does salt cause dropsy? kribensis dead =(

My kribensis cichlid was in my 26 gallon for 5 days and today hes swollen up with dropsy and pretty much dead. I have 3 gouramis and two small plecos in the same tank and theyre doing fine. The tank is treated with API aquarium salt. does salt cause dropsy in some fish?

No, salt doesn't cause dropsy. Actually salts (especially magnesium salts) are useful for the treatment of dropsy. Were the fish's scales sticking out like a pinecone? That's usually an indication of dropsy. Otherwise, he might have been swollen from constipation or something similar.

Also, why are you using salt? There's no need to dose salt on a regular basis, and it can actually be harmful to certain fish (especially labyrinth fish and scaleless fish, and you have both).

ich and stress, i thought it would be good for the fish at least for a while

I would slowly phase it out of your regular maintenance schedule. The gouramis and plecos will appreciate it for sure.

even before salt my gouramis are being very shy, exhibit a barring pattern, and constantly hide. what could be wrongw ith them cuz they should be swimming about and ive tried a lot of things like adding floating plants cutting the current adding hiding spots changing the water everything.