My platy fish keep dying?

J

jumpper9

New member
I have recently bought some platy fish but in about a month they start to dye its mostly the females but i have had a few males. they start to get skinny and deformed their fins clench like their getting squeezed in, they still eat but eventually die the lady at the pet store said live baring fish just do that and their was nothing i could do. i do 25-30% water change every week while i clean the gravel. i have had about 4-5 fish die on me so far with in the last 2 months. this is starting to get frustrating what can i do to save the fish i already have.
ow do i check the water?
i used to clean the tank ever month or so but the lady at the store said to do it every week so i guess i should ease off of it for a while what do i need to test the water is it the ph or the nitrate?
 
You need a water test kit.

Is your tank cycled? Mass death is usually caused by ammonia poisoning.

Look up "new tank syndrome"

P.S. Do not ask people at petstores. They are out to make money. Buy a book
 
Don't listen to the lady at the fish store. Check the water, there might be something in there that is making the fish act that way. Instead of doing a 25%-30% water change, do a 10-15% water change instead.
 
Dang. Platys are the most fun fish a tank can have. Loads of personality. Sorry for the loss.

I'd suspect a parasite. I'd suggest you buy a smaller hospital or quarantine tank, and make sure they're healthy before you introduce them into the big tank. It's also possible you're cleaning it too much; and the bio-system is not able to reach stability. You might be ahead to segregate remaining fish into smaller tanks, sterilize the main tank, and start from scratch, paying attention to the water's Ph, since that can also put stress upon our little friends.

I've never had more than one Platy at a time in a tank, and usually they clean up the tank pretty well. My biggest problems always occurred by over-attention to the tank, not under-attention.
 
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