Convict Lost His Balance

[fry_lover]

Male Convict, approx 3 inch, had him ages, never had a problem

water parameters all "ok"

ammonia and nitrite : undetectable,
nitrate: approx 40
pH, approx 7.8
temp, approx 79F
plenty of o2 it would appear, lots of surface movement, no issues with other fish
no disease or probs with other fish, no signs of bullying or excessive fighting
usual diet, no live foods (no diet changes)

no signs of skin issues or eye issues

SYMPTOMS: Convict just looks like he cant keep balance, you wouldnt know unless you watched for 5-10 secs, its not like he's upside down or on his side, he just keeps "swaying from left to right" and sometimes his bottom rises and he's facing a bit "head down", he is active and moving about, but somethings obviously not right, its like he is "walking on the moon" almost, kind of like he is experiencing a different "gravity" to rest of fish

thats the best way i can explain it

swim-bladder issues?

I have one theory that may hold no evidence...........

last time i saw a cichlid do this, was one i got from LFS who never settled in my tank, ALWAYS hiding away, looked miserable, 3-4 weeks later he had similar symptoms (this was a different tank and months ago), died about 3 days later

The Convict in question used to be part of a breeding pair, and its only been 3-4 weeks in this tank, he is not used to sharing, and although he hasnt been aggressive or bullied as mentioned, my gut feeling is its been bought on by stress and a change of environment

but what specifically could be causing the "balance" issues from a physical perspective?

Thanks

 

[WILDER]

Sounds like swim bladder to constipation.
Try some shelled peas.
What normally do you feed the fish.

http/www.fishtanksandponds.info/care-mai...swimbladder.htm

 

[fry_lover]

Sounds like swim bladder to constipation.
Try some shelled peas.
What normally do you feed the fish.

http/www.fishtanksandponds.info/care-mai...swimbladder.htm

well its a mixed cichlid tank with no veggies,

diet routine is, once a day feeding, approx per week

1x flake (tetra min)
2x Pellets (spirulina based or that hakari? stuff)
4x Frozen (rotates between blood worm 1x weekly max, mysis, krill, omnivore mix, cichlid-diet, fine mussells)

But Wilder, fact is, this fish been having this diet for about 6-9 months?

what do you reckon?

also what do you reckon of that diet for a Convict?

 

[WILDER]

Cut the bloodworms and flakes out to see if that makes an improvement on him.
I would try some shelled peas as some meat eaters will eat them.
Do you soak the pellets before you give them the fish, as some take a while to absorb the water.

 

[fry_lover]

Sounds like swim bladder to constipation.
Try some shelled peas.
What normally do you feed the fish.

http/www.fishtanksandponds.info/care-mai...swimbladder.htm

well its a mixed cichlid tank with no veggies,

diet routine is, once a day feeding, approx per week

1x flake (tetra min)
2x Pellets (spirulina based or that hakari? stuff)
4x Frozen (rotates between blood worm 1x weekly max, mysis, krill, omnivore mix, cichlid-diet, fine mussells)

But Wilder, fact is, this fish been having this diet for about 6-9 months?

what do you reckon?

also what do you reckon of that diet for a Convict?

good point about the pellets, i dont soak them, and i recently wondered what its like for a fish to eat an almost completely dried pellet as soon as it hits the water!

will try the pea's, thanks Wilder

i am a pessismist i guess, when i look at this fish i see "dead, but he doesnt know it yet"

will keep my fingers-crossed

you think diet related possibly? if it were a illness, what would be the first thing you think of?

 

[WILDER]

I agree about the pellets start soaking them, I do it if there really hard.
Don't feed to many bloodworms in a week it can be very bad for them there high in protein.
Once a week is enough for bloodworms.
Try the shelled peas if they don't eat them remove them from the tank.
Good luck.

According to this site need a rich diet of veg.
http/www.tropicalfishdata.com/american_c...ct-cichlid.html

 

[fry_lover]

well its been a few days now and he's still alive, although its obvious he's still having "issues"

if he is still he tail rises and he faces head down, but otherwise when he moving around he just seems a little "wobbly"

so considering a couple of days have passed and these are the symptoms, does that tell us anything in particular?

Thanks

 

[WILDER]

Can you issoloate him and try a bacterial med.
Head down and looks like the tail is weighing the fish down is swim bladder.