Quarantining Apistogramma's before inclusion in main tank

[parkap]

Hi All,

I've hard some bad luck with my male apisto's lately - especially my agassizii's. None of my male agassizii's have survived and I've tried from three different LFS's (the females are doing absolutely fabulously). And the male trifasciata I got recently also died (again the female is doing great).

One thing I think I should improve is my quarantining practices - or lack thereof.

I'd love to know how you all set up your quaratining tanks, how long you keep new fish in them, what chemicals you use (eg. melafix, other stress reducing treatments - and do you stick to the dosage directions on the bottles or add more / less), what kind of filteration, temperatures, pH, etc.

Thanks,
Peter.

[Th0mas]

I've had a quarantine tank, but now it's occupied by a pair of apisto.

It is a gamble without the quarantine at home, and you can only mitigate some risk by choosing stock carefully.

Fortunately is my display tank runs at very low pH, making it very difficult for infection to spread.

In the past when I had the tank, I keep newly aquired stock in there for at least 1 month before moving them out. Only medicate when required, as most fish would have been through the initial quarantine cycle by the LFS already. The tank is bare with minimal equipment. Large sponge filter powered by an air pump and a good heater to ensure temperature can be restore quickly after large water change.

There are people who will add all sort of chemical as a preventitive measure, but keeping them in isolation will allow enough time for any nasties to show. So there's no need to dose the tank unless it's needed.


Thomas.

[hengeli]

I don't normally quarantine my apisto. They go in my 2 tanks as soon as they have been floated, although I will not add any water from the bag to my tank. I usually hand catch and release my fish.

I used to have a problem with apistos not doing well after a week or so, its the wild ones that are a little sensitive. They will need an established tank with good water quality.

andre

[parkap]

So is quaratining only used really to prevent diseases from the new fish spreading to the rest of the tank or also an important tool in aclimatising and settling a fish after transport?

Given most of the fish I've purchased recently have been imports, and gone through the usual AQIS quarantine periods, I more worried at the unexplained deaths I've been having, that don't seem to be due to disease (well known that are identifiable), rather than the chance of disease spreading.

p.

[hengeli]

Apisto are very hardy fish from my experience, however most of them only do well with good water quality. Even though, they have gone through quarantine, you have to take additional steps to ensure they last in your tanks.

What I usually do is ask the shop to bag each fish individually, this reduces the chances of bullying in transport and causes the fish less stress.

Chances are if they are not doing well in your tanks, its the water that has to be targeted. Even though I take great care with my apisto, mysterious deaths still do occur, even my alpha males IME.

andre

[parkap]

I've looked into and investigated my male agazissii problem for quite a while now, including posts on a number of forums. My water quality and parameters don't seem to be the problem. But having so many of those: "sometimes they jsut die" fish, just seems to be too big of a coincidence.

p.

[sharn]

bad stock?

[parkap]

bad stock?


That's all I can put it down to, but from 3 different shops, all of them were imported directly by the individual LFS, over the course of 2 months. That's a pretty good run of bad luck.

p.

[Reillin]

There are a few reasons why male apistos die and I'll list it to try and hope that one of them will help all dwarf keepers.

Wrong food. Usually fish are starved before transportation. And in many cases, they were newly imported so are very skinny. This is a problem for Apistogrammas as they may be a continually feeder in the wild. That is they eat small amounts continuously. This starvation period can be unnatural as copepods exists in all seasons, albeit slightly less. I find it perplexing that many shop will not ship a fish with a tag with pH, hardness, and food that they have been feeding.

Males work harder. Definitely my view. If you would notice, a male will show more aggression when in a new territory. He is in the process of staking out new boundaries. I think that during this time, more energy is expended and in the presence of another male fish (even in another tank, but visible) it can cause undue stress.

Intestinal parasites. Unfortunately, this is not easily curable or even prevented. We have, especially stock from the wild, many parasites that may live quite happily with the fish. However, this fish is healthy and so outwardly displays no signs of sickness. So you could be sent healthy looking fish, however the shipping is stressful, so these parasites can weaken a fish even further. I have heard of people using Metro(spelling) but can give no advice on this medicine.

Overfeeding. Definitely a common mistake, especially with fish that are emaciated. It is important to feed a fish with a hollow stomach only minute amounts and to make sure that they eat it. If a fish spits food, try some live food, but again small amounts, even only one daphnia! Or a few copepods. Again, watch to see that the fish will ingest it properly. Of course, you need to do this on a regular basis until the fish is fat again.

I believe, if the shop has successfully kept your fish alive and healthy for an extended period of time, then going back to their holdng conditions as fast as possible will help in their survival. This pH, temp, hardness and food.

I am hoping some of these points can help everyone with their small charges.

Cheers,
Vien.

Recently my male Inka 50 died. I attributed this to a very hot day and also I recently added a breeding pair of A. panduro into the tank next to them. The inka 50 flared up, but gradually faded away, and he started hiding. I think it was just little stresses that made him sick and eventually die. Now I have two nice female inka 50s. Hoping to get some more soon.

[parkap]

Vien,

Thanks for all that. Some good information to think on.

p.