Just watch the shrimp, if loads on fresh moults, I’ll wait a day on the water change
(they often moult more just after purchase and when they get eating (like fish, shrimp should not be fed for 2-3 days before shipping to maintain best travelling bag conditions), then this slows down after a couple months)
If just the odd moult, carry on with scheduled water changes, but I’ll do 40-50% and not more than that (I often do 70% water changes) - if you’ve got some test kits or 5in1 strips, I’ll check tap vs tank parameters
I almost always place new fish in a Q tank, so treating for external parasites etc there (most “Ich” remedies treat various external parasites, just Ich is the most prevalent)
Occasionally I’ll set up a planted tank for a specific fish I’ve ordered or found when walking into a shop (& immediately purchasing as they are an unlikely find) and I may then place the new fish directly into that “clean” planted (display) aquarium
If fish seem OK, I like to wait 12-24 h before adding Ich-X SW, then monitor behaviour - if they seem brighter, more active active an hour or so after dosing the Ich-X that’s a good confirmation that they were irritated before (by some external parasite)
At this stage, I generally place fish health above plant health and I’ll continue treating fish
Most chocolate gourami (I’m including a few species under this general common name) are wild caught, do better in larger numbers, but don't like crowding so my Q tank isn’t ideal ... they also have poor immunity against common trade pathogens so I don’t wait to see if their immune system is going to deal with whatever might be affecting them
(unfortunately I learned this through trial and error, now I rarely buy any Choco’s from shop tanks, if I can’t order and receive the fish still in the shipping bag, I try to just walk away)
Most tank bred fish do fine in most Q tanks
It’s a judgement call (guess!) as to which way to go
Whenever treating sick fish, daily water change is the best “medicine”, optimize oxygen levels in the water column (allowing your filter return to “splash” , ensure there’s good surface movement, reduce temperature to lowest comfortable (especially important if a suspected bacterial infection)) as many pathogens target the gill tissue as a primary infection site (before spreading systemically)
Most sick fish have primary, secondary and tertiary infections, if you can correctly guess and treat the primary pathogen, and fish are not stressed, their immune system will clear other infections
Dim lighting is important as most fish experience some degree of stress from bright lights, and (obviously) sick fish are more reactive to environmental stresses
Many medications are photosensitive, so again dim lighting is recommended
Remove any carbon/charcoal or Purigen etc before medicating (as these can remove meds from the water column)
Clean water - always perform a large (50-90% depending) water change before beginning - is better for medications as other compounds may interfere with active ingredients
Pick up a copy of the Manual of Fish Health by Andrews, Excell, Carrington as it includes all this general care information (as well as specific disease discussions, photos etc)
(they often moult more just after purchase and when they get eating (like fish, shrimp should not be fed for 2-3 days before shipping to maintain best travelling bag conditions), then this slows down after a couple months)
If just the odd moult, carry on with scheduled water changes, but I’ll do 40-50% and not more than that (I often do 70% water changes) - if you’ve got some test kits or 5in1 strips, I’ll check tap vs tank parameters
I almost always place new fish in a Q tank, so treating for external parasites etc there (most “Ich” remedies treat various external parasites, just Ich is the most prevalent)
Occasionally I’ll set up a planted tank for a specific fish I’ve ordered or found when walking into a shop (& immediately purchasing as they are an unlikely find) and I may then place the new fish directly into that “clean” planted (display) aquarium
If fish seem OK, I like to wait 12-24 h before adding Ich-X SW, then monitor behaviour - if they seem brighter, more active active an hour or so after dosing the Ich-X that’s a good confirmation that they were irritated before (by some external parasite)
At this stage, I generally place fish health above plant health and I’ll continue treating fish
Most chocolate gourami (I’m including a few species under this general common name) are wild caught, do better in larger numbers, but don't like crowding so my Q tank isn’t ideal ... they also have poor immunity against common trade pathogens so I don’t wait to see if their immune system is going to deal with whatever might be affecting them
(unfortunately I learned this through trial and error, now I rarely buy any Choco’s from shop tanks, if I can’t order and receive the fish still in the shipping bag, I try to just walk away)
Most tank bred fish do fine in most Q tanks
It’s a judgement call (guess!) as to which way to go
Whenever treating sick fish, daily water change is the best “medicine”, optimize oxygen levels in the water column (allowing your filter return to “splash” , ensure there’s good surface movement, reduce temperature to lowest comfortable (especially important if a suspected bacterial infection)) as many pathogens target the gill tissue as a primary infection site (before spreading systemically)
Most sick fish have primary, secondary and tertiary infections, if you can correctly guess and treat the primary pathogen, and fish are not stressed, their immune system will clear other infections
Dim lighting is important as most fish experience some degree of stress from bright lights, and (obviously) sick fish are more reactive to environmental stresses
Many medications are photosensitive, so again dim lighting is recommended
Remove any carbon/charcoal or Purigen etc before medicating (as these can remove meds from the water column)
Clean water - always perform a large (50-90% depending) water change before beginning - is better for medications as other compounds may interfere with active ingredients
Pick up a copy of the Manual of Fish Health by Andrews, Excell, Carrington as it includes all this general care information (as well as specific disease discussions, photos etc)