Archived message board.
platy lost appetite
I have a 5 gallon tank which I've had setup for about 2 months. I
have only 3 fish one of which is a platy that has lost it's appetite.
Awhile back the Molly in the tank had ick, which has been treated
and is now gone. I have not tested the tank for ph/or ammonia etc.
The fish appears physically ok except it seems to hang out at the
surface now alot. I do not have a cover tank so I get quite a bit
of evaporation and wind up adding water quite a bit. The water is
clear and looks fine. I realize this is pretty vague, but any ideas
are welcomed. I plan on buying some test kits for water quality. Any
other ideas?
- Chris...there are 3 important things to get when you start the hobby
#1 a tank...#2 a water test kit....#3 fish...notice I said test kit
before fish? water quality is the most important consideration when
setting up a tank. If the fish don't like your rocks or need more
light or like plants they will be unhappy but if the water is bad
they will die. I hope your not getting discouraged. The comments by
Joyce, Jeff and Linda are right...but get to the store for the test
kit. And while your there ask the fish dept supervisor for recommendations
for some chemicals that can help you maintain your water quality.
Even if you don't need them right now some Sunday night at 11pm you
are going to realize that something is wrong but not be able to go
out and get something to help. Its like a first-Aid box for your fish.
- You can call your water company if you have city water for the ph
of your tap and hardness.If you add chemicals other than chlorine
remover your ph can possibly drop. Also if you overfeed and do not
do frequent water changes it may go down, so be aware that your ph
may be different from the tap.However this will give you a cheap quick
estimate and if you do weekly water changes should be pretty close.You
will need the test kit for the ammonia and or nitrates though.When
I had platys they were little pigs, so I hope yours feels better soon.
Check garage sales and newspapers for used tanks if you are short
of money(Yahoo lets you access the classified section of some local
papers). Make sure they have not been used for saltwater/marine fish.
- Hi Chris,,I agree with linda...fish gasping up for air can mean
poor water quality...get your test kit...do some water changes...and
you tank is real little so it's hard to keep thing stable in there...your
platy can be a little touchy and prone to some diseases that can be
harder to treat...it's also a live bearer so a little salt in your
tank wouldn't hurt...( 1 tbs per gal)get a hood as well to keep the
evaporation down and fish in...also pouring cold water into your tank
often can cause the icky thing to come back...gads I hope I'm not
sounding neg..but hey chris..you gotta have an excuse to get a bigger
tank huh...yahoo
- Chris, go ahead and get the test kits. Fish hanging at the surface
could be a sign of too much ammonia in the tank. I know you add water
when it evaporates, but do you also do regular water changes?
platy got appetite back!
Thanks for your replies. What I did was change out 3/4 of the water
in the tank. It SEEMS to have helped this fish out and it actually
began swimming around the tank pretty actively. Anyhow, I can see
now why it would be better to have a larger tank! Thanks again
- Chris, I'm glad your platy is feeling better. But, still go ahead
and get your water test kits.
- congrads chris...see what a little water change can do!...but best
of all you have a great excuse to go get a bigger tank...bigger water=
more stability....have fun!
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