# Pale gold barb :(



## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

I have one gold barb looking very pale - almost white. All others seem fine.
The pale one - his behaviour is fine - he eats like the others, scavenges like the others, dances around like the others. As far as I can tell he is not rubbing himself against the rocks, and he is not coming to the top for air.

I read that this may be some kind of fungus, but I can't see any growth on his skin or on his scales (yet).

I don't have an extra tank I can use for a hospital tank.

Has anyone had this problem before?
Thanks.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

More info:

Water parameters:
Temp: 28
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 5
pH: Stable at 6.5
GH: 20
KH: 0

I do water changes twice per week.
All other fish in the tank (ember tetras and gold barbs, shrimp) look great and behave normally.
The pale one is not *always* pale - it comes and goes, but he is more often pale than normal.


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## Rockman (May 19, 2013)

I wouldn't be too worried about it yet. If there nothing else about his appearance or behaviour it's probably nothing. 

What test kits are you using these days?


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Thanks for the reply, Rockman.
I'm still using my terrible kits: the old, Sera ammonia kit, and the strips for the rest of the parameters.
Definitely not the best, but it gives me an idea, and I get my water tested properly at the LFS once in a while.
At some point I should bite the bullet and shell out $50 for the liquid test kit, but since I haven't had any big issues, I haven't yet...

Re: the barb - still very pale. He tends to be more pale when the light is on. I did notice that he seems to be bullied quite a bit by another barb, but nothing crazy.
I'm having nightmares about all my fish dying of dropsy. I think I need to relax. haha


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## Momobobo (Sep 28, 2010)

Dropsy is pretty rare, I only encountered it a few times when I was breeding guppies en masse 

That sounds fairly normal, especially if they are still fairly new in your tank (sub 3-6 months). My Lemon Tetras stayed very pale compared to their counterparts I got earlier in the year.


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## UnderseaGal (Mar 4, 2014)

Thanks for sharing your experience, Momobobo. Very appreciated!


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