Trichogaster; cotton-like growth on mouth 9/7/09
HI, I have a 23 gallon community tank and one of my male pearl gouramis has a cotton like growth on his mouth. It seems to making him act very differently and not eat properly.
<Cotton-like growths can be one of two things, Mouth Fungus (actually a bacterial infection known as Columnaris) or true a true Fungal infection.
True fungus looks like fine off-white threads. Columnaris can look like threads, mould, or something in between. Use Google to compare images of the two if you don't have a fish health book to hand. Some medications such as Seachem Paraguard (in the US) and eSHa 2000 (in Europe) will treat both, so if you can't tell them apart, then such medications would be the way forward. Avoid tea-tree oil medications such as Melafix: these are unreliable.>
All the water levels are fine.
<I doubt this. Both Columnaris and Fungal infections are caused, more often than not, by water quality issues. So even if you *think* the tank is fine, review stocking density, filtration rate, water changes, etc. Physical damage can be another trigger, so check your fish haven't been fighting.>
Please help!
Thanks,
Sonny
<Cheers, Neale.>

Gouramis and angel fish   8/22/09
Hi, I have a question, please. I currently have 5 medium sized angel fish and 6 panda cories in a 75 gallon tank. I was thinking of adding some gouramis with them (partial to the pearl). Would this be OK or will one or the other pick on the other's finnage?
<Yes, Gouramis should mix with these fish... though dependent on the species. Make Three-spot Gouramis (Trichogaster trichopterus) can be aggressive at times, though in a 75 gallon tank I doubt that'd be much of an issue. Still, if you can do without these fish, sometimes sold as blue, golden, or Opaline gouramis, so much the better. The prime species for your consideration are Pearl Gouramis and Moonlight Gouramis, both of which are consistently reliable. You might also think about Banded and Thick-lipped Gouramis (Colisa fasciatus and Colisa labiosa). Both of these are hardy and generally peaceful. Their normal colour is similar to the Dwarf Gourami, but an all-over orangey-red form is available. The Dwarf Gourami (Colisa lalia) is of course an option, *provided* you can get hold of good quality stock, which is easier said than done. Finally, consider Climbing Perch, the African equivalents and close relatives of the Asian gouramis.
Ctenopoma acutirostre is a stunning fish and very easy to keep. Although it has no interest in dried foods, it readily takes wet-frozen and live foods such as bloodworms, and in terms of temperament, is shy and not in the least aggressive. I've kept pairs in tanks as small as 30 gallons without issues. Sometimes known as the Leopard Bushfish, it's a good addition to community tanks where the other fish are not so small (e.g., Neons) they could be swallowed whole.>
If I can use gouramis is the pearl a good choice and how many females should I get with one male?
<In the case of Pearls and Moonlights, pairs are fine provided the tank has lots of space and ideally floating plants. For Trichogaster trichopterus, you would want to keep just one male if at all possible. They're tricky to sex, but males have longer dorsal fins than females.>
Thank you for all your help. God bless.
James
<Hope this helps, Neale.>

Re: Gouramis and angel fish – 08/23/09
Thanks, so in the case of the pearl I can get just one mail and one female, or more than both also?
<One male, one female will work. If you want, add additional females.
Cheers, Neale.>

Update - Re: Are Galaxy Rasboras really being captive bred? Pearl Gs 3/31/09
Hello Neale,
<Hello Sandy,>
How is Miss Olivia Jane? Beautiful, and a genius already, I'm sure.
<Apparently not so much. Seems to be exhausting her parents now the novelty has worn off.>
Thanks for your thoughtful response and that link. I will press on with trying to ascertain the origin of these Galaxy Rasboras.
<Okey dokey.>
In the meantime, I had to return the Diamond Tetras that I had gotten for my 37 gallon tank with the Blue Gourami and Swordtail. They were like fish on crack all over the tank and just wouldn't let her get near any food, despite the size of the Gourami in comparison to the Diamonds, and she would come out even less than she did before.
<Diamonds are certainly feisty fish. I have a lone survivor in a busy tank alongside such thugs as Glassfish and South American Puffers, and he's definitely the dominant fish.>
I added 3 beautiful Pearl Gouramis - what I thought were 1 male and 2 females - I now suspect they might be 2 males and 1 female, or quite possibly - eek - 3 males.
<Hmm...>
So I may have to look for some more females. One is definitely a male and the others could be less mature males. They are all the same size - about 2 inches and all have very similar coloring - with the orange-red underbelly (suspiciously male?).
<Males certainly have more red, but that doesn't mean females have no red at all. It's the combo of coloration and the longer dorsal fins that seal the deal.>
One has the male's distinctive pointed dorsal fin and trailing anal fin. He is also the most dominant of the three and a little territorial with one of the other Pearls. One has much shorter fins, but with a definite point on the dorsal fin, unlike most of the pictures I have seen with the female's dorsal fin being definitely rounded.
<On the males, the dorsal fin can reach as far back as the tail fin, so the length difference is considerable. The dorsal also tends to be somewhat ragged along the trailing edge, and trait repeated somewhat on the anal fin too.>
The other could be rounded, or could be pointed, and is just immature.
<Quite.>
I'll have to wait and see which it turns out to be.....unless you can tell by my description....
<Not really, no.>
In retrospect, I think this LFS had primarily males as their colors were all spectacular. The other store was not a LFS, but a high pressure pet store with only females, and poor lighting, which made them look even more drab. Quite a number of their tanks had Ich, and the Pearls just didn't look well, so I was hesitant to buy any livestock there. I waited until I found these at a dedicated LFS.
<I see.>
The Gourami and Sword are both out and about much more now than they have ever been and don't even scurry away when the kids run by anymore. The Pearls are very peaceful and that seems to suit them much better.
<Generally, Pearl Gouramis aren't bullies, and you may be fine with even three males.>
I think the Galaxy Rasboras may do better in this tank since it is cooler than the Betta tank at 76 degrees - and has a little current from the Eheim outflow.
<Agreed.>
But I wonder if they might send Miss Gourami back into hiding....
<No; too small to bother her. There's a fine balance between small schooling fish that act as dither fish (making benthic fish feel safe) and boisterous, bigger schooling fish (that simply terrorize them). In general, you want the smallest, least offensive dither fish you can get, but not so small they're "live food".>
You had suggested Celebes Rainbowfish, but I can't find them locally and they are quite pricey for special orders.
<Shame. On the plus side, they're quite long lived, once settled in (much like other Atherines).>
So I'm back to thinking about another schooling group of small fish for this tank, or else I will leave as is for now, since I'll probably be adding one or two more Pearl Gouramis.
<OK.>
If I can set up a small tank for our Betta, I would put 5-7 Galaxies in the 10 gallon tank by themselves. I could lower the temp and hope for some happy spawning.
<Certainly.>
Best to you,
Sandy
<By the way, I forwarded your messages to the proud parents, who I'm sure appreciated them. Cheers, Neale.>

Pearl Gouramis Re: Update -   4/1/09
> Hello Neale,
> <Hello Sandy,>
> How is Miss Olivia Jane? Beautiful, and a genius already, I'm sure.
> <Apparently not so much. Seems to be exhausting her parents now the novelty has worn off.>
I am laughing at this - tell them welcome to the world of parenthood - read: NO SLEEP..... Tell her to take the baby into the bed with her - it will change her life - for the better - it's how all the animals do it, why shouldn't we?
> Thanks for your thoughtful response and that link. I will press on with trying to ascertain the origin of these Galaxy Rasboras.
> <Okey dokey.>
> In the meantime, I had to return the Diamond Tetras that I had gotten for my 37 gallon tank with the Blue Gourami and Swordtail. They were like fish on crack all over the tank and just wouldn't let her get near any  food,
> despite the size of the Gourami in comparison to the Diamonds, and she would come out even less than she did before.
> <Diamonds are certainly feisty fish. I have a lone survivor in a  busy tank alongside such thugs as Glassfish and South American Puffers, and he's definitely the dominant fish.>
They were lovely, but I don't miss them.
> I added 3 beautiful Pearl Gouramis - what I thought were 1 male and 2 females - I now suspect they might be 2 males and 1 female, or quite possibly - eek - 3 males.
> <Hmm...>
> So I may have to look for some more females. One is definitely a  male and the others could be less mature males. They are all the same size -  about 2 inches and all have very similar coloring - with the orange-red underbelly (suspiciously male?).
> <Males certainly have more red, but that doesn't mean females have no red at all. It's the combo of colouration and the longer dorsal fins  that seal the deal.>
> One has the male's distinctive pointed dorsal fin and trailing anal  fin.
> He is also the most dominant of the three and a little territorial  with one of the other Pearls. One has much shorter fins, but with a definite  point on the dorsal fin, unlike most of the pictures I have seen with the female's dorsal fin being definitely rounded.
> <On the males, the dorsal fin can reach as far back as the tail fin,  so the length difference is considerable. The dorsal also tends to be  somewhat ragged along the trailing edge, and trait repeated somewhat on the  anal fin too.>
His is definitely ragged on the trailing edge. The other two are not at all.
> The other could be rounded, or could be pointed, and is just immature.
> <Quite.>
> I'll have to wait and see which it turns out to be.....unless you  can tell by my description....
> <Not really, no.>
Oh well, we'll have to wait and see then. Will I have too many in this 37 gallon tank if I add 2 more (confirmed) females?
> In retrospect, I think this LFS had primarily males as their colors  were all spectacular. The other store was not a LFS, but a high pressure  pet store with only females, and poor lighting, which made them look  even more drab. Quite a number of their tanks had Ich, and the Pearls just  didn't look well, so I was hesitant to buy any livestock there. I waited  until I found these at a dedicated LFS.
> <I see.>
> The Gourami and Sword are both out and about much more now than they
> have ever been and don't even scurry away when the kids run by anymore.
> The Pearls are very peaceful and that seems to suit them much better.
> <Generally, Pearl Gouramis aren't bullies, and you may be fine with even three males.>
I'm trying to be a bit more patient these days - will only add more female Pearls if I can confirm the others are indeed male.
> I think the Galaxy Rasboras may do better in this tank since it is  cooler than the Betta tank at 76 degrees - and has a little current from  the Eheim outflow.
> <Agreed.>
> But I wonder if they might send Miss Gourami back into hiding.....
 <No; too small to bother her. There's a fine balance between small schooling fish that act as dither fish (making benthic fish feel  safe) and boisterous, bigger schooling fish (that simply terrorise them). In general,
> you want the smallest, least offensive dither fish you can get, but  not so small they're "live food".>
> You had suggested Celebes Rainbowfish, but I can't find them locally and they are quite pricey for special orders.
> <Shame. On the plus side, they're quite long lived, once settled in (much like other Atherines).>
> So I'm back to thinking about another schooling group of small fish for this tank, or else I will leave as is for now, since I'll probably be adding one or two more Pearl Gouramis.
> <OK.>
> If I can set up a small tank for our Betta, I would put 5-7 Galaxies in the 10 gallon tank by themselves. I could lower the temp and hope for some happy spawning.
> <Certainly.>
> Best to you,
> Sandy
> <By the way, I forwarded your messages to the proud parents, who I'm sure appreciated them. Cheers, Neale.>
> I'll send them something else in another email.
Thanks again.

Re: Pearl Gouramis Re: Update -   4/1/09
His is definitely ragged on the trailing edge. The other two are not at all. Oh well, we'll have to wait and see then. Will I have too many in this 37 gallon tank if I add 2 more (confirmed) females?
<Could be a bit busy, but you might be okay. Wait and see, really. Pearl Gouramis are really fairly mild fish.>
I'm trying to be a bit more patient these days - will only add more female Pearls if I can confirm the others are indeed male.
Thanks again.
<Good luck, Neale.>  

Is my Pearl Gourami wasting away? – 04/07/09
Neale,
<Sandy,>
Recap:
37 gallon tank
1 female Blue Gourami
3 Pearl Gouramis - 1 male, 2 females
1 male Swordtail
1 Rainbow Shark
3 Otos
Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate are all "0". pH is 8.
Of the 3 Pearl Gouramis I got a week ago, the smaller of the 2 females seems to be wasting away from I don't know what. I noticed 2 days ago that she was always hiding - way in the back corner under the plants - even at feeding times. Yesterday, still hiding.
<Could be social, bullying. Unusual in this species, but not impossible.>
The other 2 seem just fine - chasing each other, eating well - on a weekly variety of good quality flake, algae/Spirulina wafers and live brine shrimp from the LFS. Today, I noticed the small female on the bottom of the tank having a hard time orienting herself.
<Ah, not a good sign.>
She had mouth down and tail up, with body curled up as if spawning, but quite alone. She was trying to pick up food or something off the substrate in an unplanted area of the tank beside the bogwood.
<Odd.>
If she came out into the open, the other two pearls seemed to chase her back to her "spot" which is very near where the Blue Gourami lives. The Blue would then "nudge" her as if to move her out of the way.
<The nudge will certainly be a territorial behaviour.>
The other two pearls are very aggressive with her and she seems too weak to swim well enough to get away from them quickly. They come at her hard with their mouths directly on her sides, and sometimes from both sides.
<Have seen similar; not nice.>
There also seems to be a small, but not obvious injury to one side of her gill cover. I had to really look for it - maybe 1mm and slightly red. She is also very thin compared to the other two - this is noticeable from both
the head on and profile view. While they are pretty flat to begin with, she is obviously thinner than she was when I brought her home a week ago.
I can see that her belly is slightly sunken. A week ago, she was eating fine - not today. Her color is pale and she is very stressed - was laying on the bottom under some plants almost fully on her side for minutes at a
time before she would struggle to right herself. She seemed to have to prop herself on the plants to keep herself more upright.
<Likely a systemic bacterial or perhaps viral infection. Not really much you can do in the latter case; in the former, treating with Maracyn might help, but a lot of these "wasting diseases" (Mycobacteriosis) are very
difficult to treat.>
I finally separated her and put her in a breeder net in the same tank with some floating plants and turned the lights out. I don't have another tank in which to isolate her, or else I would. I fed her a few brine shrimp so
see if she would eat and no luck at all - she noticed them, but didn't seem to have the energy to even try to catch any. I put in 2 small flakes of food and she wouldn't eat that either. The other fish sucked the flakes
through the bottom of the net, which is very fine to begin with. Hours later now, she seems to be faring slightly better - upright and swimming a little more, but not much.
Tank temp was 76, which I have raised to 78 to see if this will make her feel more like eating, but it might take a few hours for the tank temp to come up fully. What can this be and what can I do for her?
<To be honest, doubt you can do much at all; could well have been very sick prior to purchase... farmed gouramis reared intensively, perhaps with much use of antibiotics. Maracyn catches a fair number of bacteria, but if it doesn't, Maracyn 2 should catch a lot of the others.>
If this is just stress, I will have to find a new home for her and keep just the other 2, who seem to be doing fine. The male is even trying to blow a bubble nest - unsuccessfully though - too much surface movement.
No problems amongst the other fish whatsoever.
Thanks again,
Sandy
<Honestly don't expect this fish to live for long, not because I know what the problem is, but because the syndrome is one I've seen few recoveries from. Do see my article on WW re: euthanasia, and act accordingly. Sorry can't offer anything more promising. Cheers, Neale.>

Need to do anything for the others? Re: Is my Pearl Gourami wasting away? 4/7/09
Still no interest in food at all and still no improvements on her activity or swimming ability. She is extremely thin. I am very worried that if she has a bacterial infection that it may soon affect the other fish. What is the likelihood?
<Not much you can do now, since they've been exposed, but in practise the risk is probably small. Would certainly remove, euthanise this fish if you don't have a hospital tank.>
Or do you think that they would have exhibited some symptoms by now if they were going to succumb as well?
<Impossible to say.>
I am getting a little (half gallon) hospital tank from a friend tomorrow and will isolate her there for another day or two at most and then will have to let her go if no improvement.
<Of marginal value; a fish this size won't likely get better even in ideal conditions, and the inevitably poor conditions in a half-gallon tank (!) will simply speed up its demise. Tanks below 10 gallons aren't worth spending money, time or electricity on.>
We're all so sad to watch her languishing. If and when we have to euthanize her (thank you for the link you sent), I have access to clove oil. I have been told by a LFS that they don't recommend clove oil because they don't know how much to recommend for fish size.
<Just use lots! 30 drops in a litre should do the trick.>
They suggest Baking Soda, which I always have around the house.
<Don't do this; it's old school, and not recommended by vets.>
Any thoughts? I know crushing or decapitation would be instantaneous and most humane.
<Effective and humane if done correctly, but I agree, not pleasant to do.>
I just can't bring myself to do it. No problem with the Red Snappers from the fish market, even hooking live mullets for bait, .....but not our little pets.....maybe I just have to get over it.
<Quite normal reaction; good old human inconsistency. We happily eat pigs here in the West, while looking down on Asians who eat dogs, despite the fact every scientific experiment ever done clearly shows pigs are (much) cleverer than dogs.>
I plan to watch them very closely for the next few weeks before taking any precautionary measures and medicating by trial and error....I assume I will have to be vigilant about water changes and water testing until I'm sure we are past this.
<Good water quality is important, regardless of the context.>
If there are precautionary measures you feel would be wise to ensure the health of the rest of the tank, please let me know.
Thanks again,
Sandy
<Cheers, Neale.>

Re: Need to do anything for the others? Re: Is my Pearl Gourami wasting away? 4/8/09
You are correct, as usual - she is looking worse today - Have scrubbed plan to put in .5 gallon prison - I am on my way to pick up the clove oil and will do the deed today - have been preparing the kids - they have their ceremony all planned with song and all.....
<Sorry how things have turned out; but it's a good lesson to share with children than part of the responsibility of looking after animals is easing their passing.>
We have Chamber of Commerce weather today here in sunny Orlando, so it should be nice.
<Never heard of "Chamber of Commerce weather"!>
Thanks ever so much,
Sandy
<Cheers, Neale.>