Please help!

[Mary_Jane]

My tiger shovel nose catfish is about 2 years old, about 2' long, and for some reason seems to be turning white. I'm freaking out, no one at the local pet store knows what is wrong, and I was hoping some of you may have seen this before, and know what is causing it. He's in a 300 gallon tank, and I haven't changed his diet or done anything different since i've had him. It started with his tail and the tip of his snout, but the past few days he's turning white all over. Any advise or knowledge would be appreciated. Cindy

[cocoa_pleco]

any tankmates? white is often the sign of stress, so he may be being chased. also, what filtration and whats your nitrate/nitrite/ammonia readings?

[Mary_Jane]

cocoa, thanks for answering......he's in a tank with 3 oscars and two peacock bass cichlids, and yes, the third oscar was just added several months ago, and may very well be bothering him by rooting him out from under his log all the time....I never thought about that. I just assumed if there were no physical signs of fighting, then everyone was getting along ok. I'm using a "tetra pond PF1" filter system, and do a 1/3 water change once a week. I honestly don't know what my ph and other levels are, i've never had a problem with the tank, so i've never bothered to check, is that a huge no-no? I guess I should check it, but I bet you are right about stress, he is even whiter tonight........can this kill him before I can get that youngest oscar out of there?

[Lady Hobbs]

Since it started on both ends as just a small area, I'd have to think it was fungus.

I would remove him to a large dry box with an airstone and try to treat him individually if you think it could be fungus. Sounds like it to me.

[Mary_Jane]

Lady Hobbs, wouldn't it affect the other fish too? His skin is still smooth, and the whiteness isn't something "clinging" to him, he just looks like he's turning albino. Whats a dry box? I'll try just about anything to make him better, of all my fish, he's almost a real "pet".

[Dave66]

MJ, You really need to buy a ammonia/nitrite/nitrate test kit; not the strips. I'd suspect you've high nitrate in your tank, as TSN's pale when the water isn't to their liking. They demand clean water. Test's will let you know what's going on.

Dave

[Lady Hobbs]

Dave and cocoa is right. You need to know what's going on to make sure it isn't the water before giving meds needlessly. If he does need treatment and you think it's fungus, I would remove him and treat him individually.

Perhaps a good gravel cleaning and large water change might be what he needs to bring him around.

[Mary_Jane]

Thanks all for the advise, I am changing the water right now, and will get a test kit today as well. I'll update in a few days, hopefully it's just the water, but I don't understand why the weekly water changes for two years have been sufficient, and all of a sudden it would cause a problem, maybe the one added oscar upset the balance. Again, thanks for the replys.

[Mary_Jane]

Well, it isn't the water, and I really don't belileve it's a fungus, so I guess I need to find another 55 to put the oscar in, and see if stress is the problem.