My Angels are sick / dying. What can I do?
PREVENTION is far better than the cure! In my earlier years, I often lost half or more of the fish I bought in local pet shops. I thought the hobby was "Buy beautiful creatures and watch them die..."
Know your source. Never buy from a tank with sluggish or dead fish. Your dealer may offer refunds -- you may have to salt down and freeze any that die.
Avoid putting new fish in with your current stock, or you may loose them all. Set up a 10 gallon (38 l) quarantine tank -- you'll need this for raising fry later. Acclimate the new arrivals by adding 1/4 volumes of water from the new tank once an hour. Angels are really hardy fish. They can live happily in water of pH from 6.5 to 8.5 and salinity from 80 to 500+ppm. They may survive lower temperatures (70-80F, 21-27C) but prefer 85-90F. High hardness can be stressful. High concentrations of waste products are bad; water changes of 1/4 to 1/2 volume daily are best for crowded tanks, though they can survive (but will rarely breed) with 10% weekly changes in uncrowded tanks.
Put new arrivals in a tall bucket with an air stone. I set up a siphon from the hospital tank, using airline tubing through a valve -- or a simple knot. I calibrate the drip rate to quadruple the volume of the original water in 8 to 12 hours. When the volume in the bucket is sufficient, I move the submersible heater from the hospital tank to the bucket, to minimize thermal shock. When the temperatures are right, I transfer the fish using a net, discarding the water in the bucket. Move a conditioned sponge filter from an established tank to the new tank. Later, if you're moving them into a tank with other Angels, it's best to use a partition for a few days to reduce territorial disputes. Move them in the late evening, they'll be less hostile in the morning.
The common white spot disease, Ich, can't survive in warm water, 85-95F (30-35C). Check the newsgroups, using DejaNews at www.deja.com. Join the Stripes mailing list at world.std.com/~enjolras/stripes-sub.html, but try searching the archives before asking questions.
Through a special arrangement with Lloyd Spear, who formerly operated Pinebush Angels, I am presenting parts of his old Web site, including Lloyd's FAQ. It deals with some really important topics: fry dying, quarantine, and what to do about aggressive fish. See Lloyd's FAQ , http://websvirginia.com/pinebush/asklloyd/frydying.htm. I'm also quoting an important letter from the his Archives here:
Dec 11 1998
Quarantine of new fish
by Lloyd SpearOnce an aquarist moves beyond the beginning hobbyist stage, one of the most misunderstood yet most important keys to continued success is the requirement to quarantine new fish.
Now, I know that quarantining new fish is a pain in the neck at best, and sometimes is totally impractical. Nonetheless, if you have fish that have a considerable monetary or sentimental value, and add new fish without a quarantine period, you will (eventually) cause your fish to die. I will explain the ‘why” of this, and then outline quarantine procedures that are both effective and practical.
Your fish harbor bacteria, and probably also harbor parasites. Fish are animals, and all animals (including you and me) are host to bacteria and parasites. Most are harmless, at least most of the time. For example, each human carries skin bacteria that can cause a deadly infection if they can get into the bloodstream. That is why our skin is cleaned with alcohol before an injection. The bacteria are totally harmless on our skin. In a similar manner, we all have microscopic animals that live on our skin and are parasites. They do us no harm, but they are there.
Often the reason fish and we are not harmed by the presence of bacteria and parasites is that our immune systems keep the organisms in check. In fact, one of the most common sources of infections that cause illness or death is exposure to new bacteria or parasites that our immune systems have not yet learned to cope with. This is why we have all heard of someone putting a new perfectly healthy fish in a tank, and several days or weeks later having other fish start to die. The new fish was carrying bacteria or parasites, or both, to which it had some degree of immunity, while the fish all ready in the tank did not have immunity to those organisms. Of course, the reverse is true as well, and is the most common reason that new, healthy fish introduced into an existing tank will often become sick and eventually die.
The purposes of quarantine are:
- to allow time for any harmful bacteria or parasites (hereafter called “pathogens”) to cause the new fish to become ill or die. (If the new fish dies, so will the bacteria and parasites.)
- to allow time for the immune systems of the new fish to adjust to any new pathogens in the owners other tanks
- to determine if the new fish is carrying pathogens that will be harmful to the owners existing fish.
When a new fish or fishes are bought, they should first be put into a tank in a separate room from existing tanks and, if feasible, on a separate floor. They need to have their own bucket, nets, hoses, etc. and not share those items with the other tanks. My first step is to just leave the fish alone, make certain they are eating well, and observe for about two weeks.
At water temperatures of 80 degrees (F) and up, parasites and bacteria multiply very fast. If the new fish do not die or become severely weak in two weeks, any bacteria or parasites are not harmful to it. Next, I start adding water from my existing tanks in place of water taken from the new fish. This water, of course, contains a sample of all the bacteria and parasites in my other tanks.
I totally change the water in the tank with the new fish in no more than 3 days time, and then continue to add new amounts for the next three to four weeks. If the new fish continue to be healthy at the end of that time, I know that there is nothing in my tanks that will harm them.
I then take fish from my existing tanks to but in with the new fish. I use guppies that I keep for this purpose, as well as angels with deformities. I first stress the fish by putting them in a bucket with very little water for at least 4-6 hours. Then I put them into the tank with no further acclimation. (The purpose of introducing stress is that the immune systems do not work as well when animals are under stress.) I then watch the new fish carefully for another 3-4 weeks. If they do not weaken or die, I then know that nothing about the new fish will harm the fish in my other tanks, and the quarantine period is over.
In the examples I have given, none of the fish became sick. If the fish become sick, the aquarist must decide whether to medicate or destroy both the ill fish and the new fish (if different). If the aquarist chooses to medicate, and the fish recover, the quarantine period must start again! The reason is because the fish might have become ill due to only one of a number of pathogens that are being harbored, and each pathogen needs to be identified.
Personally, I destroy the ill fish, wash out the tank(s), buckets, airlines, nets, etc. with a Clorox solution, and decide whether to start over with new fish. The reason I do not medicate is that almost none of the medications are effective in water with a pH above 7.5, and my pH is 8.0. While I can treat for external parasites with medications that is not pH sensitive, such medications are not effective for internal parasites. With my limited choices, I would rather destroy the fish than take a chance of a pathogen entering my hatchery.
I hope I have convinced you to quarantine all new fish and offered advice that you will find useful in doing so.
If you want quick help from the experts, please go to The Angelfish Forum!
Topic: "Angel Fish Egg Bound
Author:
Email: ewand@valleynet.bc.ca
Remote User:
Date: 04 Nov 1999
Time: 18:45:30
Comments
Hi, I have Angel fish which continously laying eggs. I've had them for about two years. Today I discoverd one off my angels not doing well. I think that she is egg bound. What can I do to help her before I lose her. She's still fairly strong. Please help.
Emily Wand
Topic: Sick Fish
Author: Robin
Email: Binny0597@aol.com
Remote User:
Date: 23 Nov 1999
Time: 00:10:09
Comments
When I set up my first 10 gallon tank a few years back, I put 6 angelfish in it and four of them got sick and died. I don't know if it was some sort of disease that I don't know about, but their fins just started to break off. They looked awful and they must have been suffering, but I had no idea what it could have been or what caused it, and then they died one by one. I removed them from my tank when I realized something was wrong, and the other two went unaffected by it, and later spawned. Any idea what it was that killed the others?
Topic: Fin deformities
Author: David Gerrard
Email: CarboyJunkies@Webhart.net
Remote User:
Date: 18 Mar 2000
Time: 12:02:15
Comments
Hi...I picked up 3 juveniles about 3-4 months ago. They live with 6 neons in 25gals, all appear lively & hungry. In the last 4 weeks the angels fins are becoming deformed. The long pecs are becoming bent as are the dorsals and lower spike, tails are not well defined either. No sign of fungus, no missing scales, symptoms appear slowly progressive. My temp was low (74) according to your data, and I have not been changing water as often as you recommend either.....could the cause be this simple? Also, I only have the basic flake food. Any info is greatly appreciated......David
Topic: dying Angels
Author: Alinda Buckingham
Email: alinda@fairwayhills.com
Remote User:
Date: 24 Apr 2000
Time: 00:06:06
Comments
I had angels in my 29 gallon community tank for about 4 years. When my big goldfish died I dicided to get some little fish. I bought some swordtails and platies and both my angels suddenly died. I bought two new angels, but I haven't been able to keep any of them alive for more than a week. Do angels have problems when kept with other species of fish. All my other fish are fine. My platies are breeding like crazy. Any Ideas?
Topic: Sick Adult Black Angel
Author: Cathy DiFilippo
Email: cathylynnd@hotmail.com
Remote User:
Date: 08 Jun 2000
Time: 14:57:29
Comments
I have a pair of black angels that are close to one year old. About a month ago, my female spawned. Within a day or two of spawning, she developed a white growth at her dorsal fin. I began to notice little nodules under her skin that would erupt. She is no longer getting the nodules but she is still getting the white spots that I am absolutely positive is not ick. I have treated with maracide, baktopur, and am now treating with coppersafe. I have also added salt to the water. I noticed today that my two large discus are developing tiny nodules now. I am at my wits end. I hate to destroy the angel, she is still eating and swimming in a normal fashion. Can anyone come up with any other suggestions? By the way, when I treated her in a hospital tank with the baktopur, I noticed dust bunny like substances floating in the water shortly after medication. Anyone know what it could be?