should I just wait till the end of Feb to use the carbon? and How long do I use it to take the meds out of the tank? A week, month?

I can't wait till this is OVER! ugh.. I will NEVER not quarantine fish again.. way too risky!

[Colu]

No you can use after this round of treatment and take it out when you start treating again it should take 24-48 hours you should replace active carbon every 4week

Edited February 10, 2021 by Colu

[Sandra the fish rookie]

@Colu Thank you very much! How long do I use it for? I am due for another treatment today. Do I put the carbon filter in tonight or wait till tomorrow for the medication to circulate?. Day 5  with the water change is Friday.

[Colu]

What till the day after you have finished treatment

[MAC]

As far as where people buy their fish I think you'll hear mixed results from frequenting the big box stores (petco, petsmart). Those seem to be hit or miss in regard to healthy fish. I know I do not buy fish from the ones in my area. However, the place I used to live had a great aquatics section with folks that I would talk fish with and they had an interest in the hobby as well and I still have many fish from that store living happy lives in my tanks.

Depending on where you live you may have an actual mom and pop Local Fish Store. These can be more like your local coffee shop on the corner small business where you can build a relationship with the people there. I remember growing up we had about 3 to 4 local fish stores in my area, now they are not as prevalent and, like any other business, can be good, bad or fall anywhere in-between. When I lived in Washington State and I was in the market for new fish I was totally fine with driving a few hours over to Aquarium Co-op to go fish shopping. I was confident the fish I would had been taken care of to ensure the best chance of survival and it was a business I wanted to support because of those efforts. Where I live now with my main LFS closed due to the pandemic I choose not to shop at another newer LFS because I wasnt too impressed with the experience I had the few times I tried it out. Again, now I drive a bit further to a place I do believe works hard for their fish to be healthy and that is where I take my business. One thing I put into practice when buying fish, no matter where I am, is to spend extra time observing the fish in the store tank to see if I can spot anything that would cause concern before I bring it home. 

For some people buying fish online is another way to go. I personally have not gone this route yet. From what I hear though, buying online comes down to who you are buying from. I know there are a few online retailers working very hard to set a standard in quality online fish retail. For me, the cost of shipping keeps me from online shopping, especially when I can spend less in fuel money. But for others without as many local options I do believe people have found places they trust and have been very successful with.

 

   

[Sandra the fish rookie]

@MAC I live in Wilmington NC, and there is 1 local LFS, but he appears to specialize more in salt water, and just big fancy fish. I went there to get my rock, substrate and drift wood. A youngish girl helped me but appeared to be more interested in just selling me stuff. So I figured I would just get my nice tank stuff there, and figure out where to get fish later. 

My husband was with me when I got all these guppies. 1 was there way over an hour staring at them, watching them swim, etc.. He said I have purchased a car and house faster LOL. 

My first experience, I lost 2 guppies. Then I purchased my cory cat fish from the local pet supplies plus, and they have done great, and my cory that was not doing great last night, has bounced right back.. thank goodness. but these guppies, I have lost 2 and think there are 2 more on the way out. My existing guppy is being a total jerk.. and chasing some of them around.. so not sure if that was another reason why they have not done well. I have been told that Guppies are just a more over bred fish and just are not as resilient as they used to be. Not sure though

One thing.. I will quarantine next time so I don't have to make the entire tank go through this again.