# Tiger Barb-fin rot?



## lonedove55 (Jan 25, 2012)

I need some advice please..I have a tiger barb whose lower tail fin has what appears to be the beginning of fin rot? It is whitish in color and the fin seems to be getting shorter. I noticed this about a week ago and it seems to be a little worse today. Also, this particular barb tends to be more skittish and hovers more toward the back of the tank behind the plants, but will come out to feed and is eating ok.

The other tiger barbs and the 5 danios in this same tank do not exhibit any fin problems,. Anyone have any ideas of what this could be? The barbs do chase each other occasionally, but I have not noticed any fin nipping. If it is fin rot, how do I treat it? I'm attaching links to a couple of pictures. Your advise would be greatly appreciated! 

Parameters are: Ammonia 0, Nitrites 0, Nitrates 10 to 20.
26 gallon bow front


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

i got really worried when i saw my fish with white bits on his fins but after a few days i realised they go whiteish when there healing....are you sure its getting smaller? read this (but ignore the salt part)

How to Treat Fin Rot: 6 steps - wikiHow


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

He looks nipped - the loser in the pecking order. How many other tiger barbs do you have?


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

I agree, maybe you need a bigger school of barbs, or it could be that this one is a bit poorly/weak/shy and doesn't stand up for himself well.


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## lonedove55 (Jan 25, 2012)

> i got really worried when i saw my fish with white bits on his fins but after a few days i realised they go whiteish when there healing....are you sure its getting smaller? read this (but ignore the salt part)
> 
> How to Treat Fin Rot: 6 steps - wikiHow





> He looks nipped - the loser in the pecking order. How many other tiger barbs do you have?





> I agree, maybe you need a bigger school of barbs, or it could be that this one is a bit poorly/weak/shy and doesn't stand up for himself well.


Thanks for your quick replies guys! This has just came up in the last week or two, and yes, the bottom half of the fin is noticeably shorter than the top half. I guess it is possible the fin could have been nipped at one time or another, but so far I have not seen any aggression among these 3 tiger barbs. Approximately 2 months ago, there was another barb in with these 3 that was terrorizing them so I removed him and it's possible he was the nipper. But I would have thought the fin damage would have been apparent at that time.

I am still in the process of stocking this tank and currently have 3 other tiger barbs in a quarantine tank (they will be there for the next week or so). As I've noted above, these 3 barbs have shown no aggression toward one another *so fa*r and I always laughingly call them The Three Amigos because they get along so well. There are 5 zebra danios currently in the tank also, but basically ignore the barbs, and any aggression I've seen is directed toward their own.

I do at least 25-30% water changes every week and will be doing a water change today. As for now, I'll keep a watch on the barb's tail for any worse damage and observe if any nipping is going on. If it appears to get progressively worse, I have some anti-fungal meds I can treat him with.


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

Three is the worst possible number for tiger barbs. Without even seeing him/her, it's safe to guess at nipping. With three, there is always the left out loser, and his (mildly) nipped fin identifies him as that guy. You know - couple falls in love, friend decides to go see a movie with them the next evening...

You don't have to see it happen - that's a nip and not fin rot. 

Tiger barbs live active social lives with the sorting out of rank being a big preoccupation - it's like living in a permanent corporate golf tournament with chainsaws. Ideally, you should never fall below six, as then, there will be a couple of fish vying for alpha status, and maybe two at the bottom of the chain - so the nastiness gets spread around. The more the merrier, literally.

Your fish isn't badly hurt, and is very young. If the others are his size or slightly bigger, then the hormones are kicking in hard and it might explain the sudden ending of the peace.


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## zero (Mar 27, 2012)

I forgot to say and navigator has reminded me. I only have 3 left now (the Oscar ate the rest) and the female has started nipping at the two males sincee there bellys turned red. There gold barbs but they do nip!


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## lonedove55 (Jan 25, 2012)

> Three is the worst possible number for tiger barbs. Without even seeing him/her, it's safe to guess at nipping. With three, there is always the left out loser, and his (mildly) nipped fin identifies him as that guy. You know - couple falls in love, friend decides to go see a movie with them the next evening...


Ahhhh, yes, I am well aware tiger barbs should be kept in a larger number and I am still trying to get this tank's stocking numbers up. These 3 barbs are all the same size and have grown quite a bit since I got them, so being older, the hormone theory is a definite possibility.

Hopefully, I can transfer the 3 new barbs I just purchased into this tank soon, and I hope to add several more in the future. Also, more plants have been added just yesterday and all the fish seem happier for it.


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