Golden Gouramis, hlth.  1/27/08 Hi there! We have a new 72 gallon tank. Set it up, left it for a week, tested the water, and all seems perfect (nitrates, ammonia etc come up as ideal on the test strips) except it may be just a bit alkaline. Bought our first fish 3 golden Gouramis, 5 rosy tetras and 3 long fin serpae tetras. <Serpae tetras -- Hyphessobrycon serpae, plus related species in the genus -- are notorious fin-nippers. You can probably already see their raggedy fins. Anyway, they're not compatible with Gouramis. Unless you want Gouramis with nibbled fins, Finrot and Fungus. Please please please research fish before buying them. Lots of so-called "community fish" aren't.> Also moved a rather large (6") Pleco from a previous tank. All seemed well until yesterday, when one of the Gouramis colours seemed to start fading and the bottom edges of his bottom fins appear orangish. <Which "bottom fins"? If the pelvic fins (the "feelers") those can change colour according to sex. Certainly that's the case with Trichogaster microlepis. Not sure about Trichogaster trichopterus though. If the anal fin (the unpaired long fin between the "feelers" and the tail fin) then I'd suspect Finrot. The bacteria start by forming clots in the blood vessels, and these turn pink. Eventually the surrounding tissue dies, and the fins rot away from the trailing edge inwards. Treat at once, and remove the Serpae tetras, since they're as likely as anything to start Finrot in Gouramis. Finrot is normally caused either by physical damage (e.g., nipping) or poor water quality, so do also check the nitrite just to be sure.> Today, he didn't eat, even though he was at the surface of the tank, and then he went and hid at the bottom of the tank. The other two Gouramis seem normal and are eating and I haven't seen any sign of aggressive behaviour. I have no idea if these Gouramis are male or female or how to tell the difference. <Male Trichogaster trichopterus have much longer dorsal fins; the female's dorsal fin is about half the size, if that.> One other thing, the faded Gourami seems to be trailing a thin white poop. don't know if this means anything. <Can mean a variety of things. It isn't normal, but it isn't necessarily a disaster either. A more varied, high-fibre diet is probably the thing you need to do here.> Also wanted to ask about the Pleco. He has always been somewhat reclusive, but now that he is in the big tank, he has retreated into a hollow tower (I can see his fins, and they do move) and hasn't come out in about 3 days. Should I be worried about him, or is this normal? <Put some cucumber or courgette in the tank tonight. If it's been eaten by the morning, then all is well. If it's still there, then you may have a problem.> I am still feeding him with Spirulina tabs. Looking forward to your reply, Cheryl <Hope this helps, Neale.>  

Gouramis weird behavior  8/5/07 My wife came home last week with a surprise birthday present... a 5-gal tank setup, with everything the (supposedly knowledgeable) pet store ppl said she would need, plus 2 Gouramis, which after looking at a lot of online pictures seem like they're blue Gouramis, although they look silver to me. She doesn't know the first thing about fishkeeping, but she knows I am into fish so she spent the 80 bucks on this whole thing, which is an Eclipse hex5 complete aquarium kit, plus gravel, a heater, and a couple of plastic plants. Fine. So I set everything up as carefully as I could, added warm water and conditioner, started the filter going, the temp was in the high 70s, floated the fish in the bag and added them after 45-50 minutes. Temp stays between 77-80 even though heater is only set to 73. Basically, since then they've been exhibiting really weird behavior. First of all, one of them has from the beginning been chasing and nipping at the other one. They alternate between floating at the top, hiding behind the filter intake - or at the bottom behind a plant. When they're not fighting they're usually separate, one in each of the aforementioned locations. They picked-on one looks like its dorsal and tailfins are starting to get ripped. I still have one day left on the return policy. Is the best thing to just let them be; return one (and hope to get some other kind of compatible fish); or return both and start with some other fish? Thanks so much. -Moshe <Hello Moshe, Although the fish you have may well be blue Gouramis -- Trichogaster trichopterus -- this name "blue Gourami" is merely applied to one variety within the species. The natural forms are silvery, brownish, or light blue; the artificial varieties come in bright yellow, lavender, and dark blue. The give-away clue for most varieties is that there are three dark spots on each flank: one spot is the eye, the second is halfway along the body, and the third close to the tail. Right, now, having solved the identity of the fish: heating. Ignore the number of the heater-thermostat. These devices are very simple bi-metallic strips used to cut off the power above a certain temperature. I remember learning about how these worked at school in physics class, and I'm sure you do to. All that happens is above a certain temperature one of the metals in the strip expands further than the other, bending it away from the contacts, breaking the circuit. These devices are very inaccurate. So, if your heater is heating the tank too much, trust the thermometer, and set the heater lower. In summer, I turn my heaters to their minimum settings: the day/night cycle between around 25-18C / 77-64F is absolutely fine for most tropical fish and far closer to the "wild" than the constant temperatures we usually aim for. Second, the fighting: what you describe is 100% normal for Trichogaster trichopterus. Males of this species are mutually antagonistic, and males also tend to be bullies towards any other Gouramis or even Gourami-looking fishes such as small cichlids or Bettas. Males can be identified by their orange (rather than white) pelvic fins (the "feelers") and their dorsal fins (which are longer than those on the females). Thirdly, fin damage should be treated *on sight* with anti-Finrot/fungus medication pre-emptively. Failing to do this often leads to Finrot and fungus, and once you start having sick fish, the hobby becomes a lot less fun. Finally, you have a 5 gallon tank. I assume 5 US gallons, but 5 Imperial gallons would make any difference to this comment either: Your tank is FAR TOO SMALL for anything much, let alone a pair of Gouramis. With respect to your wife who doubtless was trying to buy you a nice, fun present -- there's nothing more difficult in this hobby than trying to make a stable aquarium in 5 gallons. It's too small. Conditions easily slip from safe to dangerous, and very, very few fish are inactive and small enough to be content in such tiny living quarters. Thing about it, 5 gallons is the size of a bucket. Can you imagine many fishes living in such a small "pond" in the wild? At best, you could keep a few gobies and shrimps. Gobies are small (most around an inch) and don't stray far from their chosen cave (like a seashell). Bumblebee gobies (Brachygobius spp.) are the most popular gobies in the hobby, though they will not eat flake and so come under the heading of "fish for semi-experienced hobbyists" in all fairness. On the shrimp front, there are these darling little cherry shrimps (Neocaridina denticulata sinensis) that are bright red and very easy to breed, and kept on their own with a few aquarium plants can make enchanting pets. But other small things like guppies or Neons won't be happy in a 5 gallon tank, whatever your pet store tells you. Now, if you ask me why do pet shops sell tanks for $80 that can't be used to keep fish, the answer is simple -- people buy them as impulse presents or without knowing anything else about the hobby. But 99 times out of a 100, these 5 gallon tanks end up sinking into a morass of dead fish and bad water, and the would-be hobbyist gives up. So, anyway, I hope this helps. Cheers, Neale>

Gourami disease? 8/1/07To Whom It May Concern: <That would be me.> I have a 20-gallon tank with one angel fish, one opal Gourami, and what I think was called a tropical Gourami. <No idea what a "tropical Gourami" is because they're all from the tropics! But my guess would be some variety of dwarf Gourami, Colisa lalia or else a corruption of the name Trichogaster trichopterus, the common three-spot Gourami usually sold in its yellow or blue varieties. The Opaline Gourami is also Trichogaster trichopterus.> My angel fish and tropical Gourami are thriving, growing, and seem to be just fine. My opal, however, has been covered in what I can only describe to be an ever-increasing patch of fur for the past several weeks. <Fungus, Finrot, or "mouth fungus" (the latter neither a fungus nor confined to the mouth). Treat quickly, ideally with a combined anti-fungus/anti-Finrot medication.> I've treated the tank with anti-fungal, and after making two trips to the local fish store have come up empty-handed with ideas as to what this could possibly be (the local fish experts had no idea - they just kept giving me things to try). <Supplement the treatment of the tank with saltwater dips. Take some sea salt or some other non iodised cooking salt, add 35 grammes to 1 litre of aquarium water, and stir well. When dissolved, dip the fish into the salt water for anything from 1 minute to 10 minutes, depending on the size of the fish. The idea is to dehydrate the external pathogens and cleanse the skin (it's basically the same thing as doing a salt water gargle to heal a mouth ulcer, for example).> The opal is tiny in comparison to its tankmates (despite being brought into the tank at the same time), the pH/nitrate/nitrite levels in my tank are testing fine, and I add salt with every water change, as well as water balancing solution, and this little one gets worse (again, despite the other fish growing beautifully). <Please stop adding salt to the tank. It isn't required and it isn't helping. Freshwater fish don't need salt in their water (if they did, they'd be saltwater fish!). Now, what do you mean by "fine" when it comes to water quality and chemistry? Specifically, your fish need a pH between 6.5-7.5; 0 nitrite and ammonia; and less than 50 mg/l nitrate. When fish get symptoms of the sort you describe, it usually comes about one of two ways: poor water quality or as a result of physical damage. So, check off water quality first. Are the nitrite and ammonia values zero? Do you change 50% of the water each week? Do you add dechlorinator each time? As for physical damage, either the fish are fighting or you're handling the fish badly, e.g., when netting it. Fighting among Trichogaster trichopterus is very common: the males are EXTREMELY aggressive, and will attack most other Gouramis, not just their own species.> The opal eats little, sucks air from the surface occasionally, and has lost all of its color except for red near the tail (which is covered in the "fur"). The "fur" looks almost like spores of some sort, however it doesn't match the descriptions for ich (which I've treated anyway with the anti-fungal), wiggly-worms, or any other pictures I've found so far on the internet. <Well, can't be certain without a photo, but highly likely one of the three diseases mentioned earlier. Dwarf Gouramis (Colisa lalia) also suffer from 'Dwarf Gourami Disease' which is a bacterial or viral problem (possibly both) and is incurable. Trichogaster trichopterus doesn't tend to get this disease, so we can probably cross that one off, but you might want to check out these two different species and see if you (your fish shop) have identified them correctly.> This brave little guy keeps fighting, and he moves quick when he needs to, but mostly he's just lethargic and hangs out well out of the way of the bigger two fish, either near the top or on the bottom of the tank. <Doesn't sound all that promising, I admit.> Any suggestions? Thank you! Amanda <Hope this helps, Neale>

3 spot Gourami w/ pop-eye; not enough useful information, poor grammar, etc...  7/28/07Hi crew <Hello there, Jorie here today.> I <I> ...was looking at my fish today and I <I> saw my 3 spot Gourami as <with?> ...pop eye with blood at the bottom of the eye. is <Is> ...there anything I <I> ...can do? What is happening none of my other fish are all fine <I assume you mean none of your other fish are affected or ill, right?> <OK, first off, when you write us, please take a few additional moments to use proper grammar, capitalization, sentence case, etc. Since your query was so short, I fixed it to make it readable (we do publish our responses to queries on the Daily FAQs site - see here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/daily_faqs3.htm and in order to make the Q&As understandable to all, we do request that our writers comply with these requests: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/faqstips.htm More to the point, now: I need a lot more information to be able to help you here. Facts like how large your tank is, how long it has been setup, what type of filtration is used, what livestock you have, water temperature, pH, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings, water change schedule, etc. are all necessary information. Generally speaking, what I can tell you is that pop eye is caused by poor water quality, so do check your water parameters with a quality liquid reagent test kit. I suggest isolating the sick fish into its own hospital tank (filtered and cycled; as to the latter, use water from the main tank so as not to shock the ill fish's system) and treating with Epsom salt (1 tsp. per 5 gallons of H20) and pristine water conditions. I'm betting your tank has a harmful, if not lethal buildup of toxins which are causing your problems. The Gourami may just be the first fish to exhibit symptoms, but if the water quality's poor, the others will soon follow suit... I can give you better/more specific suggestions if you give me the information I've requested above... Best regards, Jorie> thank you <Thank you!>

Re: 3-spot Gourami w/ pop-eye; still not much useful info...recommend reading, increasing water changes - 08/05/07 Hi Jorie <Hi again; sorry for the delay in responding, I've been traveling around a bit and haven't had much time to check in here...> Ok, my tank is 5ft by 4ft <In order to calculate the volume, I need the depth measurement as well; it does sound like this is a good sized aquarium, though.> ...and it has been set up for 4yrs now. <Great.> I have never had this problem before. <Sometimes issues are cumulative...> I have one catfish, 4 barbs and the others are all types of tetras. <It would be helpful to know the species of each here.> And I have fresh weeds in the tank <Again, species?> The water gets changed every 3 months <Ideally, once a tank has established its nitrogen cycle, you should be performing a 10-20% water change every week or two (this depends on how heavily stocked the tank is, how good the filtration is, how messy the species of fish you have are, etc.; without more information, it's impossible for me to make a more specific recommendation.)> ...and the temperature is 82 <A bit high, but so long as it is stable, should be OK.> ...the pH and ammonia are good <Useless info. I can't tell you what's an ideal pH for your tank, as I don't know really what you are keeping. As for ammonia, it should be at zero, as should nitrite levels.> ...nitrate is a bit low; could this be the problem and if so how do I change it? <I think you are confused. As far as nitrates go, the lower the better; as high as 20 ppm is acceptable, but more towards zero is ideal. Do read here for info. on cycling a tank: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwestcycling.htm Also, I recommend getting a copy of David E. Boruchowitz's "Simple Guide to the Freshwater Aquarium" - it's a very comprehensive, clear book geared towards beginners. I know you have had your tank for several years now, but you don't seem to have a good grasp on Fishkeeping 101, which you and your fish could very much benefit from. Also browse here for many helpful articles on freshwater fishkeeping: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwsetupindex.htm > Thanks <I don't know how much I've helped. Again, Popeye is generally caused by poor environmental conditions. As recommend before, I would isolate this fish into a cycled, heated, filtered aquarium and treat with clean water and Epsom salt. Aside from that, the best thing you can do for your critters is read and learn... Best wishes, Jorie>

Blue Gourami - fin trouble!   7/28/07 Hi there. My husband and I are quite new to keeping tropical freshwater fish, so a little help in diagnosing a problem with our blue Gourami would be appreciated. Have searched the net and have found your site and are hoping for some help. <OK, will do my best.> We have a 35 Gallon tank, have checked all water parameters and they are fine. In fact we have baby fish (in a baby net 2 weeks old) which are thriving at the moment, so the water is fine. <Can you define "fine"? You see, not all tropical fish want the same things. Some want warmer water, others cooler. Some want an acid pH, others a basic pH. Some want hard water, others soft. Some are intolerant of low levels of pollution, others will put up with it for a while. So we need numbers -- at the very least, pH, hardness, nitrite, and temperature. These 4 are usually pretty good indicators of conditions in the aquarium, and are the essential ones every aquarist should have to hand.> A couple of weeks ago we noticed our Blue Gourami had a small white (pin head) spot on its side fin. <Almost certainly whitespot/ick. Treat on sight, because it is extremely contagious.> Its appetite and activity levels are normal. We asked the LFS and they said to keep an eye on it and that if it multiplied or the fishes behaviour changed we would possibly need to treat for White Spot. <Not brilliant advice.> Nothing changed for a week then another white spot appeared on the opposite side fin! <It's whitespot. It spreads.> This one has since become red and inflamed. This fish had a red spot near the base of its tail a few weeks ago, but this disappeared after a couple of days. We have checked the red lump and it does not seem to be a parasite (nothing to remove) just a red small lumpy mass. Is it a tumour? The fish is absolutely fine in himself...eating fine and swimming normally. Tumours are rare in freshwater fish, though they happen. The red inflammation is unrelated to the whitespot. Almost certainly you have water quality issues, and what you're seeing is the simultaneous appearance of Finrot (the red) and whitespot. These are both extremely common in new aquaria. They must be treated immediately because both have the potential to cause fatalities.> He has been chasing my Gold Gourami about so is this maybe an injury sustained during courtship? They do get quite frisky! <No, he's not courting. He's fighting. Blue and gold Gouramis are the same species (Trichogaster trichopterus) and the males are legendarily aggressive and nasty fish. You would not believe the number of times I've been asked to help out where someone has an aquarium with this fish causing havoc. It's what they do. Males have orange pelvic fins (the "feelers") and extra-long dorsal fins, so are usually quite easy to sex.> No other fishes in the aquarium seem to be having any problems. We have 6 Danios, 2 goldfish, 1 Plec, 2 red Indian Gourami and a Japanese Weather loach who is a real character!! <An interesting selection of fish. I happen to be a great fan of weather loaches, so I'm sure he is fun to watch.> All the fish are non aggressive and we have a lovely pleasant tank. <Famous last words...> I am just worried about Bluey. I really hope that you can help us. <Done my best. Hope this helps.> Many thanks Louise & Ady <Good luck, Neale.>

Re: Blue Gourami - fin trouble!  7/29/07 Hi Neale, <Hello Louise,> Should I treat the whitespot and the fin rot at the same time? Or give the tank chance to recover between the two medications? <This depends on the medication used. In general though you need to complete one treatment before doing another. In this case, I'd tend to treat the whitespot first and then the Finrot. Between each "course" of treatment, do two 50% water changes (one one evening, the other the next morning) so that you flush out most of the first medication used. Oh, and one last thing: make sure you remove carbon before using any medication. To be honest, I'd recommend not using carbon at all unless you have a specific need for it. The space in the filter where carbon goes is better used by extra biological filter media.> Does this affect the filter, <No, not if you follow the instructions.> And are there any tips on what I should be looking for in the water chemistry, just in case I have missed a test kit? <Not really sure what you mean here. What you want are values within the range tolerated by the fish in question. So a blue Gourami is good between pH 6 and 8, so if you have pH 7.5, that's fine. Likewise they're good at medium hardness levels, around 5-15 dH being about right, so if you have hardness 12 dH, that's fine too.> Water temp is 27 degrees, ammonia within safe levels indicated on test tube kit, as was nitrate and nitrite levels. <Ah, now this is where things unwind. There is NO "safe" range of either ammonia or nitrite. For your fish to be healthy, both must be ZERO. While the test kit might suggest anything up to 0.5 mg/l ammonia and 1.0 mg/l nitrite is acceptable, this is only true during the cycling phase, and even then, it severely stresses the fish and can kill them. At the least, it makes them more vulnerable to ambient pathogens -- whitespot and Finrot for example. So if your test kits show ANY nitrite or ammonia, then you have problems; likely the tank is either immature, overstocked, overfed, or under-filtered. Nitrate is the ONLY one of these things that has a safe range. In general, up to 50 mg/l is safe for standard tropical fish, though rather less, around 20 mg/l, for more delicate things like dwarf cichlids and discus. In other words, don't tell me you think the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate are "safe", tell me what the exact numbers are. If they're not 0, 0, and <50 mg/l, then they're not safe.> All very low levels, water hardness is a problem in this area but the LFS said all the fish we have can deal with it. <Water chemistry is almost never the issue people think it is. Admittedly, there are some species than need either soft water or hard water. Mollies and other livebearers need hard water and are sickly when kept in soft water. But a lot of the standard stuff like Gouramis, barbs, Corydoras, Plecs, loaches, etc., adapt just fine to a wide range of conditions. Any aquarium book will suggest values for any given species, and it's always a good idea to choose your fish by selecting species that will do well in your local water conditions. If your water is very hard and has a high pH, then choosing things like Rainbowfish and livebearers is the way to go.> We condition any tap water we use and cycle regularly. 20% water change every 2 weeks. <OK. Conditioning the water is good. Adding Cycle (or any other bacteria supplement) is pointless. Once the filter is established, it is self-maintaining. Adding more bacteria is kind of like adding more grass seed every week to a lawn. All the filter bacteria want is to be left alone and that every month or so you gently clean the media in a bucket of aquarium water (not fresh water!) to dislodge some of the silt and detritus. But that's it. As for water changes, you need to raise your game. 50% a week is a good amount. Water changes cost almost nothing to do, but they make such a big difference to the health of the fish.> Gravel clean every 3/4 weeks. Plastic plants only, internal filter, 200w heater, kept lit for about 8 hours a day minimum. <All sounds fine.> Many thanks, Louise <Good luck! Cheers, Neale>

Blue Gourami turned black  5/30/07 Hi.. we got a large tank, like 64 gallons and a few kinds of fish several weeks ago, one was a fire Gourami and we diagnosed it with dropsy but it died. <Greetings. Dropsy is a symptom, not a disease. It can be caused by all kinds of stuff. I'd bet all the money in my pockets though that your fish actually died from Dwarf Gourami Disease, which is highly contagious and practically ubiquitous in factory-farmed dwarf Gouramis. Long term, your tank is unsafe for dwarf Gouramis, and any you buy will likely catch the bacteria or virus involved and die.> We put the proper medicine in but now one of our blue Gouramis turned almost completely black, we are still using the dropsy medicine as directed by the box and we cant figure out why he/she is turning black. <There's no such thing as Dropsy Medicine. Wish there was. Anything that says it fixes dropsy is being, let us say, a little generous with its marketing. It's about par with things from the drugstore that say they cure colds. They don't. Anyway, as a matter of course you should always finish the medication as directed on the packaging. Once finished, large scale water changes are an extremely good idea. I'd recommend at least a 50% water change this week.> Does anyone know why? or how to help him/her? or how to protect our other fish from the same thing? <It's difficult to know why your fish has turned black. Gouramis, like most other fish, can change colour to some degree, and often will when stressed. Now, the question here is whether your blue Gourami is Trichogaster trichopterus, the "true" blue Gourami, also known as the 3-spot Gourami; or merely a the all-blue version of the dwarf Gourami Colisa lalia. Trichogaster trichopterus is (apparently) immune or resistant to Dwarf Gourami Disease and generally a very, very hardy animal. It is a largish, elongate fish, around 10 cm or so, and has two black spots, one on its flank and one by the tail. Colisa lalia is a small (5 cm) fish that tends to skulk about the bottom of the tank. The all-blue variant has a neon or cobalt blue colour. If it is Colisa lalia, then chances are it has Dwarf Gourami Disease and will die shortly. A photograph, and some description of its behaviour and eating habits will help. Also, what's the water quality like?> kriebse <Cheers, Neale>

Dead Gourami   5/25/07 Hello, I have a 30 gallon tank it has been running for the better part of a year. In it I have 2 rainbow sharks (they are trying to spawn!), <Neat! Oh, they may be just playing... or fighting!> 3 adult mollies  (2 of which are very pregnant) 12 molly fry, 1 guppy, 5 cardinal tetras, 1 bulldog Pleco, five gold barbs, 1 Kuhli loach, 3 mystery snails, 1 female gold  Gourami (the male died this morning), some floating plants & a few that are rooted in gravel. I test the water quality every two days & do 25% water changes every 7-14 days. The water quality is good , although slightly acidic. I use a BioWheel filter. The temp is 78 degrees. About 2 weeks  ago I noticed that my male Gourami was looking a little fatter than usual,  so I decided to watch him & make sure he was alright. Over the next few  days he started having difficulty swimming & would lay at the bottom of the  tank. (he wasn't being bullied by any other fish) his stomach continued to get  bigger , he stopped eating , &  today I found him dead at the  bottom of my tank. My question is, is this a common occurrence with this type of  fish? <Actually, yes... Trichogaster and Colisa genera Gouramis are "not what they used to be"... and too often suffer such maladies...> I've never had any other problems with him. I had been feeding him tetra  flakes & once a week I give them dried baby shrimp. So nothing crazy  in his diet. I also was wondering if this could be something contagious? <I do hope not... In most cases, an individual will die as you relate here... For importers though, whole batches can go mysteriously... Bob Fenner> Thanks  in advance. -Jenni

Yellow or Gold Gourami  has spots   4/21/07 I'm hoping someone can help me. I have a fairly new 46 gallon freshwater tank that has an assortment of silver dollars, <Mmm, some of these species get quite large... please see fishbase.org, WWM for the genera Metynnis, Myleus, Mylossoma...> 3 kinds of Gouramis, tetras, head and tail lights, black barbs, pictus cats and a plecostomus. I have had the tank for over a month and was adding some new fish to the tank, as I was about to put a new yellow (or gold) Gourami in the tank I saw he had spots on his top fin and one side of his body (right behind his gill). Instead of putting him in the tank I put him in a ten gallon quarantine tank. <Good idea for all such newcomers...> Originally I thought it was ich so I treated it for that but no change other than the spots have gotten larger, more like little clumps. it hasn't spread anywhere else on the body but those spots seem to be more noticeable. He's active and no other problems, but I don't know what to treat him for. I've looked at so many pictures of diseases and it doesn't really look like anything I've seen. I want to say that the spots almost have a light bluish tint to them but that could be from the treatment for ich I was putting in the tank. Any help is greatly appreciated. Heather <Mmmm, might be encysted worms, microsporideans... other such organisms... You could try an anthelminthic like Prazi... perhaps followed by an anti-protozoal like Metronidazole... Both materia medica are discussed on WWM. Bob Fenner>

Happy aquarium with 1 sick golden Gourami  3/30/07 Hi I am Isabelle from Mauritius and I am quite new to fish keeping. <Hello Isabelle... I have never been, but intend to visit, dive the Mascarenes one of these years...> First of all thank you guys for the website!!!!!! I have downloaded recently the FAQs and I must admit that its really useful. Thanks again! I have a 200 litres fresh water tank. Bio sponge filter rock and plastic plants setting. No heater working cause we are in summer and its warm. <Mmm, still a good idea to leave it in, and plugged in... set to a low temperature... Just "in case" the water gets too cold... Won't cost you any electricity if it doesn't...> The inhabitants are: 1 Black Angel (female and DOMINANT), 1 (Lace Angel female), 2 Blue Gourami (males), 3 Golden Gourami (2males and 1 female), 2 pairs of platys and a pair of white mollies. They all seem to be happy so far except that I have a problem with the little male golden Gourami of about 7cm I introduced along with a female about a month ago. The female is growing fast and seem to be cheerful with the other golden male Gourami (no babies so far). But the little male hasnt grown at all. <Mmm... well, males of the Trichogaster genus do tend to grow slower, stay smaller...> He is pretty thin and most of the time lay down on the gravel on one side. He can barely keep his body straight even when he tries to feed from the gravel. <Oh, this is not good> When he does his tail can touch his head, he is kind of folded. He goes time to time to the surface to eat micro pellets, I have bought for him and for some oxygen. Please can you tell me whats wrong with him and what should be done?   <I think this individual may be "defective"... perhaps genetically poorly endowed... does happen with fishes much more than the case with mammals... A good percent don't "make it" at a later stage of neuronal et al. development...> I would also like to have a piece of advice. I would like to introduce a male or two of Angels so as to experience breeding. I would appreciate to know the steps to follow as I fear to have a battlefield in my aquarium. <Mmm, really... to have a useful divider handy... to partition off the breeders from the rest of your fish livestock... or another system to move either set to> The dominant female has her tube down as well as the other one. She sometimes is mischievous and kind of bite the other female. And at times they are side by side as nothing. I plan to set a second tank for the breeding. <Oh, good> The third and last question is that I plan to leave the country for 2-3 weeks and would like to know if its possible to leave the aquarium like this or if there is something I can do to prevent any disease breakout. <If all is fine, stable... no worries. I would train someone in your absence to do water changes, some minimal feeding... and have at least Net access... should they think something is awry> I have a person who can come to feed the fishes daily but doubt if he can do water change Please advise if possible. Thanks in advance Kind regards, Isabelle <Merci, Bob Fenner>

Re: Happy aquarium with 1 sick golden Gourami  3/30/07 Hi Bob, <Isabelle/Alain> Many thanks for your reply. <Welcome my friend> Great to hear you want to come to this part of the planet. And who knows if you can get to Mauritius for vacation, but also get people here to know the wonderful work you guys are doing!!! Keep in touch! <Our dear friend, Peter... who has lived with us some fourteen years, had a farm implement (tractors...) business in Swaziland for some fifteen years... and used to get out to play soccer and rugby on Mauritius and Reunion... We have chatted many times re going there (and Rodriquez) to dive, tourist about... visit with folks at the new aquarium there...> If you think something can be done to get people to know your work here, etc would be happy to help. <Ahh, thank you... Mainly linking, doing your bit to help others...> In fact, I have started to talk about your website. Not much, but it might help some novice like me... sorry but it's even more work for you guys :-) <Heeeee! No worries> My LFS told me the same thing as regards the sick male Gourami. Still I didn't want to lose faith.... Well guess it should be so.... <Don't lose faith... Remember... very, make that VERY important... such negative thinking leads to closing of your mind to infinite possibilities... Do not allow yourself to sink, turn to such a waste of precious resources> I got the heater back in the tank just in case.... <Ah, good> Think I will try breeding Angels when I get back, they are my favourite. You are all doing a wonderful job and please keep this up because God knows it's hard when you feel helpless in front of the tank...... Kind regards, Isabelle <Mmm, do also search a bit re the use, application of Epsom Salt here... I do sense this might be useful. Bob Fenner> Re: Happy aquarium with 1 sick golden Gourami   3/31/07 Bonjour Bob! <Isabelle!> So it won't be your first visit!!! <Mmm, will be mine, not Pete's> Well I do encourage you and your folks to come back anytime!! Let me know! <Ah, appreciate this> Thanks for your encouraging words. It's just that I wonder if the little guy is suffering. Don't have the courage to put him down. <I understand...> Don't worries I don't lose faith in fish keeping, these little guys help me a lot out of stress! I think all the fish keepers will agree at least when noooooooo trooooubles in the tank!!!!! Many thanks for the advice on the Epsom salt. In fact, I have started to collect maximum info from the FAQs on Fresh water Angels and doing some research work too. Actually anthemia for hatching the baby brine are not available on the market. My LFS guy suggested green water. I must first set the breeding tank I think before jumping with both feet in this adventure, especially if I have to leave the country for some weeks... <I see> But I will surely try to make either the Angels or Gouramis to spawn. I think I will like to watch them grow and turn into these amazing fishes. <Agreed> Anyway, I think you will here me sooner or later, especially when in trooooooubles..... Thanks again for your quick replies. Kind regards, Isabelle <Welcome my friend. Bob Fenner>