# neon tetra losing color in tails, suspicious spot on swordtail head



## djrodan (Sep 22, 2011)

So we've noticed that some of our neon tetras have been getting very bloated and mis-shapen after feeding. One swims head down and swims aimlessly till his belly gets smaller. One swims alone in the corner. They just don't act normal, but then again, we've never owned neons before! My main concern though is that 3 of them have begun to lose coloration in the red band right at the end of the tail, before the fin.

So one of our swordtail is also concerning. The previously pregnant female was crashing around the tank, i thought ready to pop, and after she calmed down (no fry to be seen) I noticed this spot on her head. It's not fuzzy, its not an open sore looking thing, no mouth rot, fins look fine, just like some bad coloration. Shes acting normal otherwise. My girlfriend argues that there are darker striations running down her body that wern't previously there. I agree they wern't as red, but they look like normal fish coloring, like on a striped bass or something. 

Of course I've read into NTD and have gotten all freaked out about it, but wanted to hit up the forum before dousing my tank with chemicals. That's my main concern, avoid chemicals unless I HAVE TO use them, my tank is all natural still, and I would like to keep it as natural as possible.

All the other fish have been acting normal other than the above. ONE other thing we have noticed though. The corys twitch OCCASIONALLY, like a singular twitch. My girlfriend says she has noticed them swim along the plants, which they never use to do. None of them are blatantly 'scratching against objects in the tank'. None of our other fish show any exterior signs of sickness/spots, like ich or anything like that. With the glass cats its easy to spot anything of the sort. 

So thats whats going on... a bunch of random weird symptoms, which could be unrelated, but my fear is that it could be a parasite that they are all experiencing and I can't confirm it. Thanks for any help

side note: I added a second charcoal layer to my filter thinking that the twitch could be some excess toxins. the media are arranged: floss -> charcoal -> floss ->charcoal ->bio rings. Will it hurt having a second charcoal? There's no reason specifically why I might think theres toxins in the tank, I just did it as a precaution and since it was laying around unused. I also havent vacuumed the gravel in a while, going to do that this weekend, but what are the problems associated with neglecting the gravel vacuuming. Lengthy post, lol

1. Size of tank?
-45g
2. Water parameters
a. Ammonia?
-0
b. Nitrite?
-0
c. Nitrate?
-<5ppm
d. pH, KH and GH?
-7.4ph
e. Test kit?
-API Liquid

3. Temperature?
-78deg

4. FW (fresh water) or BW (brackish)? 
-FW

5. How long the aquarium has been set up?
3months
6. What fish do you have? How many are in your tank? How big are they? How long have you had them?
-8 Neon Tetra, 2 weeks
-6 Prestilla Tetra, 4weeks
-3 Swordtails, 2 months
-5 Glass Catfish, 2 months
-5 Cory Catfish, 2 months
-2 shrimp, 2.5 months
-1 BN Pleco, 2 week
-1 assassin snail, 3 weeks

7. Were the fish placed under quarantine period (minus the first batch from the point wherein the tank is ready to accommodate the inhabitants)?
-No

8. a. Any live plants? Fake plants?
-Live
b. Sand, gravel, barebottom?
-gravel
c. Rocks, woods, fancy decors? Any hollow decors?
-malaysian driftwood, local rocks

9. a. Filtration?
-pen-plax 1000 canister
b. Heater?
-yes

10. a. Lighting schedule? What lights are used?
-hanging above light on from 10am-1130pm
b. Any sunlight exposure? How long?
-no

11. a. Water change schedule?
- 20%-30% weekly
b. Volume of water changed?
-above
c. Well water, tap water, RO water?
-tap
d. Water conditioner used?
-stress coat+
e. Frequency of gravel/sand (if any) vacuumed?
-monthly

12. Foods?
How often are they fed?
-daily, flakes, shrimp pel, algae wafers, bloodworms occasionally, 

13. a. Any abnormal signs/symptoms?
b. Appearance of poop?
c. Appearance of gills?

14. a. Have you treated your fish ahead of diagnosis? 
-no
b. What meds were used?
-na

15. Insert photos of fish in question and full tank shot if necessary.


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## GwenInNM (Feb 2, 2011)

djrodan said:


> So we've noticed that some of our neon tetras have been getting very bloated and mis-shapen after feeding. One swims head down and swims aimlessly till his belly gets smaller. One swims alone in the corner. They just don't act normal, but then again, we've never owned neons before! My main concern though is that 3 of them have begun to lose coloration in the red band right at the end of the tail, before the fin.
> 
> So one of our swordtail is also concerning. The previously pregnant female was crashing around the tank, i thought ready to pop, and after she calmed down (no fry to be seen) I noticed this spot on her head. It's not fuzzy, its not an open sore looking thing, no mouth rot, fins look fine, just like some bad coloration. Shes acting normal otherwise. My girlfriend argues that there are darker striations running down her body that wern't previously there. I agree they wern't as red, but they look like normal fish coloring, like on a striped bass or something.
> 
> ...


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## djrodan (Sep 22, 2011)

So theres been some updates:
-I maintained water changes every other day.
-Did a thorough gravel vac. 
-Did NOT decide to medicate.
-Switched water conditioner to Prime

Pros:
-Neons swim more energetically 
-Neons color has not worsened
-Swordtails showed improvement, and went to a new home without other tankmates/potential fish to infect
-Twitch has stopped in corys, as well as they are acting less lethargic 
-a shrimp molted 

Cons:
-1 neon currently has a bad swim bladder problem, hes in a breeder box with some shelled pees, as i hear they help correct swim bladder issues.
-A glass cat has developed a wavy/bent spine in the past 24 hours. He's very active still and seems fine.
-Pleco has what appears to be slight fin rot (discoloration on the tips of his tail fin and top fin, although hes fairly new and I might not have noticed it before. Looking at other pictures of plecos i see similar markings)

What do you think about the glass cat? My concern is still that theres some disease going on. Should I raise my temperature over a couple days? I also don't have access to a hospital tank. Thanks for any/all help!


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## GwenInNM (Feb 2, 2011)

djrodan said:


> So theres been some updates:
> -I maintained water changes every other day.
> -Did a thorough gravel vac.
> -Did NOT decide to medicate.
> ...


 
Good to hear some things are better. I'm not much help when it come to diseases. Why don't you post a question about the glass catfish in the catfish section, and see if anyone has an idea. If you look under the profiles, you'll see the temperature range for that fish, and I'd go to the highest range while they are fighting something. I've also read that Indian Almond leaves are great (do release tannins) for all fish, and can be a great cure for all sorts of things. You can find it on ebay, cheap, if that is something you want to try, verses meds. I have one leaf in each in my tanks. I have no clue about a bent spine?? Wow. If it's active, that is good. I have a Bristlenose Pleco, and I notice that his coloring changes (looks "bad" as skin colortion you mention) but I've also seen it's not there when he's happily eating, so I think that could be nothing, IMO. Keep me posted. Best of luck.

Gwen


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