FishyMel
New member
A couple of days ago my 15 inch female marbled cat died mysteriously. My water parameters were perfect
0 nitrate
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
1.025 salinity
She was eating but not taking on weight which was a little strange. She was way to skinny when she was shipped in, cats are really skinny but her belly was suken in. Also she was shipped in only 1.5 gallons of water and when I tested its ammonia, it was at 3.0 (dark blue) after diluting it for acclimation! :eek2: I'd think a fish especially a shark would be instantly dead in that and to think she was in it for 18 hours! She also was constantly breathing hard despite all the maxi jets I had for oxygen. Here is my theory, the high ammonia burned her gills and caused a gradual organ failure making food only pass through her system and not take nutrients or weight. Her belly was also red when she came in which would indicate ammonia burning and/or nitrient difficiency from failing organs because it got worse over time even with an iodine supplement, she was constantly scratching it in the sand and against walls. It was a really horrible death, and I hope didn't cause any pain by having you read it. I also think such a large animal shouldn't of been pulled from Australian waters for trade, that also probably made any acclimation even without ammonia very hard. It is so depressing watching such a beautiful animal die. Anyone else agree with my ammonia burn theory.
The good news is the ray I bought at the same time in the same tank is doing very excellent and is a rather happy little critter.
0 nitrate
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
1.025 salinity
She was eating but not taking on weight which was a little strange. She was way to skinny when she was shipped in, cats are really skinny but her belly was suken in. Also she was shipped in only 1.5 gallons of water and when I tested its ammonia, it was at 3.0 (dark blue) after diluting it for acclimation! :eek2: I'd think a fish especially a shark would be instantly dead in that and to think she was in it for 18 hours! She also was constantly breathing hard despite all the maxi jets I had for oxygen. Here is my theory, the high ammonia burned her gills and caused a gradual organ failure making food only pass through her system and not take nutrients or weight. Her belly was also red when she came in which would indicate ammonia burning and/or nitrient difficiency from failing organs because it got worse over time even with an iodine supplement, she was constantly scratching it in the sand and against walls. It was a really horrible death, and I hope didn't cause any pain by having you read it. I also think such a large animal shouldn't of been pulled from Australian waters for trade, that also probably made any acclimation even without ammonia very hard. It is so depressing watching such a beautiful animal die. Anyone else agree with my ammonia burn theory.
The good news is the ray I bought at the same time in the same tank is doing very excellent and is a rather happy little critter.