Ember Tetra is a small, brightly colored freshwater fish that you can find in South America. They are typically one of the first fish to be added to an aquarium because they are peaceful and easy to care for. However, sometimes they will die suddenly or mysteriously without any warning signs. So, Why Do My Ember Tetra Keep Dying?
It could be because of a lot of reasons. Non-cycled tanks, poor water conditions, overcrowding, diseases, ammonia poisoning, and sudden changes in the aquarium parameters are all examples.
The first step to understanding why your Ember Tetra is dying, however, is to determine if it’s actually sick or just starting the natural process of death.
You can tell if your fish is sick by looking for these symptoms: loss of appetite, weight loss, discoloration/color change in scales and eyes (whiteness), bloated body, difficulty breathing/swimming, and skinny body. If you notice your Ember Tetra is displaying any of these symptoms for more than a day or so with no relief then it’s time to provide medical treatment immediately.
This post will discuss why your ember tetras keep dying so you can prevent it from happening again!
Reasons Why Your Ember Tetra Is Dying
There are various reasons why your Ember Tetra is dying, all of which can be preventable. Here are the most common reasons why your fish may die:
Non-Cycled Tank
When you first set up a new tank, there are no bacteria in the filter or substrate that can break down waste products like ammonia and nitrites, which are very harmful to fish.
Poor Water Conditions
Poor water conditions can cause many problems to your fish, which is one of the most common reasons people keep losing their Ember Tetras. This usually happens when there are high nitrates in the tank, which causes poor health, stress, and even death.
If the water parameters are not optimal, their immune system will become weaker, and they will have a higher chance of catching diseases or developing health problems.
It would help keep an eye on these parameters to ensure that your Ember Tetra is living in healthy conditions: temperature, pH level, nitrites, and nitrates.
If the temperature is too high or low, it can be fatal to your Ember Tetra, so you should keep them at a steady 78 degrees Fahrenheit. The pH level should also remain between six and seven as any fluctuations will lead to stress which compromises their immune system making it easier for diseases to attack them.
Overcrowding
Overcrowding will not allow your Ember Tetra to thrive because there will not be enough room for them to swim around, and they may even become more aggressive towards each other.
Diseases
Ember Tetras are very susceptible to diseases, but the good thing is that you can treat these illnesses, especially if it’s caught early on.
Ammonia Poisoning
This often happens when there is not enough filtration in the tank. As a result, the ammonia level will rise, and this can cause your Ember Tetra to develop fin rot or even pop their eyes out.
Poor Genes
This is the least common reason why your Ember Tetra may keep dying. However, they can have poor genes, and even if you take great care of them, they may still die young.
Some fish are naturally weak, which means they may not survive for long, especially if you start with sickly specimens.
Sudden Change In Water Parameters
If you change the temperature or pH level of your tank too quickly, it can shock them, weakening their immune system, making them more susceptible to diseases.
Changes in water parameters can cause severe stress to your Ember Tetra, which may lead to death.
Bullying And Stress
Ember Tetras will often get bullied by other fish, and this can cause them to become stressed.
This stress weakens their immune system making it easier for diseases to attack them or develop health problems.
If you have a very aggressive fish, it will probably pick on the weaker ones, which can be fatal and stressful for those being attacked.
Overfeeding
Overfeeding is one of the most common reasons why people lose their fish. They may always seem hungry, but you should only feed them as much food to meet their nutritional requirements.
How Can You Tell If Your Ember Tetra Is Dying Or Sick?
If your Ember Tetras have signs of disease, they may have a bloated belly, and you’ll notice that their scales look very odd or discolored.
They also stop swimming around, which means something is wrong with them. In addition to this, their gills will be moving very quickly, and they may even have red spots all over their bodies.
If your Ember tetra is dying, you’ll notice that their scales look really wrinkly and discolored.
They also stop swimming around, which means something is wrong with them. In addition to this, their gills will be working extremely hard, and they may even have red spots all over their bodies.
The most obvious sign of a dying fish is when it starts sinking in the water or stands on its head at the bottom of your tank.
This is usually a sign that something has gone wrong in your fish’s head, or it can indicate that there is some disease present in its body.
If your fish doesn’t have any signs of sickness but is still dying within days after purchase (or sometimes even up to a week), then there might be something else going on.
The first thing I would suggest is to immediately cycle your aquarium and provide the best water conditions you can with a good filter, heater, and regular water changes (25% weekly at least).
How To Make Your Ember Tetra Live Long Life?
You can keep your Ember Tetra alive for longer by maintaining water conditions.
You can prevent diseases, bullying, and stress by separating males from females and cycling the tank before introducing them to it. Also, maintain a healthy diet with appropriate amounts of food being given every day.
Maintain Water Conditions
This is one of the main reasons your Ember Tetra is dying, and you should make sure that it stays healthy.
You can maintain water conditions by performing weekly or monthly water changes with a gravel siphon to remove waste from the substrate and give them appropriate tank mates. It would help if you also avoided overcrowding, which means only around six fish should be kept in a 20-gallon tank.
Prevent Breeding
Try to prevent breeding if you keep your Ember Tetra in a community tank because it will increase the stress levels of other fish.
You should also avoid overfeeding them. Instead, give them enough food once every day for each Ember Tetra currently living in your tank. If there are any leftovers, collect them after feeding the fish and immediately remove them from the tank.
Prevent And Treat Diseases
If you want to keep your Ember Tetra alive for much longer, you must prevent diseases by making sure that their environment has no ammonia or nitrite levels, as well as treating them if they are sick with appropriate medication.
To prevent and treat diseases, you should make sure that your Ember Tetra is in a cycled aquarium with appropriate lighting and maintaining their diet. It would help if you also quarantined new fish or plants before introducing them into the rest of the tank and performing water changes weekly to remove any leftover medication from the aquarium.
Separate Males From Females
If you keep your Ember Tetra in a community tank, you must separate males and females into their own tanks because they will fight with one another.
Separating them reduces stress and the risk of them picking up any diseases or parasites that could be transferred to other fish.
Cycle The Tank
You must cycle your tank before introducing it to any new Ember Tetra because they are susceptible to ammonia levels.
Ammonia poisoning can kill your Ember Tetra quickly if their environment has an ammonia level of more than 0.
If you are cycling your tank, do not introduce any new Ember Tetra until the cycle is complete and only add them in small amounts every month or so to ensure that there will be enough food for all of them when they start breeding.
Final Words
If you want to keep your Ember Tetra alive for much longer, you must take steps to ensure their environment has no ammonia and nitrite levels, as well as treating them if they are sick with appropriate medication.
To prevent and treat diseases, you should make sure that your Ember Tetra is in a cycled aquarium with suitable lighting and maintaining their diet. It would help if you also quarantined new fish or plants before introducing them into the rest of the tank by performing water changes every week to remove any leftover medication from the aquarium.
Whether you are concerned about your Ember Tetra dying or wanting to keep them alive for much longer, you must follow all of these steps so they can live a long and happy life!
If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments section below, and I will try to answer them as quickly as possible.