Cory catfish are the most common bottom dwellers aquarists prefer to add to their tank. They are peaceful and hardy fish, making them a good option for a community tank. Also, they are easy to take care of, making them the best choice for beginners.
However, many aquarists and beginners go through the issues like their cory cats passing away or their new batch of cory catfish dying. I have also gone through this and will discuss the reasons and prevention for such issues in this article. So, Why are my cory catfish dying? Let us find out.
There can be numerous reasons for cory catfish dying, of which Poor water conditions and inadequate water parameters are the primary reasons. Other causes include aggressive mate and high-level stress. Ensure regular water changes and maintain adequate water parameters to prevent such issues.
This article will discuss why cory catfish died and how to prevent such issues. So, let us get into it.
Contents
Why are my cory catfish keep dying?
There can be numerous reasons for your cory catfish keep dying.
The water conditions and parameters are the primary cause behind such issues.
Other reasons like an overcrowded tank, aggressive mate, an ammonia spike, and sickness can also be the cause.
Cory catfish are hardy fish and can live in a wide range of water parameters and conditions.
However, keeping them in inadequate water parameters and poor water conditions will make them prone to various diseases and parasites, and they can even pass away.
An uncycled tank or improper acclimatization can also be the reason for your new batch of cory catfish passing away.
Let us get forward and discuss all these in detail.
Why does my new cory catfish keep dying?
If you have added a new batch of cory catfish in your tank and notice that they are dying one by one, then these are the reasons behind such issues:
- Improper acclimatization.
- Unclycled tank.
Improper acclimatization
When you buy a new batch of fish from the pet store and place it in your home aquarium, there are chances that your fish will not be able to adapt to the changes in their environment and can pass away because of stress.
The sudden change in water conditions, temperature, and other things will make them come under stress.
Consider letting the bag of the fish float for 30-50 minutes in your home aquarium.
The bag in which you have bought the fish from the pet store will carry the aquarium water of that pet store where the fish have been living for a long time.
Letting it float in your home aquarium will help your fish adapt to the water conditions and parameters slowly.
After that, transfer the fish to your home aquarium and throw the water which was in the bag.
Uncycled tank
If you have set up your tank and added a new batch of cory catfish in that tank, you notice that your fish are dying after some time. An uncycled tank is a reason behind that.
We cycle our tank to build beneficial bacteria, which help us break down ammonia into nitrite into nitrate.
An uncycled or not properly cycled tank will result in an ammonia spike.
Cory catfish are very sensitive to ammonia, and even a small percentage of ammonia can affect your cory catfish’s health, and they can pass away.
What are the reasons behind my cory catfish dying?
There are numerous reasons behind your cory catfish dying.
Cory catfish are hardy fish and can live between a wide range of water parameters.
However, they can suffer life-threatening conditions when kept in a tank with inadequate parameters and conditions.
These all are the possible reasons behind your cory catfish dying.
1. Poor water conditions
Bad water conditions are the primary reason behind your cory catfish dying.
Cory catfish are freshwater fish and prefer to live in clean water conditions.
They will come under stress and become prone to various diseases and parasites living in poor water conditions.
There will be an anytime risk of an ammonia spike in dirty water, which can make your cory catfish suffer from life-threatening conditions.
An ammonia spike will result in burning your cory catfish skin, fins, and body.
It will affect their swim bladder, and they will suffer from swimming.
All this will make them weak, and they will start avoiding eating, resulting in coming under stress and becoming prone to various diseases and parasites.
Cory catfish living in such conditions will pass away in no time soon.
2. Inadequate water parameters
Inadequate water parameters can also make your cory catfish suffer from critical conditions, and they can pass away.
They are hardy fish and can live between a wide range of water parameters, but providing them between their ideal water parameters is necessary.
Inadequate or high TDS levels will affect your cory catfish growth, and also their health will be affected.
Inadequate and unstable water temperature will put your cory catfish under constant stress, and they can get affected by diseases and parasites and even pass away.
A high pH level will affect their skin, gills, and eyes. Also, they will lose the ability to excrete the metabolic waste from their body, which can make them suffer from the buildup of it.
All these can make your cory catfish pass away.
Also read: Ideal pH Level For Cory Catfish?
3. Aggressive tankmates
Cory catfish are peaceful fish and will love to live and swim with other non-aggressive fish in a community tank.
Consider not putting any aggressive fish in your cory catfish tank as it will make them suffer from critical conditions.
The aggressive fish will constantly nip and harass your cory catfish, and your catfish will not even fight back.
They will keep running and hiding from the aggressive fish, resulting in high-stress levels.
Cory catfish in constant stress for a long time will become weak and prone to various diseases and parasites.
Living in such conditions will result in your cory catfish passing away.
4. Overcrowded tank
An overcrowded tank can also make your cory catfish pass away.
All these are the issues your fish face when kept in an overcrowded tank:
- A crowded tank will get dirty faster than a regular.
- Your fish will not be able to swim and live comfortably.
- There will be a high risk of an ammonia spike in a crowded tank.
- Oxygen will be deficient in an overcrowded tank.
All these will make your cory catfish suffer from critical conditions, and they will pass away.
5. Sickness
It is possible that your cory catfish was suffering from a disease or parasites.
Living in poor water conditions, stress, and inadequate water parameters makes your fish prone to diseases and parasites.
Some infections and parasites are contagious and can affect the whole tank.
Sick cory catfish will lose their appetite and become weak, passing away.
Also read: How To Treat Swim Bladder Disease In Cory Catfish?
6. Bad genetics
Genetics can also be the reason behind your cory catfish passing away.
Bad genetics result in weak cory catfish and are prone to various issues that can result in them passing away.
However, you can notice the weakness and issues in the early stages of their life if bad genetics is the reason.
How can we prevent our cory catfish from dying?
Ensure all these things to prevent your cory catfish from dying:
- Provide good water conditions to your cory catfish.
- Maintain adequate and stable water parameters of your cory catfish tank.
- Avoid overcrowding your cory catfish tank.
- Avoid adding aggressive fish to your cory catfish tank.
- Feed your cory catfish with high-quality nutritional food.
Good water conditions
Provide your cory catfish with good water conditions to prevent them from passing away.
To ensure good water conditions, regularly perform a weekly water change of at least 35%.
Consider adding a good filtration system with biofilter media to protect the water from harmful toxins like ammonia and nitrite.
| Particulars | Cory Catfish |
|---|---|
| Water condition | Clean water condition |
| Ammonia | 0ppm |
| Nitrite | 0ppm |
| Nitrate | Below 20ppm |
Keep a regular check on ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels and ensure to maintain ammonia and nitrite at 0ppm, whereas nitrate should be below 20ppm.
We recommend using the API master test kit to check your cory catfish tank’s ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels.
You can buy it from amazon: API FRESHWATER MASTER TEST KIT.
Also, you can consider adding plenty of live aquatic plants to your cory catfish tank as it will help you keep the water clean and well oxygenated.
Also read: Can Cory Catfish Live In Brackish Water?
Adequate and stable water parameters
Providing cory catfish with adequate water parameters will prevent them from passing away.
| Particulars | Cory Catfish |
|---|---|
| Water Temperature | Between 70-82 °F |
| Water pH level | Between 7 and 8 |
| Water TDS level | Between 400-600ppm |
| Water Hardness | Between 5 and 19 dGH |
Ensure to maintain the water temperature between 70-82 °F.
Consider adding a heater to your cory catfish tank to stabilize the water temperature.
The unstable water temperature will stress them out and make them prone to various diseases and parasites.
Maintain the water pH level between 6 and 8.
The water TDS level should be between 400-600ppm.
Also read: Ideal Water Temperature For Cory Catfish.
Avoid overcrowding
An overcrowded tank will make your cory catfish come under constant stress, and they can even pass away.
To ensure you are not overcrowding their tank, follow the one-inch one-gallon rule.
The one-inch one-gallon rule means one inch of fish per gallon of water.
When it comes to cory catfish, they can be as long as 4 inches in size, with an average of 2-2.5 inches.
Also, keeping an average of 5-6 cory catfish together is necessary as they are schooling fish and prefer to live in a large group of their species.
All this makes at least a 20-gallon tank an ideal size tank for keeping your cory catfish.
Also read: How Many Cory Catfish In A 10-Gallon Tank?
Avoid adding aggressive tankmates.
Adding aggressive fish to your cory catfish tank will put them under high-level stress.
The aggressive fish will constantly chase and nip your cory catfish, and they will keep running and hiding from the aggressive fish.
All these will make your cory catfish under constant stress and become prone to various diseases and parasites.
They can even pass away because of the high level of stress.
Also Read: Can Cory Catfish Live With Neon Tetras?
Feed them high-quality nutritional food.
Food is essential in keeping your fish healthy and ensuring their faster growth and development.
Feeding them low-grade food or expired food can cause serious issues to their health, and they can even pass away.
Also, feeding only one type of food will affect their health.
Cory catfish are omnivore fish and require both meat and plant matter food in their daily diet to ensure their ideal dietary needs.
Feed your cory catfish with bloodworms, tubifex worms, brine shrimp, blanched vegetables, sinking pellets and flakes, and bottom feeder tablets.
Feed your cory catfish two times a day, each time in a quantity that they can finish eating in one to two minutes.
Also read: How Often To Feed Cory Catfish?
Conclusion:
Poor water conditions and inadequate water parameters are the primary reason for your cory catfish dying.
There can be other numerous reasons, such as overcrowded tanks, aggressive tankmates, sickness, and high-level of stress.
Uncycled or improper cycled tank and improper acclimatization can also be the reason for your new batch of cory catfish passing away.
Ensure proper cycled tank, good water conditions, and adequate water parameters to prevent your cory catfish from passing away.
Reference: Wikipedia