# Why do they keep DYING???



## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

I have no clue why I keep loosing my longfin leopard danios. One by one and I always replace them. They have had finrot, commited suiside, and I don't even know why this one is layng there not moving much or eating. I feed Nutrafin Max tropical flakes once a day and they always get enough (they are always at the surface). I do 15-25% water changes weekly. I have the Marina s20 filter and replace 2 of the 4 cartriges once a month. The pH is currently 7.4 and temp is 72 F. Please help!


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## ZebraDanio12 (Jun 17, 2011)

I wouldn't replace them right after their deaths. I would do a water change (big one) and treat with melafix or something


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

I usally remove them within an hour of their death. Does any1 know why they are dying???


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## ZebraDanio12 (Jun 17, 2011)

OhYesItsMe said:


> I usally remove them within an hour of their death. Does any1 know why they are dying???


Theres a number of reasons.
1. Parasites.
2. disease
3. over crowding

and some others, but those a few of the main ones. I've decided to ditch the chain stores (petsmart and petco) because ive been having problems with the fish i buy from them. if you do not have a lfs in range, id stick to petco. anyway, the fish at those chain stores tend to be bought with diseases. I bout three with it (zebra danios) 2 died. It was some type of parasite. The other one i managed to save and hes doing a whole lot better.


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

Well I go to a great family owned pet store that is like 90% fish/ fish supplies. It seems like one per month and I've had leopard danios for 3 months. The first death was finrot, the secound, a suiside, and now one is dying of I don't know what. It seems to be one gone every month at around the end of the month. The one dying doen't have torn fins or spots. It looks healthy, but isn't scting healthy.


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## ZebraDanio12 (Jun 17, 2011)

OhYesItsMe said:


> Well I go to a great family owned pet store that is like 90% fish/ fish supplies. It seems like one per month and I've had leopard danios for 3 months. The first death was finrot, the secound, a suiside, and now one is dying of I don't know what. It seems to be one gone every month at around the end of the month. The one dying doen't have torn fins or spots. It looks healthy, but isn't scting healthy.


SO its prob not the petstore then. I have always had one danio who dif from the rest. he got skinny, and didnt loook good. i managed to help him and hes getting better. maybe try doing more frequent water changes.. i know your doing them once a week but ive run into the problem of ammonia building too fast..


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

I'll examine it when or if it dies, but it has jumped up the filter twice a few months ago and maybe it tried it agian and is injured.


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## grogan (Jan 23, 2011)

Get us a complete water test and we will see if there are any other possibilities.


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## blindkiller85 (Jan 8, 2011)

First and foremost, I would replace ONE per month instead of two. Could be causing mini cycles that are harming your fish.

Second, once one dies, do a big water change and treat. Not treat and continue with the regular water changes it becomes ineffective. Might want to skip a week entirely without a water change. 

Basic principles are if you're losing fish like this, you might be doing something wrong.


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

It's another suicide. I see clean cuts. Man 2 danio suicides in 2 months how do you stop them??? I keep the filter on the highest and they have to try and jump up the filter ramp. I'm releaved they are not sick because then it would probably be my fault. Are they really my fault???


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## Ladayen (Jun 20, 2011)

I'm looking at your serpae tetras. They are vicious fin nippers. Along with not having enough danios in the first place (6+) thats a large amount of fin nipping/stress. 

If you want danios get 6 at once and not the long fin variety.

PS you should get at least 4 more cories, one of them should be the same albino as you have now you can do all 4 the same if you like or get 3 of a different species.


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## meBNme (Oct 9, 2011)

Any chance your gourami's or shrimp are fin nippers? How about at night when the lights are off?


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

Okay well i have a 20 gallon tank so there isn't much room for more fish and his fins are fine, I think he tried to jump the filter because none of my fish could cut him like that. So I guess what should I add then considering all the stuff about my tank? And is there anyway to stop the suicides at all? Thanks!


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## bmlbytes (Aug 1, 2009)

If there was any sort of skin disease/parasite/fungus, the fish could have cut itself by scratching an itch. If there is any sort of rough object (gravel, rock, even sharp edges on a filter) it could be using that as an object to scratch the itch (fish don't have fingers to do this for them). If the cut was deep enough or it got infected, your fish could die.

Fish don't commit suicide on purpose. They don't have the cognitive ability for that level of thinking.


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

I know that it isn't on purpose, they just try to jump into the filter probably wanting to join the reflection or something. There are no sharp objects, but if he tried to jump up the filter then he could have gotten cut. Is there any way to stop them jumping? How about 5 long fins, 6 serpaes, 2 flames, 3 albinos and 2 shimp?


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

I have long fin danios as well as leopards and they do not try to get out of the tank. If they are trying that hard they are trying to get away from something I would think.I once had a couple of fish that tried to get into the water flow because they had flukes in their gills and it was the only way they could get the fresh water and thus more oxygen into their bodies.
You might want to check that out. A bit of prazi pro can help flukes.
Just a thought.


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

Hhhhhmmmmm what do these gill flukes look like? My danios are always at the surface swimming around. Do they last long with the flukes? The same fish has jumped into the filter 2 times 2 months ago. He seemed fine until he got cut.


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

you won't be able to see gill flukes I don't think, but I have seen body flukes on fish and they are grey longish things. They suck the juice out of the fish when on the body and gill flukes cause the fish to suffocate.Here is a link to a page explaining about them. IT is from England so bear in mind the treatments will be different. 
I have used Lifebearer on the fish as well as Prazi pro with good results if caught early enough.
Be aware that You CANNOT use Lifebearer on silver colored fish or colorless fish as it poisons them and they die a nasty death. I have used it on baby guppies ok but i tried it on an albino betta and it died a slow death.
Don't know how it would do with danios so I would stick with Prazi which works more slowly.

http://www.fishdoc.co.uk/disease/flukes.htm


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## Sorafish (Sep 15, 2011)

Maybe try a different filter? There are plenty of cheap 20 gallon filters out there, I'm sure you could find one with a semi-covered outtake. 

Other than that, they may be trying to just go upstream. Maybe try lowering the water level, if its actually able to jump up it enough to get cut.

OR, it COULD be the fin nippers. I had a particularly mean guppy male before that would nip and chase my other males until they would jump out of the tank (didn't have a hood back then) and once he had chased all of the males out, he started doing the same to my females. Watch the tank closely to see the fish's interactions with each other. If you do have a fin nipper, adding more plants/hidy holes, or getting rid of the nipper would fix it.


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## OhYesItsMe (Oct 1, 2011)

hhhhmmmm maybe I'll sell them back to the pet store for other fish, I'll wait a few months.


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## finnedfish123 (Oct 26, 2011)

You can stop them going into the filter by putting a mesh net around it so they cannot get through.

When they die do a big water change. Replacing them without doing that is pointless!

Do you replace them with fish from the same shop? It could be linked through that and the shop could have diseases, I had that once with black mollies. I bought six, the next day 1 had died. I went to replace it and within two weeks they were all dead. I gave up on them! In the time I had them my tank had the same readings as yours!


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