# Please help ASAP!



## covertune (Aug 10, 2012)

I need to know if I should put Mel out of his misery. I just got up and found that he's wedged himself amongst the roots of an anubias, he's not moving aside from his eyes and his gills.

So, I'm pretty sure I know the answer, but what's the best way to do it? I don't want him to suffer.

I'm so heartbroken.


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## Emily (May 4, 2010)

Overdose of clove oil (functions as anesthetic).

Humanely Euthanize Fish | How to Put Fish to Sleep Using Clove Oil - Oscarfishlover.com

Sorry to hear you have to put him down, but you have my respect for doing right by your pets.

*hug*


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## Reckon (Jul 25, 2012)

You can try putting him in a hospital tank with an airstone over night and see if he does a bit better?
Otherwise Emily's suggestion would put him down nicely.


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## mollyb (May 18, 2010)

are you sure something is wrong with your fish? there may just be too much current for the little guy


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

Are you sure he is dying? Can you show a video or picture, please?


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

If he's stuck under the plant, just free him and see if he's swimming ok. If not, I'd isolate him in a "hospital" tank and dose with salt. I had a fry not to long ago that I thought was a gonner, 2 hours in a salt bath he looked healthier than the others.
Hope he's ok!


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

You need to buffer the hardness up higher and add some salt. He's shimmying.guppies need harder water than our tap water. I'd add a tablespoon per 10 gallons for now. Rock salt, aquarium salt or pickling salt. Not tsble salt.


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## covertune (Aug 10, 2012)

There is a video. When he does swim he seems ok, but as soon as he stops his forward motion, he goes into the position you see in the video. He's also been hiding a lot, under the filter, under the driftwood etc and lying on the gravel at the bottom of the tank.

The only current is from the HOB filter and I'm pretty sure there is less current in this tank than the one I had him in before.

Unfortunately, I don't have a hospital tank. He's in with a female guppy and yellow shrimp.. would a salt treatment be bad for them?

Ammonia is 0
Nitrite is 0
Nitrate is under 5ppm
pH of my water is 8.6


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

What happens if you turn off the filter and drop some food inside the tank?
I am not sure but perhaps adding a few more guppies would help him feel more comfy? May be he just does not like his new envirnoment?


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

I wouldn't recommend salt with the shrimp - if you have a small container (I used a 500ml measuring cup for the salt bath) that will work, just make sure it's clean (no soap) and don't put the "bath" water back in the tank. (I put the guppy in the container, added salt slowly over 1hour (small pinches each time), let sit for 1 hour, then netted out back into the main tank)

Your pH seems a little high at 8.6, though that would affect the other guppy and shrimp as well. Do you have a GH/KH test kit? 

He doesn't look too sick in the video, freaked out maybe?
When did you move him over to the "new" tank? Could be getting used to it....


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## covertune (Aug 10, 2012)

Wouldn't moving him around cause more stress? Or is it worth it to risk the stress in order to give him the salt bath? I do have a 1 gallon container I could use.. I had him (and the female) living in that for 2 weeks but took them out a few days ago as he seemed to not be doing well in there - hardly eating, losing all his colour..

pH is high I know, but everyone (fish and shrimp) has been living in it for well over a month now and has been doing ok. I was also advised that a stable pH was what was most important. I don't have a gh/kh test kit, don't really even understand what that is.

He has only been in this tank for a few days, but like I said, he seemed unwell prior to the move. I decided to just put him in the 10g with the female in hopes of getting her bred before he passed.


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

He doesn't look to be really sick, more "shimmying" like April mentioned. I'd check your KH/GH, as that seems to be the main issue for a lot of fancy guppies. I see you're in Salmon Arm, so your water may not be as soft as the lower mainland, but I know we had an awful time with ours before we got them stabilized.

Rastapus from IPU has a great sticky on GH/KH and how to handle it here: http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/island-pets-unlimited-42/adjusting-hardness-your-aquarium-7033/

You can order a test kit online from J&L Aquatics, or ask your local fish store.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

covertune said:


> Wouldn't moving him around cause more stress? Or is it worth it to risk the stress in order to give him the salt bath? I do have a 1 gallon container I could use.. I had him (and the female) living in that for 2 weeks but took them out a few days ago as he seemed to not be doing well in there - hardly eating, losing all his colour..
> 
> pH is high I know, but everyone (fish and shrimp) has been living in it for well over a month now and has been doing ok. I was also advised that a stable pH was what was most important. I don't have a gh/kh test kit, don't really even understand what that is.
> 
> He has only been in this tank for a few days, but like I said, he seemed unwell prior to the move. I decided to just put him in the 10g with the female in hopes of getting her bred before he passed.


Well, if he is not happy you need to do something to make him happy, move him, add some salt or whatever...
I think high pH is not such a big deal as it is what you have. Stable ph is important but stable KH/GH is much more so. Your ph will never be right at the same value throughout the day because it can change due to waste, Co2 and so on, so in a way to aim at a "stable" stable ph is not really a practical idea.
In order to breed, I am alwasy under the impression that you need to provide the fish with a certain envornoment at which they are comfortable. Not sure if it also applied to guppies but would believe so. If you fish is very unhappy it might be more unlikley to see any action?
When I had guppies I was told to get a group of more females then male and they all played with each other and ate like pigs then they made babies...I never has just 2 guppies so I am really not sure. Your fish in my opinion do not look like he is dying; but it does look and sound to me that he is not happy in the tank for whatever reason (water condition, lack of tankmate, current, streess out of being in a new tank...whatever) so if you do not want to prolong his agony I say you should try to find out what it is and fix it for him. If you give him the right envirnoment it will only make him more happy and less stressful, so if moving him is the solution it will not necessarily make him more stressful as you are removing the stress he is experiencing now--but I am not sure if moving him is the solution. If all you want to do it to add salt you can do that in this tank, after a water change.
Is he eating?


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

He's weak for sure a lot of guppies come into petshops bad. Over the years they have become weak with breeding for colour. I'd put him by himself with the same water and slowly buffer for hardness and add a bit of furan. I've used it on many shimmying guppies, mollies and swords and it fixed them. 
I get my guppies from Sri Lanka now and they are very hardy .


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

high current was my first guess........looks like he is really struggling to move forward. angels have a hard time with that too. i had one that would wedge himself in the frame that held the powerhead. I thought at first yours was bending but i think he struggling. .


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## covertune (Aug 10, 2012)

He's doing quite a bit better today, and actually ate reasonably well (at least compared to the last couple weeks). He's still adopting that weird vertical posture, but has been actually swimming a fair bit. Maybe it was stress induced? Going to keep an eye on him, hopefully he'll continue to improve.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

That is nice to know. Hope he feels better real soon.


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## Scherb (Feb 10, 2011)

covertune said:


> He's doing quite a bit better today, and actually ate reasonably well (at least compared to the last couple weeks). He's still adopting that weird vertical posture, but has been actually swimming a fair bit. Maybe it was stress induced? Going to keep an eye on him, hopefully he'll continue to improve.


IMO. you need to get a gh tester. as April said they need harder water, a minimum of 5 dgh. and when i kept guppies i used salt as April mentioned and a ph of 7.2 to 7.4 worked good for me. many people consider them semi brackish which means they need salt in the water, i would agree as i had guppies fade away until i raised the gh and added salt. hope that helps. Good Luck.


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