55g African Cichlid trouble...

Question
Hi there...
Okay, you're going to rip my head off here... I bought a full-grown Yellow Lab from a reputable store in town. I didn't put it in a QT cause I don't have one... I know, I should have one, but I haven't any space at all at the moment for a QT. I floated him and acclimatized him the proper way, floated the bag for half an hour, then added half a cup of my water every 15 mins or so for an hour, then netted him into the tank, ensuring no bag water made it into my tank.

pH is about 8, temp is 80, nitrate and nitrites are 0, ammonia is about 0.25.

As soon as I put her in there, my only male Yellow Lab started chasing her really badly, wanted to breed with her. She clamped her fins, hid by the heater, wouldn't come out. I went and bought another female Yellow Lab, and the male took turns chasing them both. The original female started looking a bit better. She then developed red pin-prick sized red dots, not raised. I promptly went out as soon as the lfs opened the next morning and got some Pimafix by API. I did a 40% water change, cleaned the filter, removed the carbon, and dosed the tank. About half an hour later, the female yellow lab's fins were unclamped, started swimming around, just looking healthier.

I checked the water conditions again, and they were all the same as before I dosed the tank. Here's where the problem starts....

I got up this morning, my bubbler stopped working for about 4 hours. I had 5 dead fish, including the sick one, and all my other fish were desperately gasping for air at the surface. I got the bubbler working again, thankfully, and they seem to be back to normal.

I had a breeding pair of P. Acei in the tank, and my female was holding. The father died, and the female (I'm assuming from the stress, or just good timing) spit all the fry out... Do you know if she will take them back into her mouth and raise them, or will she just forget about them? So far today she has forgotten about them, so we bought a hatchery and put the remaining 9 fry in there. We have frozen baby brine shimp and flake..

Do you know how such a massive death could have happened? I do regular, weekly water changes, between 15% and 30%, condition the tap water, and this tank has been up for about 5 months, everyone was happy and healthy until I dosed the tank with Pimafix. My bubbler had quit on me before for a longer period of time, and the fish were fine. I did research and found there was several people that dosed their tank for cotton mouth and red fins (like mine had, it says on the bottle that's what it treats...) and all their fish died as well.

And what can I do for my acei fry?

I just can't believe this happened, and I can't believe how many other deaths I've heard of from Pimafix! I lost about $120 in fish today!

I hope you can help...

Thanks,

Cassie

Answer
Hi Cassie,
This is so sad, and I'm sorry this has happened to you.  How big is your tank?
I have never used Pimafix in any of my tanks, so cannot really comment on it.  However, your fish lacked oxygen, and this along with medication could cause death.  This would have happened with any kind of medication.
When breeding African Cichlids, the mother should be in a tank of her own with her babies.  She let them go for lack of oxygen.  You won't have much luck keeping the young ones in a small hatchery.  The mother would need at least a 15 or 20 gallon tank, alone with her fry.  You could raise them on your own, but you would need another tank.  Feed them baby brine shrimp for about 2 weeks, and as they get bigger, feed them good quality flake food that you will crush until it resembles powder, crush it very very small.  Then after a while you could start feeding them different foods such as frozen blood worms.  (When the mother is with them, she chews the food up for them, and then blows the food at them for them to eat.)  Water changes for the fry should be done every day without fail.  Ammonia builds up quickly as we must feed the fry 4 times a day.  Vary their diet as soon as they can eat bigger sized foods.  It is very important to vary the food we give our fish.  This keeps them healthy, gives them the vitamins they need, and keeps them from getting sick.  
You could try putting the fry back in with her, but there is no guarantee on what would happen next.  She may or may not look after them.  She is recovering from lack of oxygen right now.  She is in a state of shock.
Do another water change, make sure your filter is splashing the water back into the tank.  Never fill your aquarium to the very top.  The water from the filter should splash into the tank giving them the oxygen they need.  
Make sure you have no ammonia, nitrites in you tank.  Keep checking your water.
With Africans, it is always better to have three females to one male.  The problem is, you would need other tanks to house your pregnant females.  This also depends on how many fish you have in your tank, the size of your tank, and the hiding places you have.  When breeding African Cichlids, you must be prepared.  It is a challenge.
I would also like to mention that when cleaning your filter, alway rinse your sponge in the water you have taken out of the tank.  The reason for this is that your sponge holds good bacteria, and if rinsed in hot water or cold, you kill the good bacteria.  A sponge is good for a very long time...until it is falling apart.  Just thought I would mention this.
Try to get your ammonia down to zero.  This is very important.
I'm sorry for your losses, and know how terrible you must feel to wake up to dead fish.  
If you have other questions, do not hesitate to write me.
Lynda