help, dropsy!

jasmeena

hi! i just have one question for everyone, how long can dropsy stay for? i know is uncureable but i had been given a combo of dropsy and tail and fin rot. i stopped it after one of my Guppy's died of it i reconised the scales and i have lost quite a few to tail rot... ok more than fifty of them but now is under control. i upgraded to a five gall for them and now it holds only twenty guppys and four mollys{ currenty two of them are dieing of dropsy} i am hopeing to get a phd test kit or somthing in a few days and a gravel cleaner too! i have a sponge fillter and an inch of gravel. i know that the dropsy must have sprung up after a two day water cut{ we were going to clean the tank} i have a Guppy called flame who i got after seeing his tail rot. he is fine now but he just about a tail poor one. i just want to know if there is any other way to prevent it from happening again. i have aquairm salt and anti clorine killer. also none of the females have had any fry. even though there belly's are huge. and no is not dropsy!!!

marshallsea

i dont know about dropsy but it sounds like you need to step up the water changes and you are way overstocked. you should be doing daily water changes. google dropsy and research it.

marshallsea

dropsy is a bacterial infection caused by poor water quality.since you are overcrowded the water is always going to be high in nitrites unless you are doing 50% water changes daily. you need to use prime water conditioner. you may haVE a very hard time getting rid of it in such a small tank. another cause could be over medication or your tank. if so, stop meds, get a much bigger tank or re-home some of your fish and get on the water changes. fish usually die from dropsy. if you keep your water fresh you may keep the rest from getting it. someone on this site always says the best medicine in your cabinet is clean water. live by it. good luck. vacuum your gravel

jasmeena

i know about dropsy and yes i will get a big tank soon. im asking what to do AFTER the dropsy has gone. also can Goldfish unplug fillters? because i have had to re plug that tube ten to twenty times a week! i'm getting a betta fish too. now if you are thinking i dont know i'v been to bettatalk.com is realy cool. faith knows alot about them. she is the owner. i am getting a big bowl{ there was one so big that a baby could have drowned in it!!} but the smaller one is ok for them. i think i should get a lid because i know bettas jump.

marshallsea

i see. after its gone the most important thing you can do is very frequent water changes , if thats what youre asking. and a Goldfish could unplug the filter if the filter is worn out or has a loose connection.the number one prevention of dropsy is clean water.

jasmeena

thank you sooo much! yes our fillter is old and i will try to change the water one or twice a week. but im sorry if im bothering you, can i ask if is normal for a Goldfish to just keep looking at a plant or the glass? and is it normal if they try to stick their head in it? thanks lol!

marshallsea

i have adopted a tank with 2 Goldfish recently and compared to other fish, they seem a little air headed. and 1 is for sure not as smart as the other. its probably just normal behavior. they are pretty, though.

jasmeena

thanks again! but, and now i think im being a bit annoying. can a Guppy mix with a tetra? because i have a baby with a tetra stripe but is a Guppy! any clues?

marshallsea

its not annoying, we both learn a bit each time. i dont think they can cross breed as the Guppy is a livebirth fish and i think a tetra is an egg layer. someone may correct me but i think a Guppy can mix with a molly. although due to size difference, i think it might be cruel to a Guppy to ask it to carry bigger babies than was intended.