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my blue ram died (want to know what happened)

Discussion in 'Fish Diseases & Cures' started by cherryblossom-98, May 4, 2009.

  1. cherryblossom-98

    cherryblossom-98 Thread Starter New Member

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    I recently bought a longfin blue ram from my lfs, i quarantined him along with some neon tetras from the same place for a week, the neons were fine coloured back up within a few hours but over the whole quarantine week the ram stayed fairly pale. I then added them to my 33 gal aquarium and over the next few days the ram got progressively worse rapid breathing, pale, sitting at the bottom.
    I checked my water stats and they were fine
    Nitrite 0ppm
    Ammonia 0ppm
    Nitrate 15ppm
    then i thought it might be the oxygen levels (i only have a small airstone) so i added another one.
    he got worse to the point of bieng bullied so i put him in what can only be discribed as a breeding container but like 4x the size with a tiny airstone (to stop the stress from bullying)
    when i came back an hour later he was dead :(
    poor guy [angel] [bfish]
    sorry for the long post but jus wanna know what happened so that i know what to do if it happens again...
    thanks
     
    cherryblossom-98, May 4, 2009
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  2. MOD_Dawn

    MOD_Dawn Active Member

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    what was your ph?
    how often did you change your water (partials)?
    I know Rams are very sensitive and require pristine water.
     
    MOD_Dawn, May 4, 2009
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  3. cherryblossom-98

    cherryblossom-98 Thread Starter New Member

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    i do a small water change about 8% on wednesdays (mainly to clean sand of waste) and a large one on the weekends about 20-25% and use prime after the large one.
    my ph is 6.8 is that okay??
    thanks
     
    cherryblossom-98, May 4, 2009
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  4. LemonDiscus

    LemonDiscus Active Member

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    You could have looked at it crosseyed or the wrong way.... :)

    Rams are VERY sensitive to EVERYTHING! A slight mishap with water parameters, bullies in the tank or anything else could potentially kill them. It could even be just bad genetics. If the fish was rather young they are even more sensitive to anything that changes.

    Sorry, I have tried keeping these and lost almost all of mine. I keep Discus so that should tell you how clean and stable my water parameters are and I still lost several!
     
    LemonDiscus, May 4, 2009
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  5. cherryblossom-98

    cherryblossom-98 Thread Starter New Member

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    haha [laughing] oki i feel a little better now that i know im not a fish murderer! :twisted:
     
    cherryblossom-98, May 4, 2009
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  6. LemonDiscus

    LemonDiscus Active Member

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    Nah, sorry it happened but it happens to the best of us!

    You do what you can to create a good life for your pets, but sometimes everything you can do just is not enough....
     
    LemonDiscus, May 4, 2009
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  7. jrow8162

    jrow8162 Member

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    I just tried keeping rams and failed. My water parameters were perfect and still haven't been able to keep one for more than 5 days. I'm gonna try again in another tank and try adding 3 or more at once. Like Lemon said, don't feel bad. Your not the only one who's had trouble keeping Rams.
     
    jrow8162, May 4, 2009
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  8. MOD_Dawn

    MOD_Dawn Active Member

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    ph is fine. Like Ryan said, they are extremely difficult to keep. I talked with the main fish guy at my lfs about them just last week.
    He told me they like slightly acidic water (your ph was fine) and softer water.
    Told me he wouldn't bother getting them unless the tank was planted and had driftwood and lots of hiding places since they are soo easily stressed out. Also told me they require higher water temps such as about 82-85F.
     
    MOD_Dawn, May 5, 2009
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  9. cherryblossom-98

    cherryblossom-98 Thread Starter New Member

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    also although my water stats are okay at the mo im worried coz i have a few live plants in my tank (sorry honestly dont know what type) and one of them the larger one seems to be dying on me, what i dont want is to leave it in ther if it might cause the ammonia to go up, but i also dont wanna take it out coz it looks good (when its not sick)
    what do you think??
     
    cherryblossom-98, May 5, 2009
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  10. LemonDiscus

    LemonDiscus Active Member

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    Again, Dawn, I keep Discus and my tank is set in those parameters because those are ideal for Discus.... Mine died....

    I think there is more to it than just setting the parameters. Even my LFS has to replace the Rams in their show tank every few months.....

    Something about those fish! So pretty yet so brittle..... :confused:
     
    LemonDiscus, May 5, 2009
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  11. Aironia

    Aironia New Member

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    i have three rams in my main tank, after alot of research I'm pretty sure they are all females. SO i went to go get a male. Had him in the tank for three days, he was frisky and eating well. fourth day i go to feed them and hes dead. Although the females are still getting fatter by the day.
    My water was pristine and he was the only addition to the tank.
    Go figure.
     
    Aironia, May 5, 2009
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  12. MOD_Dawn

    MOD_Dawn Active Member

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    maybe he had a heart attack from all the females (too much selection). *Just kidding* Lol!
     
    MOD_Dawn, May 9, 2009
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  13. jrow8162

    jrow8162 Member

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    I'm gonna try again. This time in my ten gallon tank and with 3 or more. I have a ten gallon tank that is crystal clear and perfect water parameters. I think 3 maybe 4 may just make it in there. Last chance before I give up. I've had issues with cloudy water in my 20 long so i'm not gonna put more in there. LFS here has Rainbow fish in with their Rams and they seem to keep them alive. Maybe they mix well. All I know is I have bought 3 Rams now and haven't kept one alive for more than 5 days.
     
    jrow8162, May 13, 2009
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  14. MOD_Dawn

    MOD_Dawn Active Member

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    Good luck with the re-try!
     
    MOD_Dawn, May 13, 2009
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