Blood Parrot Cichild

Question
I have 3 blood parrot fish; the ages are 4,3,2.  Ordinarily, they are active swimmers and hearty eaters, but for the last 5 days I've noticed all 3 go to one side of the tank and not move.  They just float and barely acknowledge me when I come to the tank.  I feed them Hikari Cichlid Staple, floating mini pellet daily, but for the last 5 days, they do not eat. I take the uneaten food out of the water.  Today, as I was looking at them, I noticed that their gills which are normally a bright red, has "junk" in them.  I vaccuumed their gravel about 3 weeks ago, and I'm wondering if this is what's caught in their gills.  The color of the gills are brownish, and I'm very concerned.  Also, their color is off; my eldest remains a consistent orange, but the other two are pale.  Lastly, my eldest keeps getting pock marks in his head; I had to treat him for hole-in-the head 8 months ago, but often I'll see new pock marks appear; the others don't have this trouble.  I appreciate your assitance.

Answer
Hi Barbara,
 Hmm...  You should be cleaning the tank more often than once in 3 weeks. In fact, you should be changing 25% of the water once a week, every week to keep your fish happy and healthy.  I strongly urge you to do some water changes immediately.   

-- Ron C.
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
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