Dwarf gouramis are beautiful and peaceful fish that can be a great addition to any tank, but they tend to die very quickly for some unknown reason. Keep reading to find out why they might be dying and how you can help keep them alive!
Why Does My Dwarf Gouramis Dying Too Early?
Dwarf gouramis are very sensitive fish who need a lot of care. They can survive in ponds, but they typically do best in tanks. The reason they die so quickly is that most people don’t know what to feed them and they aren’t sure how to take care of them properly. If you want this fish to live, you’ll need to keep these things in mind.
Diet:
Dwarf gouramis need to eat a lot of protein and they need it often. They can eat just about anything and will happily accept most foods, but the easiest food to give them is live mosquito larvae or brine shrimp. If you want your fish to live for more than a few months, then these are the only two types of food that you should be giving them.
Unfortunately, not all dwarf gouramis will eat mosquito larvae or brine shrimp. If your fish won’t eat it after a few days, then you will need to try something else. For other options, you can try tubifex worms or beef heart. These types of foods are usually available in pet stores, but they are much more expensive.
Tank:
You need to have a tank that is at least 10 gallons, but 20 gallons would be even better. If your fish are dying, then you might think that they aren’t living very long because of how small your tank is. In reality, the size of the tank has nothing to do with it. It just means that there aren’t enough hiding places for your fish to get away from each other.
If you have a lot of dwarf gouramis, then I recommend getting two tanks and transferring all of the fish in one tank into the other tank when they start dying. This way, you won’t lose all of your fish at once and will be able to keep them alive longer. You can then use the first tank as a hospital tank to keep the sick fish in and try to diagnose what is wrong with them.
Tank Mates:
Dwarf gouramis are extremely peaceful fish who won’t bother any of their tank mates. In fact, they will probably be killed by some of the bigger fish in your tank because they stick their little faces into the mouths of the bigger fish to try to get food. If you plan on keeping dwarf gouramis with other types of peaceful fish, make sure that none of them will try to eat the smaller ones.
Diseases:
Dwarf gouramis are very susceptible to a disease known as cotton-wool disease. If you notice that your fish have white fuzz growing on their mouths, then they may have this disease. It is easily treated with medication, but most medications will kill the bacteria in your biological filter and cause it to start malfunctioning.
If you notice that the water in your tank is starting to smell, then it might be a sign that your biological filter isn’t working anymore. Change 10% of the water every day until the problem goes away and wait for one month before adding any new fish.
You can also try cleaning out all of the plants and decorations in your tank. Even if you have plastic plants, they can still be hiding harmful bacteria. Dispose of the gravel and use fresh gravel after changing the water for one month.
If nothing else works, then you might want to try using antibiotics on your fish. Just make sure that the medicine contains sulfa drugs because this is what dwarf gourami are most susceptible to.
Sick fish usually die rapidly if they haven’t been moved into a hospital tank, so it’s important that you act quickly when you notice any problems with them. If your first treatment doesn’t work, try something else until you find out what is wrong. You should never let sick or dying fish stay in the main tank because they will infect your other fish as well.
If you follow all of these tips, then your dwarf gouramis should live for more than 2 years and finally die a natural death. They can be very difficult to keep alive outside of their natural habitat, but it’s doable if you know what you need to do.
