# HELP/Urgent: Bullied astatotilapia aeneocolor



## Fishandpitbulls (May 20, 2015)

I am a novice African Cichlid keeper with a tank that is admittedly too small. The set up is at my office. My bosses really wanted a vibrant, colorful tank and they wanted it in a 46 gallon bowfront so I'm trying to make that work. It's been going ok but this tank is a mix of Malawi Mbuna and a few Lake Victoria haps, and everyone is bullying the aeneocolor. I'm very concerned he won't make it if I don't pull him today. I have a tank I can use for a hospital/QT tank but it's not set up. I have some pool filter sand I can put in there for substrate. I will need to get a heater and a sponge filter but I should be able to pull that off.

Here are my questions: I don't have a lid for the QT tank yet. Will he be ok in there with no lid if I don't fill it all the way? Also, the QT tank is obviously not cycled. Will it be ok to put him in there? It's a 20 gallon and he's a 2 inch fish, so I don't feel like the ammonia will spike too bad if I'm doing a lot of water changes. Should I pull him out today and look for a place for him to go? Or should I look for a place for him to go right now and if I can find one just pull him and bring him there? I'm worried about putting him into an established tank. He's a beat up juvenile fish.

Help! I don't want him to suffer and die. What can I do today?

(Yes I have learned my lesson. Next time I do an African Cichlid set-up I will have a fully cycled QT/hospital tank ready to go before any fish go in the main tank. Live and learn.)


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## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

If he's being bullied and you don't have a cycled QT tank, I would still move him to the 20G NOW and keep up with water changes. You could also buy the bottled bacteria product to help. Use something for a tank lid, even a piece of cardboard in a plastic bag will work.


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## Fishandpitbulls (May 20, 2015)

Deeda said:


> If he's being bullied and you don't have a cycled QT tank, I would still move him to the 20G NOW and keep up with water changes. You could also buy the bottled bacteria product to help. Use something for a tank lid, even a piece of cardboard in a plastic bag will work.


Thank you. I will do that today.


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## Fishandpitbulls (May 20, 2015)

He was getting rapidly worse so I pulled him out and put him in a QT tank that I threw together in 2 hours, including drive time. That was stressful and exhausting! I am concerned that the stress from moving along with the stress from being bullied and now being in an uncycled tank will kill him, but at least now if he dies he can die in peace without the other fish hurting him. Poor guy. He is my favorite from the whole tank so I sure hope he makes it.


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