??? :( | by Julia M

??? :(

I lost one of my yellow labs either last night or this morning. He's been completely fine then I went to feed them and he was dead on the floor of the tank. Does anyone know why this happens??

posted in Cichlids
I was thinking about picking up a new fish this week, now I'm afraid to
Im not great with Africans, but maybe what you feed them has to much protein in it. Africans don't need much protein and can bloat there stomachs which can kill them. In there natural habitat they eat blue-green algae and things like that. So I would check your food or maybe he got beat up which happened to one of my labs one time. Though I am sure you would know if he got beat up. Sorry for your loss.
I would get some melafix and do a weeks cycle before adding any fish, that way you know it isn't some kind of fungus or bacteria that you didn't or cannot see.
I use New Life Spectrum sinking pellets for cichlids. He was fully intact, so maybe it is something I can't see. Thanks for the information Devin
food for cichlids is too general. you need food for african cichlids with 35% or less crude protien. check the crude protien on your and if 40% or more, dont use it.
Its the NLS with African cichlids on the front and it's 34% protein. Oh well. Need to find somewhere around here with Melafix
I would not bother with meds. fish do die for no apparent reason as do humans. If all the others are ok then they should be ok. and that food is good.
Agree with Wes. Look closely at your other fish. If nothing seems wrong it was probably a random thing. I'd prob wait a week and see if anything turns up before adding new fish.
Any new fish should be quarantined for a couple weeks anyways so you should see by then if there are any real issues here? :)
Melafix isn't a med. It's a natural remedy that can be used for many things and it wont hurt to use at all. It's up to you whether you want to use it.