Turns White....Wierdness

[Slither]

I noticed since we got our new Golden Dojo Loaches, 1 of them acts weird...His name is Spazoid. We've had Spaz and Cute (the two newer, smaller Dojos) for about 3-4 months. and the bigger one, we've had for about 5-6 months.

A couple of days after we got them Spaz started turning almost pure white with brown spots, then not even 2 hours later he turns back to normal, brownish/golden color with black spots.

Why does he do this?

Today he scared me because my mom said "Hey I think one of your Dojos is dead", I was like "NOOOOOOOOOOO" getting ready to cry running to the tank.

He was laying there, still moving, kind of on his side so I knew he was sleeping, but he was all white again! And I noticed he looks really thin ...yeah I know they are supposed to be like that, but he looked thinner than usual....

Is there something wrong with my beloved Dojo? Or am I just panicking for nothing?

Oh yeah, his gills are always red, but I tried all the treatments, and Quarantined him, but still his gills are red for some reason. The tank is well oxygenated, I have a "bubble wall" and a powerful filter, and I change it every month or so...sometimes I wait a little longer if it doesn't seem "clogged"

But wow, what a heart attack I had when my mom said those DAMN evil words

[shari2]

when you say you 'change' your filters do you mean you remove the sponges/media and replace them? If so, that will cause your tank to recycle each time as it tries to replace the beneficial bacteria built up in them. when the flow decreases all you need to do is take out the sponge, rinse/swish it in some tank water and replace it.

Any of the other fish with red gills? can you get a picture of him in a white phase?

[Slither]

Oh no not the sponge. I change the carbon part. What they are is a disposable filter. I put the carbon packet into the white filter thingy, then put it in the pump along with the sponge thingy.

Here is a pic of the filter I use:




But about the Dojo tuning white, I always check the water and everything is normal. No the others do not have red gills, it's just that one.

It might be a long time until he turns white again. because it only happens once in a while.