Please help, my weather loach is sick!!

[Dojosmama]

If you do set up your new tank as a tropical, don't put your dojo in there, as it will be too warm for him. Having two tanks and thinning out the herd will enable you to get him some dojo companions. But, first wait and see if he has fully recovered.

I wouldn't keep barbs in with dojos, as they can be nippers.

Sounds like he's pretty much his old self, again. That's a good sign.

-- dojosmama

[redshark1]

I agree with Dojosmama above.

Also, I imagine that the Plec, as well as being happier with the tropical temperature will also be a better companion for the smaller fish, although I do not know for sure if weather loach eat small fish. I just imagine that they could. Plecs do not in my experience.

If the Plec is one that grows too big then swap it for an Ancistrus which are almost identical but max out at 6". You might need one for algae cleaning duties anyway.

The stress from being chased by the plec could have surprising effects. I had a plec die from being chased by another one when I had to house two. The unfortunate one seemed perfectly healthy and I feel it died of stress after being chased. During a more recent experience my Electric Blue Jack Dempsey developed milky white and ragged pectoral fins. It became apparent that this was due to my Sailfin Plec chasing him around in the dark, which he couldn't cope with. He never had a problem during daylight and was clearly the boss of the tank then. I only found out what was going on at night by accident when I heard lots of splashing! His fins healed up again after I removed the plec.

Substrate-wise, it's mainly a matter of taste unless using undergravel filtration where I don't think you can use a fine substrate.

I use Silver Sand (sold for horticultural use) in two tanks and rate it highly if not growing plants and it is a must for catfish of which I have quite a few.

For my planted tanks I use a small black gravel called Roman Gravel over the soil.

For my bigger tanks I use a black gravel which appears to be a plastic coated type called Marina. One thing I can say about black gravel is it does not show up any algae growth and always appears clean.

On the downside it was said to show up the fishes colours really well, but in practice I have found that my fish (especially Clown Loaches) have become a darker and duller colour with the black gravel (compared to photos of them on pale grey gravel-my original black gravel was painted and lost it's colour revealing the white underneath). If starting again I would have a lighter gravel with my Clown Loaches. Here are pics of the same fish:





Good Luck with your Weather Loach. I think you will have a major success if you manage to nurse him back from such a severe condition as in your photos. All the best.

[Dojosmama]

For dojo substrate, you can either use sand or very small, rounded, smooth gravel with no sharp edges. Don't use crushed coral or any rough gravels, nor large gravel (which is harder to keep clean, anyway).

I have small, smooth and rounded aggregate gravel in my tank with three dojos. They like to bury themselves in it while I'm vacuuming the gravel (very hazardous, so I flush them out), but don't bury themselves at any other time. Apparently, they find the gravel vacuuming process stressful. But they aren't any worse off for it, as they go right back to being themselves when I'm through. Actually, they're being themselves when they bury themselves, as this is natural dojo behavior. They also will bury themselves in a sand substrate.

Sand is hard to keep clean. It's easy enough to vacuum debri and waste that rests on the surface, but the same can get packed down below the surface where it can ferment and rot, and foul the tank. One can't use the large vacuuming cylindar with sand like you can with gravel -- it vacuums up the sand, too. So the only way to get to the buried stuff is to dislodge it by stirring up the sand, then vacuuming it out. That's a hassle, and messes up the tank for awhile.

So, I recommend the small aggregate gravel (nothing larger than 1/4" max), smooth and rounded. Dojos seem to be fine with that, and it's easier to clean.

Give them plenty of caves to hide and rest in, pads of soft floating plants like riccia and hornwort to hang out in, a variety of nutritious foods that drop to the substrate, and you'll have very pleased and contented, as well as healthy little dojos.

Please keep us updated ...

-- Dojosmama

[RuthieB]

Wow, your fish are beautiful. They are so much more elegant than my common goldfish!!
My loach still seems to be on the mend and i bought a cave ornament with plenty of holes that are small enough for him and the smaller fish to get in and hide but too small for the plec and goldfish. (I am still yet to get a new tank to rehouse the smaller ones into but i am working on it. I am going to keep it as a room temperature tank and put the plec in with the cherry barbs and zebra danios, keeping the larger goldfish and the loach together)
Mysteriously i lost a Rainbow dace yesterday (I had 3, 2 larger ones (1.5inch) and 1 smaller one (1inch)). I went downstairs yesterday morning and one of the larger rainbow dace was dead.
I have also counted that i only have 11 zebra danios when i used to have 12. I have counted and recounted but can only find 11. I am concerned he may have been eaten but unsure by what, plec, loach or large goldfish.
I am still doing the regular water changes but have changed the medication to Melafix, to help the loach's wounds to heal.There is definately something not right in my tank but having done all the water tests again, everything is as it should be and pretty much unchanged since i did it before. The nitrite level was only slightly higher but i did the tests in the morning whereas before i did them in an evening.

[Dojosmama]

If a goldfish is large enough -- if its mouth is large enough -- tiny fish like white cloud minnows, zebra danios and glo-fish danios are vulnerable to being eaten. I think you definitely need to rehome them to a safer tank as soon as possible.

Glad the dojo is still getting better. Melafix is a safer medication than many, and is often used in conjuction with Pimafix. Still, it is wise to use less than the recommended dosage. Always begin with a smaller dose than they say to use. You can gradually increase it if you need to, but often the dosages they state on the label are higher than needed, and even with a relatively safer med such as mela and pima, the higher dosages can kill some fish.

Same goes for human medicines -- we quite often don't need the full recommended dosage to get the job done. Few recognize it, but these are clever marketing ploys to cause you to use up the medication faster so you have to buy more.

-- Dojosmama

[ahmandi2]

Ruthie,
I had to get rid of a bn plec because of his actions towards our dojos. He wounded a couple of them and one of the wounds became infected, and the loach passed away. He's in a much better place now, with no other bottom dwellers, and my loaches are SO much happier now.
Good luck!

[redshark1]

Goldfish are, of course, very beautiful and excellent fish in their own right.