roadracr
09-06-2010, 06:04 PM
Not sure exactly where I should post this, but here’s a good news story that might benefit others.
I’ve got a 160-gallon tank with 10 juvenile discus (3’’ to 4”), a bunch of cardinal tetras, and some assorted corys and BN Plecos. On Friday I walked by the tank and saw one of my discus floating on his side and flopping on the surface! He eventually struggled to pull himself below the surface and fought to swim downward. He looked to have a large belly mass.
The poor guy swam with all his might toward the bottom and fought to stay there. When he would let up, he’d ascend to the surface. He would then fight to swim downward. This continued for quite some time. When he would stop swimming completely, he’d literally shoot upward like a cork.
Suspecting gas blockage, but fearing a swim bladder problem, I moved the poor guy to my 20-gallon QT. The QT has a sponge filter on a pedestal base and no decorations. The discus would try to swim under the sponge and lay horizontal, letting his buoyancy stop him on the underside of the sponge, which he used as a ledge.
I went out and got Epsom salts, which I knew from prior reading, could serve as a laxative. I dumped about two cups of the salts into the QT and mixed it up. The salts dissolved rapidly in the 85-degree water. I then added a bushy plant with a slate base, figuring it would give him something else to use to keep from floating to the surface.
A couple of hours later, the fish was still struggling furiously, but there was a large poop mass emerging. In the next two hours, he dropped the mother of all discus poops, but he still could not maintain neutral buoyancy. His belly seemed a bit less bloated, but not yet normal. There must have been a lot of gas trapped behind the solid mass. He was still working very hard to stay submerged and pass whatever was in him.
I did not know what else to do, so I went to bed hoping for the best. In the morning I was relieved to see the discus swimming normally. The bottom of the tank looked like the result of five or six fish!
I left him in QT for another day without feeding him. He seemed fine, and none of the fish in the main tank exhibited any symptoms, so I moved him back. It’s been another day and all are healthy.
Not sure why this happened. I mainly feed a combination of Omega flakes and Tetra Bits, with a single cube of frozen bloodworms every other day as a treat.
Just thought I’d pass on a happy result.
Cheers,
Roadracr
I’ve got a 160-gallon tank with 10 juvenile discus (3’’ to 4”), a bunch of cardinal tetras, and some assorted corys and BN Plecos. On Friday I walked by the tank and saw one of my discus floating on his side and flopping on the surface! He eventually struggled to pull himself below the surface and fought to swim downward. He looked to have a large belly mass.
The poor guy swam with all his might toward the bottom and fought to stay there. When he would let up, he’d ascend to the surface. He would then fight to swim downward. This continued for quite some time. When he would stop swimming completely, he’d literally shoot upward like a cork.
Suspecting gas blockage, but fearing a swim bladder problem, I moved the poor guy to my 20-gallon QT. The QT has a sponge filter on a pedestal base and no decorations. The discus would try to swim under the sponge and lay horizontal, letting his buoyancy stop him on the underside of the sponge, which he used as a ledge.
I went out and got Epsom salts, which I knew from prior reading, could serve as a laxative. I dumped about two cups of the salts into the QT and mixed it up. The salts dissolved rapidly in the 85-degree water. I then added a bushy plant with a slate base, figuring it would give him something else to use to keep from floating to the surface.
A couple of hours later, the fish was still struggling furiously, but there was a large poop mass emerging. In the next two hours, he dropped the mother of all discus poops, but he still could not maintain neutral buoyancy. His belly seemed a bit less bloated, but not yet normal. There must have been a lot of gas trapped behind the solid mass. He was still working very hard to stay submerged and pass whatever was in him.
I did not know what else to do, so I went to bed hoping for the best. In the morning I was relieved to see the discus swimming normally. The bottom of the tank looked like the result of five or six fish!
I left him in QT for another day without feeding him. He seemed fine, and none of the fish in the main tank exhibited any symptoms, so I moved him back. It’s been another day and all are healthy.
Not sure why this happened. I mainly feed a combination of Omega flakes and Tetra Bits, with a single cube of frozen bloodworms every other day as a treat.
Just thought I’d pass on a happy result.
Cheers,
Roadracr