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Sick Pleco??

2345 Views 6 Replies 3 Participants Last post by  newshound, 
J
I went to check my temporary tank last night and found my XXL Pleco laying on his back:eek:. My Opaline Gourami was acting stressed. So I went to get something to put it in. When I got back he was upright and had moved:confused: . The water was low so I topped off the tank.

This morning when I checked on him he was grazing and the Gourami was acting normal. Tonight I will vacuum the gravel and do a partial water change.

How long do Plecos live anyway? Mine could easily be 20 years old. Or is my temporary tank getting away from me again? I've already lost 3 smaller fish when the tank cycled 2 weeks after setting it up.

I thought that you needed a sledge hammer to kill these things:icon_wink . My brother in law once 'cooked' his tank when a heater stuck on. Everything died except for his Pleco!

Jim
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R
Twent years is a long time.

Take care of him because he deserves it.

They are tough but I have had some die due to mysterious illnesses.
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J
ralph50 said:
They are tough but I have had some die due to mysterious illnesses.
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I almost lost this one once.

I used to have 3 XL Plecos, one that I bought and two that my brother in law gave me. My tank at that time was a 52 gallon with maybe 15-20 fish, including the 3 Plecos. There was a new LFS that opened up (or maybe I should say a pet store that sold fish). I bought a couple of fish there. Big mistake. Within a month I had lost half my fish and the 3 Plecos had some type of fin rot.

Even with heavy doses of Arythromycin two of them didn't make it. The one I have now is the only one that survived, and you can still see the scars.

I've lost track and don'e know if this is my original one or one of thsoe from my brother in law. In either case, I will not be happy when it goes:( .

Jim
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N
jbolinger said:
I went to check my temporary tank last night and found my XXL Pleco laying on his back:eek:. My Opaline Gourami was acting stressed. So I went to get something to put it in. When I got back he was upright and had moved:confused: . The water was low so I topped off the tank.
How long do Plecos live anyway? Mine could easily be 20 years old. Or is my temporary tank getting away from me again? I've already lost 3 smaller fish when the tank cycled 2 weeks after setting it up.

I thought that you needed a sledge hammer to kill these things:icon_wink .
Jim
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okay I'll call you on it...
"so I topped off the tank" was this due to evapouration? Is this what you consider a water change?
Do you have a bit of driftwood in the tank? Do you have enough filteration? With a xxl pleco you need 2X the filteration at least.
Is your tank suffering from o.t.s?
Alot of questions need answering.
"is my temp tank getting away on me again?"
I'd rather someone kill all the fish they own than having the fish slowly die from neglect.
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J
newshound said:
okay I'll call you on it...
"so I topped off the tank" was this due to evapouration? Is this what you consider a water change?
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Yes. No.
Do you have a bit of driftwood in the tank? Do you have enough filteration? With a xxl pleco you need 2X the filteration at least.
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No. Yes: HOT Magnum 250 and a UGF in a 20 gallon unplanted tank with only 2 fish. 2X what? I have in the past had 8-10 fish with this set up with no problems

Is your tank suffering from o.t.s?
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Say What?


Remember the thing is 18-20 years old, so how long do they live?
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N
sorry you didn't like my post.
I knew you wouldn't :proud:
plecos should have driftwood in the tank to help process the algae from what I understand (I don't own any plecos but do a search maybe I am wrong and that is a point for you).
I don't consider a UGF a filter unless water gets sucked into a HOB or the like. A ugf traps gunk but how do you get the gunk out?
ots--old tank syndrum. do a google search. If this is an older tank with a ugf I'd bet it is suffering.
How long has this xxl pleco been trapped in a 20 gallon (breeder tank I hope)?
What are your water conditions?
Everything you have written makes me feel for you fish.
" Or is my temporary tank getting away from me again? I've already lost 3 smaller fish when the tank cycled 2 weeks after setting it up."
this doesn't inspire confidence in you fish keeping knowledge
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N
o ya
"OT Magnum 250 and a UGF in a 20 gallon unplanted tank with only 2 fish. 2X what? I have in the past had 8-10 fish with this set up with no problems"
2 times the filteration.
What fish did you have in the 20g? Not a mature pleco! That is one pooping machine!!!
Yes your temp tank will get a way from you again with a huge pleco in it. Geez that thing must displace at least 1/2 gallon of water.
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