Can't keep Bristle nose alive

[Hettie_48]

I have lost about 5 bristle noses in a year. What am I doing wrong?

My discus, cory's, rummynoses and tetras are thriving.
I do feed algae pellets and zucini along with discus type foods.

I have rain water only and add discus trace and seachem flourish.
Hettie

[Merrilyn]

Ohh Hettie, that's a shame. I'm no expert on bristlenose, but mine seem to be thriving.

Can you post a little more about your tank and the water parameters.

Another thing, Bristlenose catfish need some wood in their diet (helps with digestion or something) so some driftwood in the tank is essential.

[Hettie_48]

Thanks for the reply Ladyred.

My water parems are
Amonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5 = 10
Ph 7
Gh 3
Kh none, hard to measure
Temp 30
Lots of wood

Bought 4 Bristlenoses and 3 baby discus home 5 days ago and the last BN has just died. Discus are doing great!!

I have a type of casurina tree dropping on my roof (Belah) where the water runs into the rain water tank. Maybe this is it.

Sure would like to get a peppermint BN.

Hope someone can help.
Hettie

[HAN 'd' Aquariums]

Hi Hettie
Can you tell us the size and gender of the bristlenose?
Heidi

[DiscusMad]

I keep getting like a spore looking growth on mine and they die after a week or so I give up on bn

[Hettie_48]

The sizes are 1 male about 50cm from tip of tail and 1 female 40cm.
They both are not doing well.
Others have been about up to 25 cm and 8 little ones that died within a week.
Would it be that I have no KH. Also can't keep any Java fern alive.
Thanks
Hettie

[sharn]

do you mean MM? cause BN dont get to 50cm that i know of, that would be your common/sailfins which are equally as cool :)

when you say no kh do you mean you havent tested or its like 0-1 degree hardness? if its been tested and real low it could be the problem but id think the other fish would also stress, low kh means your water doesnt have much buffering in it which equals ph swings

[Ginko]

Thanks for the reply Ladyred.

My water parems are
Amonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5 = 10
Ph 7
Gh 3
Kh none, hard to measure
Temp 30
Lots of wood

Bought 4 Bristlenoses and 3 baby discus home 5 days ago and the last BN has just died. Discus are doing great!!

I have a type of casurina tree dropping on my roof (Belah) where the water runs into the rain water tank. Maybe this is it.

Sure would like to get a peppermint BN.

Hope someone can help.
HettiePh 7 and none kh?
Is it possible???
May be your ph dances like crazy, but all fishes will show stress signs (especially discus).
I guess, may be, they don't find adeguate foods (lots of them eat only algae), or last idea, not able to live in 30° temperature. Can you remind me the scientific name?

[Hettie_48]

Hi Sharn and Ginko.

Yes I meant 50mm not cm. Sorry.

I do test for KH but the test kit says to ad 1 drop and the water should turn blue and then with added drops it shoud go yellow. Mine with 1 drop goes straight to yellow. But its fairly clear with a slight yellow look. Should I keep adding drops till it gets a dark a yellow as the picture. Then it would be about 4 or 5.
My pH is just about always on 7 and I do test it a lot.

The proper name for BN is Ancistrus.
Thanks for your help.
Hettie

[Ginko]

Is it like this?
(from: http://cichlid1.free.fr/debuter.malawi/ancistrus.JPG )

It is difficult to kill a catfish like this. :roll: :roll:

One thing: did u use some medicine in this last period?
Or it could be that when you put them into the tank you do it fast, and they can't accept easely 30°, but I have many of them everywhere, in all kind of tanks: with african ciclids, in tanks with only plants and with discus, with baryacistrus L81...really strange.
One suggestion: if you don't have some amazon wood try to put a root into the tank, cause they find lots of substances in roots (lignine).
is it possible to see a pic of your tank?
Last mistery is the kh =0
Im sure for 80/ that U use tetra tests, that for kh test is one of the bests.
Get a measure of the tap water and tell me how do u mix r.o. and tap water.
It's possible to have a ph 5,4 or less with kh 0 in few hours..
Let us know.

[mcloughlin2]

Yeah i agree with salvo, bristlenose are very hard to kill...

However do you have any salt in your tank?

BN can not tolerate any salt in their tank at all...they do well in tanks with some driftwood but can live and grow without it... :D

I think the high temperature could also be a problem if they are not adjusted to the temperature slowly... :P

I would not get any peppermints til you have mastered the common bn

HTH

[Brad]

I not sure on your test kit but if it is turning yellow after one drop it sounds like you have very low kh
But this sounds like your problem.

I wouldnt use the rain water you will be suprised what crap gets on our roofs, bird shit,sediment etc. and it may be very soft water.
The rain water may have no natural minerals etc and be too pure, much the same as using straight RO water.

opps just read your post again and realised you have only tank water.
Maybe when in town next get a few 25 litres drums of tap water from a park tap or friend place and try that.

Be best to used aged tap water and see how that goes. or at least mix in tap water with the rain water i you have too

[Hettie_48]

Thanks for all the replies.

After reading them I think it might be salt, as I have put aquarium salt in each tank because the LFS lady said I had to because of using rain water. (for extra minerals etc.)
Also maybe the 8 baby bn couldn't find anything to eat.
I will try again.
Thankyou all

[wild_amazon]

I have many peppermint BN (I breed them).
One thing I notice with BN is that the large ones are much stronger. If they are less than 5 cm they seem to be more succeptible to disease like fungus etc.
I just lost the whole batch to fungus and still don't know how to cure them. This is an ongoing problem with my peppermint BN in the grow out tank.
I think you will get more success if you get the 7-8cm ones. They are much tougher when they get to this size. Make sure they don't have sunken stomach.

[Robdog]

I just found one of my BN's belly up this arvo and in quite a disgusting state. Wouldn't have a clue on the cause. All the other BN's seem fine :?

[marg]

Hettie,

I think your problem is the Salt - they definately don't tolerate it. Move them into a seperate tank with no salt in it and I think you'll find that they will be o.k.

[Phlipper]

I have always found Brissies to be touch and go, and I'm not sure why that is, some people have them in the most disgusting conditions and they thrive. I have 6 ATM that are all doing really well, but a lot died on me before any survived at all, but every now and then one will go belly up for no apparent reason. The last one that died was about 3 weeks ago, an adult female, and very suddenly, the rest are still going fine ?

I actually did a bit of an post mortem on the body just out of curiosity, didn't really know what I expected to find, but.............it's stomach was full to bursting point with black slimy gunk, all fish have slimy black goo in their digestive tracts, but this was excessive, and all I could find was balck goo :shock: My first thought was this particular fish gorged itself to death on either too much of my homemade green food or too much wood grazing...........Brissies never seem to stop grazing !

[goldenpigeon]

part of the answer to your priblem is i think you will find the bristlenoses are fighting.

the white "spore" looking thing on their body is an injury from fighting. brisltenoses will only fight with each other unless they are protecting a spawn.

i have found that if you have a fair few in a tank, especially if they are different ages you need to go out of your way to provide lots of food and shelter. common bristlenoses wont hide that much but particulaerly the larger one like their own place to hide in. NOT ALL HIDING PLACES WILL BE ACCEPTED, a lot of the time they will fight over the best place in the tank.

i have also found that brisltnoses go much better in a tank that is bigger than 2 foot, unless its a breeding pair, and this goes for all sizes.


this is only my experience so im not saying it counts for all, more of my bristlenose tanks are packed anyway so that could be part of the problem.

cheers
David

[Robdog]

And when they fight, gee they go at it! Those spines that come out the side of their gills locking into each other.
That's what I'm putting my recent death down to. He was a smaller male and I guess he was on the recieving end

[Phlipper]

Hmmmmmm, come to think of it, this could be right about the fighting problem..............my dead Brissies all had their side spines protruding noticeably after death.

[goldenpigeon]

i just remembered last year i had 2 males in a 6x2x2 and i was forever seeing them chase each other. peaceful fish when in the community but 2 bulls in an arena when togeather.... these were common bristlenoses.

i have found that my longfin albino bn have never chased each other?! there is only one pot in a standard 2ft and they are the most peaceful fish togeather. they are still young and there are a few of each sex there.... commons are more agressive possibly?