cheshirecatsteph
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Can't seem to keep em alive... - 2009/02/06 04:15
Hi all,
I need help, and I'm not getting it at the pet store, so I thought I'd come to the forum.
Here's my situation. I had a Jack Dempsey for about 7 years. I had him in a 20 gal long, by himself, he grew to about 7 inches and was beautiful, never had a problem with him. We think he swallowed a piece of gravel at one point, and it affected his swim bladder, and he died.
I took the tank offline, cleaned it, got bigger "river rock" looking substrate for the bottom. We got a huge intricate mamgrove looking thing that takes up alot of the tank with lots of hiding holes and fake plants attached. I have a whisper filter on the back, I forget the size, probably a 30 gal one since the tank is 20 gal.
So I got the tank up and running for about a week. Then went to get some fish. Originally we brought home a yellow lab, a red zebra, a pleco, a blue kenyi, and a Melanochromis auratus.
Over the past month, I have gone through 4 yellow labs, 2 plecos, and 3 red zebras. (Due to petsmarts, "bring your deceased fish and we'll give you a live fish" policy) The blue and the auratus seem to be doing fine. The last time I exchanged the red and the lab, the new ones are doing okay so far, but it's only been a week. I did not get another pleco after killing 2. I also introduced a bumblebee with the two newest fish, and he(or she) seems fine as well.
The fish are not picking, and the blue shows the most aggression, although he gives up the chase pretty quickly, so they aren't dying from fighting. They look beautiful, I don't think ick is an issue, although I always treat with Lifeguard upon adding new fish. Water temp is a constant 78. ph I keep on the higher side, about 8.0. I've added aquarium salt in the proper amount. I test multiple times daily all levels, and the only one consistently high is the nitrites. I treat with Amquel plus to keep it down. I feed minimally, I want them to eat cichlid pellets, but they won't, so I'm feeding them crisps right now, as I hate what flakes do to a tank. I do a 10-20% water change and vacuum once a week.
What am I doing wrong????? I hate killing fish, and am ready to just get goldfish!
Thanks in advance,
Stephanie
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