Bit of a week - crisis with weird resolution

[Just Bob]

So the story of week 7 is one of crisis, casualties and the weirdest of solutions...

After 6 weeks, the batch were all doing great - only one death, Nemo, the one with the swimbladder issue. All were eating well - I was still feeding BBS together with a powdered mix of FDBH and Hikari Bio-Gold. All was well - or so I thought.

So, I decided that it was time to stop the BBS.

Over the next 72 hours, things seemed normal. Fry still eating, still active.

But then things started to change.

Over the next 48 hours, some fry started to show darker colours - edge of fins and some a more all over darkish blue tint. Initially I though they were just starting to get some colour, but then there was the first death, then another and then another. The fry were stressed and it was getting worse. Over the course of the next 48 hours a total of 8 fry died - one right in front of me as I watched.

I'm thinking what the heck? Checked water params, perfectly fine, flukes, nope, temperature, good. Everything seemed perfect and yet fry were darkening and dying.

The only thing that was different - the BBS! Surely the fry weren't starving?

Started back up on BBS as my last hope - immediately the fry perked up. Eating BBS like they hadn't been fed for a week. Stress colours started going away. Activity increased and a week later, things are back to "normal'.

So, looks like I'll be hatching BBS for a while yet!!

[LizStreithorst]

I've never heard of anything like that, but it was the only thing that was different.

Most breeders get their fry off the BBS as fast as possible. I take a different approach which I've always been happy with. I keep feeding BBS until the fish started ignoring it which is usually around 3" more or less. All I really know for sure is that it does them no harm.

[Just Bob]

Parents are back in the community tank - and still at it!

[jeep]

I keep feeding BBS until the fish started ignoring it which is usually around 3" more or less.

Ditto!

[johnnyjellybean]

My last batch of fry started eating beef heart at 17 days old by 22 days old I stopped the BBS.

[pastry]

That's the type of weird admissions and observations (whether proven or possible coincidence) that I LOVE seeing posted. Because if for some crazy instance it helps a few others out (now or in future) then a trend of potential truth may start and I nerd out on documenting damn near everything (especially odd and especially "gut feelings" whether right or not). Meanwhile, I need to keep working on current group to see if I could develop another pair That'll raise little ones in my community tank