Fish - Dead Guppies

[wilko]

I have a couple of earthenware fish bowls outside...they are populated by 2 colonies of those small guppy-like fish you see everywhere. They have survived several moves in the last five years and continued to thrive...BUT recently after a move one of the 2 bowls' populations all turned toes up in the space of a few hours a floated to the surface....what I can't understand is what caused this...the bowl was the lower of the 2 and near to the ground...it is possible that a dog may have pissed in the bowl and I saw one drinking from it....but apart from theat and the positioning they are identical....same water, same fish etc....

any ideas?

Is there something I can put in the water? Both bowls see to have algae developing now...

[Mighty Mouse]

Guppies are hardy fish and can live quite happily in most environments however, one no no is having their tank in direct sunshine. The formation of algae on the water suggests that sunshine is to blame. Water temperature needs to be kept fairly stable.

Guppies are a very timid species so having dogs quenching their thirst from the fish tank could cause the fish to freak out.

If you recently moved the tank location, did you replace all of the water or did you keep about 75% of the old water? Tank water develops certain helpful bacteria that assists in supporting guppy numbers. It is therefore advised to replace only about 25% of the water for cleaning (and moving) purposes.

Guppies are a freshwater fish. They require that the water be dechlorinated, and between 72 and 82 degrees F. The pH of the water should be around 7.2 to 7.8 and the salinity levels should optimally be 0.20%. You can buy certain fish products that treat the water making it suitable for fish tanks.

[wilko]

They seem to meet all the necessary criteria to warrant the classification of fish as far as I can ascertain, unless their is another form of fauna on the planet I haven't heard about that has markedly similar physical characteristics.

These guppies (and their forefathers) have been moved several times and have proved extremely resilient. This time they were transported in a single tub containing water from their old home.

The bowls were dried out and given a cursory clean....no chemicals....and filled with the local water from the mains supply. Both bowls are in partial shade and get little direct sunlight at any time of day.

Essentially their immediate environment hasn't changed...about %ages of old water I wouldn't know.

The thing is that one bowl is fine and the other had a total extinction.........as I said the only observable difference is the height on the bowl from the ground.

As for the sight of a dog...well they've survived that sort of thing before as well as the attentions of the odd Egret. I wouldn't have thought they would have a mass heart-attack and die.

But if you know the brand names of any substances I could add, it would be a great help.

the

[Mighty Mouse]

Algae will form on water that has direct sunshine with no water movement. Do you have a water filter in the tank?

The filter breaks the top of the water thus providing oxygen for the fish and that, together with sufficient shade, should be enough to prevent the formation of algae.

I suggest that you re-locate your tank to a position where there is absolutely no sunshine, not even filtered sun shine.

I use a filter that sucks up water from the bottom of the tank and spurts it out above the water. Water then recycles back through a thick gravel base and again into the filter. The gravel catches any floaters thus keeping the water clean.

Another type of filter is just an air filter that creates bubbles. The bubbles break the surface of the water. This type of filter provides oxygen but does not clean the water.

My fish tank is kept indoors, so your outdoor requirements may vary.

Depending on how many fish you are keeping you should clean the tank once per month using a vacuum pump. Remove somewhere between 1/4 to 1/3 of the tank water, replacing it with fresh water to which a water conditioner has been added.

As you are using tap water, you will need to add water conditioner to neutralise chlorine, chloramine and any heavy metals that may be harmful to the fish. A good water conditioner will enhance the natural protective slime coating on the fish.

Thailand tap water is a problem in itself. Heaven knows what's in it.

Any change of water must be gradual. If you recently moved their location and filled their tank with tap water, the sudden change of water and water temperature, may have caused their death. Replacement water from a tap should not be poured into the tank until it is at room temperature.

You cleaned out their tank by scrubbing it and refilled it with fresh water. This is also a problem. You need to allow at least one week, preferably two weeks, for the tank, water, plants etc. to settle prior to introducing the fish.

I suggest that this would be the main cause of your fish suddenly dying.

In future, if you need to clean anything that is in their tank, use some of the tank water to clean the object, not fresh tap water.

Guppies like to hide. (because of their timidness.) Long stemmed plants are ideal for them to hide in. Dogs sniffing around their pool shouldn't cause too much of a problem provided the fish can swim away and hide.

[wilko]

I haven't got a "tank" and they certainly had more sun at the last location....never used a filter in 5 years.

what I'm trying to find out is a significant change that would have killed the fish. One colony is living perfectly happily with about the same amount of algae... apart from their elevation, the environments are identical.I find that the plants usually take care of the water in the end and it remains clear for months.

I waited about a week before putting the fish into the bowls, they were in a plastic bucket with the water from the old.....

none of this explains why after being split up the half put into the low-lying bowl died...this wasn't immediate - it occured after about a week - they had showed no obvious warning signs before what was in effect a sudden and traumatic event.

[Niloc]

I have a couple of tanks of catfish, plaa dook and if I fill the tank with water straight from the town supply, some fish die. I realised the town eater had chlorine in it so now I remove the fish, fill the tank and let it sit for at least a week before I replace the fish, no further problem.

[wilko]

Unfortunately both my bowls were filled at the same time with the same water but one bowl behaved differently

[wilko]

After the recent rain the lower bowl...the one that the fish died in is now cystal clear.....the plants ae fine but the fgreen mist has gone....the other bowl is still very cloudy but the fish are carrying on as usual.

Although a bit worried about the lack of any living organisms floating in the water ,,, i may trial a few fish in the other bowl tomorrow.

[Tywais]

Any chance you may have scratched the inside of the earthenware that is failing? The reason I ask is that there often is lead in them and a scratch could have let it leech out into the water. Not sure how much an issue it could be or the effects of lead on fish though.

[wilko]

Interesting point.....a new pot is certainly not out of the question.....

[Mighty Mouse]

I just noticed in your post that you refer to the fish as "guppy like fish." If they are not guppies, could they be white cloud minnows? Minnows are a cold water fish whereas guppies prefer to have temperature maintained water.

You say that you have relocated the fish a few times and I'm probably stating the obvious here but when you transferred the fish, did you place them in a plastic bag and float the bag on top of the new bowl before releasing them into the water?

When putting fish into a new tank you need to ensure that you place the bag holding them into the tank for at least half an hour before opening it, to allow the water temperatures to align, reducing the shock for the fish. You then slowly open the bag to allow some of the new water to enter the bag. Wait again for at least another 10 minutes. By then the fish should be fully prepared and OK to be released.

If your fish are guppies, there is (or was) a problem with guppies being imported from Singapore. The problem is a parasite called tetrahymena which can wipe out complete tanks of guppies over night.

Your stock of fish was old stock transferred from the previous location, so this problem shouldn't affect you.

Apart from this, and the information contained in the other posts of this thread, I can't offer any other solutions.

Keep us informed of your findings. I'd be interested to know the outcome.

[wilko]

Well guppie-like...the very common animal you see in the bowls outside shops....but you are overlooking the fact that half the fish (a control, if you like) are not only still alive but happily breeding...i intend to take a batch into the other bowl next week and see what happens

[wackysleet]

Well guppie-like...the very common animal you see in the bowls outside shops....but you are overlooking the fact that half the fish (a control, if you like) are not only still alive but happily breeding...i intend to take a batch into the other bowl next week and see what happens

Your guppies dying after moving probably has nothing to do with fresh tap water being introduced as other pots habitants quite happy, water temperature after introducing the fish into their new tank is also an unlikely cause as I have guppies and about 100 koi in a large pond, when purchasing any new koi and introducing them into my pond they dive straight to the bottom and tend to stay there for a day or two thus making the time spent in a plastic bag aclimatising to the temperature at the top of the pond where it is considerably warmer than the bottom, but I also lost a garden ornament full of said guppies recently while the pot on the other side of the porch was perfectly ok, as for the algea, that has no detrimental effect on fish as it actually supplies food and to a point a certain amount of shade, my guess is the same cause that killed my fish was water temp.

[wackysleet]

O

Well guppie-like...the very common animal you see in the bowls outside shops....but you are overlooking the fact that half the fish (a control, if you like) are not only still alive but happily breeding...i intend to take a batch into the other bowl next week and see what happens

Your guppies dying after moving probably has nothing to do with fresh tap water being introduced as other pots habitants quite happy, water temperature after introducing the fish into their new tank is also an unlikely cause as I have guppies and about 100 koi in a large pond, when purchasing any new koi and introducing them into my pond they dive straight to the bottom and tend to stay there for a day or two thus making the time spent in a plastic bag aclimatising to the temperature at the top of the pond where it is considerably warmer than the bottom, but I also lost a garden ornament full of said guppies recently while the pot on the other side of the porch was perfectly ok, as for the algea, that has no detrimental effect on fish as it actually supplies food and to a point a certain amount of shade, my guess is the same cause that killed my fish was water temp.

One reason Wilco that you apparently have no living organisms in the pot is because you have no fish producing nitrate which all pond plants need to survive and what there is in the pot is being used up by the larger plants thus leaving zero for the algae, contrary to an earlier post algae will grow in moving water it totally depends on the amount of sunlight and nitrates in the pond hence in most koi ponds people run ultra violet lights during daylight hours

[macular]

... all turned toes up in the space of a few hours a floated to the surface ...the bowl was the lower of the 2 and near to the ground...

ALL fishes in the bowl are dead within a few hours could be an indication of toxicity in water.

Upper bowl was fine and lower bowl was in trouble... could it be due to pesticide on the grass? Or even neighbors' pesticide stains on dog's fur introduced to the bowl's water?

Try looking for living organisms like mosquito larvae or little snails in the water. If you see nothing at all, it could be the work of pesticide.

[t.s]

After the recent rain the lower bowl...the one that the fish died in is now cystal clear.....the plants ae fine but the fgreen mist has gone....the other bowl is still very cloudy but the fish are carrying on as usual.

Although a bit worried about the lack of any living organisms floating in the water ,,, i may trial a few fish in the other bowl tomorrow.

if you dont put something in there the mosquitos will.