# Loach Emergency! Infection and an Escape!



## J9000 (May 5, 2013)

So I've been away at college and sorry to say my tank has gone neglected for awhile. Pretty much the only maintenance it's gotten is being topped off by my fam when it gets too noisy for them. They never turn the light off so it's covered in alge. They also never changed the filter bags. The fish were eating fine, and seemed ok except...

One of the loaches has a fungus or something growing on his face. He doesn't seem bothered by it at all. He is less ative then the other loach, but he always has been.. He is 6 years old. 













I've been treating him with this for about a week with no signs of improvement. 


Yesterday I realized I never took out the carbon filter bags. So I did that. They had gotten completly filthy and when I took them out the water got flooded with gunk and I could barely see the fish. I thought it was just a cosmetic issue. So I went to work, came home with a headache, went to sleep it off. 












I guess I was wrong and the water quality is horrible. My grandmother woke me up screaming that a snake was in the hallway. One of the loaches has escaped. The one that doesn't have something growing on him. This is the first time this has happend. I'm thinking the water was bad so he left in search for a fresher home. I freaked out and did a 200% water change until it was clear and added some prime. After that I read on the box of meds that its not suitable for scaleless fish. 

This is the escape artist.









55g
1 fancy goldfish
2 weather/dojo loaches. 

Nitrite 0
Nitrate 20
Ammonia .25
PH 6.4-6.8
Hardness 250
Alkalinity 80


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Just get your water clean and see if that doesn't improve the loaches issue.


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## tbub1221 (Nov 1, 2012)

I'm familiar with this product , used it with an ich outbreak a year or more. Back.
Many chemicals are not safe for inverts and scaleless fish and I can't quote them but very few are suitable. The product your using when used as directed is very effective on a wide range of nasty stiff. A fellow fish keeper and fried steered me to this , he said its no garontee but if he had 12 loaches and snails and crayfish like I did then this is what he would use. 
It has smaller traces of the harsh chemicals to its make up. .
I'm not saying to use it , its a discretion issue , but I can. Vouch 4 it that it not only didn't hurt my loach's but probably saved many fish , (the ich was due to water quality from removing established substrate and adding sand I removed the biofiltration)
If i had to use something tomorrow it would be that or the mardel copper safe its great external parasites , ich and velvet. Also loach safe but does say to remove snails and inverts. 
Good lock with Mr dojo , he looks just like one of mine , they eat and crawl up in my hands like they missed me when I'm in there aquarium.


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