Ill platy

[Joanne33]

Hi
i have a male platy with swim bladder problem - he is swimming on his side. He's been like it for 7 days. I have him in a bowl on his own - wide topped, the other 2 are in a 25 gallon tank. Should i put him back with the rest? I've treated him with Interpret swim bladder treatment. He is not eating.

 

[Demeter32]

Don't put him back with the others as they will pick at him and eventually kill him. The bowl you are keeping him is doesn't sound the best though. I think you should get a 1gal plastic bucket filled with water and let it float in the main tank to keep him warm, add an air stone to oxygenate the water. A heated and filtered hospital tank would be better, 5 gallons would be perfect.

Don't try feeding him anything other than de-shelled peas as it acts as a laxative and most swim bladder issues are related to being overfed/constipated.

Epsom salt baths can be used to help with bloating/swim bladder. I'll find you a decent link with more info.
https://www.cuteness.com/article/use-epsom-salts-fish-aquariums

Could you try posting a pic of your boy and also test your water for Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate? Most issues are related to high levels of the substances listed. How often do you do water changes?

 

[Joanne33]

Thank you for getting back. The platys were my sons. They are not in a heated tank but have produced one baby, I suspect there might have been more that got eaten. I tested the water using the strips that change colour and it seemed OK, but I can't give detail. The fish will have nothing to do with peas or anything else. I've attached a photo. I do a water change roughly every week, about 25 percent. Sometimes he is quite lively. He's on his side there, not upside down.

 

[Demeter32]

Poor guy He doesn't really look bloated, has he pooped at all since he starting having problems? You really need a heater for these fish, as they are tropical and need to be around 78 degrees F. Being too cold for a long time can eventually lead to the fish's immune system being effected so that could be part of the reason for his problems. Also, if the water is too cold their digestive system will not function proper and can lead to bloating/constipation = swim bladder issues.

If he's not constipated nor bloated then perhaps he has internal parasite, which can sometimes cause the swim bladder issues.

Can you post the number results for the test strips?

 

[Joanne33]

Poor guy He doesn't really look bloated, has he pooped at all since he starting having problems? You really need a heater for these fish, as they are tropical and need to be around 78 degrees F. Being too cold for a long time can eventually lead to the fish's immune system being effected so that could be part of the reason for his problems. Also, if the water is too cold their digestive system will not function proper and can lead to bloating/constipation = swim bladder issues.

If he's not constipated nor bloated then perhaps he has internal parasite, which can sometimes cause the swim bladder issues.

Can you post the number results for the test strips?

I bought a heater and stone - the water was quite near to 72 before the heater. He still is exactly the same. He won't touch the peas - he must be so hungry. The test strips were just colour changes.

 

[Joanne33]

I bought a heater and stone - the water was quite near to 72 before the heater. He still is exactly the same. He won't touch the peas - he must be so hungry. The test strips were just colour changes.

I bought a heater and stone - the water was quite near to 72 before the heater. He still is exactly the same. He won't touch the peas - he must be so hungry. The test strips were just colour changes.

He has been to the toilet but judt once - a thin short string

 

[Joanne33]

Sorry above looks weird, I was trying to post using my phone and couldn't see much of what was going on