Need Help With Fish

**PlatyFish** · 06-04-2008, 10:41 PM

Umm.. I have two platies that keep trying to stick their nose into the ground for some reason. Every time I get home I have to get them out of the rock they were stuck under. But today my male platy smashed himself under a rock and is almost dead. Anything that I can do?

Edit: the male fish is almost identical to this picture: http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/p...67&pcatid=1067

**smaug** · 06-04-2008, 10:47 PM

There has got to be a reason they are doing this.What are your water parameters.Could be that something is wrong and they are doing the only thing they can do,try and get to better water.I have never seen healthy fish try and get under a rock.For now the obvious soulution is to remove the things they can get under.

**pinsonpa** · 06-04-2008, 11:08 PM

I agree with smaug, something is probably causing this behavior.

Is this a "cycled" or established tank? More specifically, what did you do to set-up this tank? If you just added tap water and dechlorinator drops, turned on the filter and the heater, then added fish...your tank hasn't been cycled yet and the fish are probably reacting to the harsh water conditions.

There are more steps involved to cycle or establish your tank.

Tell us everything you can about how this tank was set up (and how long ago) and we'll try to help you the best we can.

If you haven't cycled a tank before and want to learn more about how to do it and why it's important...check out the sticky threads (red titles) at the top of the Beginner Freshwater section.

If you are new to fish keeping...you might give this free E-Aquarium book a read too. http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/Trop...ners_Guide.pdf

**PlatyFish** · 06-05-2008, 02:34 AM

I understand about the water part, but why isn't any of my other fish trying to get under? Why only them? (and the fish is pratically dead now, but I just wanted to know so if something like it happens again) And also, the tank was gotten almost three years ago. Nothing like this had ever happened.

**pinsonpa** · 06-05-2008, 06:28 AM

Different fish react differently to various issues. This could be an illness or it could be that your water perameters have suddenly changed.

I don't mean to sound like a broken record, but we still need to know more about your specific situation. You said you got this tank three years ago (was it already set up with fish and water or did you set it up? If so, what SPECIFICALLY did you do to set it up? Older tanks that weren't set up properly can still have "new tank syndrome" (for example).

The more you can tell us about your set up the more we'll be able to help you and your fish. Aside from answering the questions I've already asked, here are some other things that would be helpful to know:

How big is your tank?

How many fish are in there now (and what types of fish besides Platys)?

What specific maintenance to you do (water changes, gravel cleaning, etc.) and how often?

Even if you did everything right and cycled the tank three years ago, you could still have water parameters get out of wack. If you add too many new fish to fast (even to a well established tank) you could get an ammonia spike bad enough to stress out (and possibly kill) your fish. Over feeding or a dead fish that wasn't removed could also cause a bad ammonia spike.

Fish illness/desease could be the cause of strange fish behavior too. I don't have much experience with this subject but I figured the more info you tell us, someone else is bound to see a red flag and can jump to offer more advice on this subject.

I'm really sorry this is happening. Just tell us all that you can. The more we know about your specific situation, the better the chance of us being able to find out what's happening.

**LosC** · 06-05-2008, 08:54 AM

It's hard to give an accurate answer without any stats such as ^, water params n such.

**PlatyFish** · 06-06-2008, 01:04 AM

Theres a gourami, (not a giant one) and an electric yellow cichlid behind a divider. Also, the tank is 10 gallons.

**smaug** · 06-06-2008, 01:13 AM

Is this a temporary situation for the cichlid?He needs different water params then the others,and a 10gal even if it were all his isnt big enough.I wish I could help you with the platies.We really do need to know what your water is like,ph,nitrates,nitites,ammonia,temp.It could be the goarami is harassing the platies.

**PlatyFish** · 06-06-2008, 02:22 AM

I think its the gourami, but will they nip at other fish if they are making a bubble nest? Is it possible that to protect its eggs, it harassed the platies? (When the platies died, their fins were ragged)

**pinsonpa** · 06-06-2008, 06:38 AM

OK, so you had two platys (who have both died), a gourami and a cichlid who is behind a divider in a 10 gallon tank. That's two questions you've answered out of six.

The gourami could have nipped at the platys even without a bubble nest to protect. This harrasment could have been enough to stress out the platys and cause them to act unusual.

I wouldn't be willing to say this is the only posible scenario until you answer the other four questions for us.

*What specifically did you do to set up this tank?
* What regular maintanence do you do and how often? (water changes, gravel cleaning)
* What are your water parameters (Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, pH levels)?
* Is this a temperary situation for the cichlid behind the divider?