Poor Charlie!!

[emma09]

Haven't managed to get a photo of it but my betta has been in a hospital tank for a bit (10 litre) and is better so was reintroducing him back into bigger tank and he went straight for my BN Charlie! Now Charlie has a bite mark in her head will it heal by itself or have I got a problem on my hands?

[JamesFish]

Need some cover for your BN in long term might help.

As for the bite long as its not to deep keep the water clean and possibly add some mild anti fungus of your choice to the water and should heal up fine.

[emma09]

I think Charlie had gotten used to being by herself so was out in the open (she's got hidey places then betta came and ruined it (had never had problems with them before). Thank you for advice I might chuck some melafix in for good measure, looks more of a graze than a chunk.

[emma09]

Ok so Charlies graze from her naughty not so friendly betta friend is clearing up nicely and Lola the betta is now In his own tank for good. But today I was checking our Charlie and she had a hole in her belly (I could tell it's not her poo hole because she was pooing when I first noticed it) but then hour later coming out of the hole was a little brownish ball, then I noticed about 3 on leaves and four on goldvine, is she having unfertilised eggs or what? She's the only one in the tank but could she have been impregnated at the shop?

[emma09]

On second look it looks more serious to me. Should I be surprised if Charlie is still alive in the morning? Water parameters are all fine so I don't understand

[Barbie]

Define "fine" please? When in doubt, always do a water change. The fish looks quite thin. What are you feeding?

Barbie

[emma09]

Barbie I only just saw your reply, sorry! I've just tested water now and my parameters have changed a little, my pH is 7.2, ammonia is. 25ppm, nitrite is. 25ppm and nitrates 5.0ppm. What can I do? I really am a newbie and am very much enjoying this hobby so I don't wana loose my poor Charlie! She's never shown any interest in the algae wafers which I have always ended up scooping out and throwing. She loves cucumber, courgette/zucchini and carrot though, and her goldvine and driftwood she also loves chilling on. Thanks so much for trying to help me Barbie I really appreciate it

[emma09]

Oh I forgot to mention I've done some research into whether the substrate I chose (Seachem Flourite) is too rough for bristlenose and it's sounding like this could be the cause of my poor Charlies hole, your thoughts on this please Barbie? Thanks so much again!

[Richard B]

An ammonia or nitrite reading anything other than zero is a serious water quality issue. id do a 50-80% change immediately with mature conditioned water & add an airstone too to ensure better aeration. (check the water parameters of the water you use for the change too)

The substrate might not be great but water quality is the first issue to address as it will affect everything else - stress, appetite, wound recovery etc

[emma09]

Ok cool ill do that thanks Richard. I don't have an airstone or air pump is this something I should invest in? I was under the impression my filter and plants were enough. Gladly open to any suggestions! Thanks again!

[emma09]

80% water change complete ph 7.2 ammonia 0 nitrite 0 nitrates still 5.0 am I getting there??

[Richard B]

A small amount of nitrate is inevitable & not a worry.

Nitrites & ammonia should be zero at all times.

Some additional aeration is always a good idea as an artificial small body of water like an aquarium can be subject to fluctuations in parameters easily (despite our best efforts). An airstone is an easy way to do this or a spraybar or having some way to disturb the water surface. (Airstones with massess of tiny bubbles work best)

[Barbie]

Basically the tank has to finish the nitrogen cycle. The filter is not quite mature enough to process the waste from the fish. For now, do not add any more fish and try to find the balance between enough food to keep the fish healthy and not so much that you see ammonia or nitrites. If either of those levels come up, do another water change. Do you know anyone with an established tank? You can also buy BioSpira, or another bacterial starter culture. Some work more effectively than others, in my experience, but they would be worth a try.

Barbie

[emma09]

No unfortunately I don't know anyone who has fish will be doing gravel vac and more tests today and water change if necessary. I've had this tank set up for a while now so would have thought it would be established by now? With airstone do I need airpump aswell or just the stone? Thanks guys

[Richard B]

An airstone etc is driven by an airpump

Anthing that creates more surface agitiation will suffice though (filter return/spray bar etc)

[emma09]

Charlie died today, I didn't think I'd cry but I did :'( thank you both for your help I appreciate it.