Dropsy

Twinklecaz · Jul 23, 2010

I haven't posted this in the emergencys forums coz it's not really, just a slight wondering lol.

How obvious is the bloating and pineconing? Just I was looking at 2 of my Platys last night and I noticed they were both quite fat (they had been fed about 2 hours before that though). Then I was looking at their scales and you can see them individually if that makes sense. At least some of them you can. I put dropsy into google and I was happy to see they look nothing like the images it brought up....the fish in them were REALLY bloated and really pinconey. But then I thought Oh god, what if these are just the most extream developed cases and mine are just in the early stages. So basically what I need to know is how obvious is it?

I have noticed they're fat before and they seem happy enough and eat fine so I'm hoping they're just fat. I know Platys are pigs. But I do only feed them once a day and they eat it all in 2-3 mins. I'm guessing that if it WAS dropsy I'd know about it by now though wouldn't I? I first thought the yellow one looked fat about 4 weeks ago!

P.s They're both male!

mark4785 · Jul 23, 2010

Twinklecaz said:
I haven't posted this in the emergencys forums coz it's not really, just a slight wondering lol.

How obvious is the bloating and pineconing? Just I was looking at 2 of my Platys last night and I noticed they were both quite fat (they had been fed about 2 hours before that though). Then I was looking at their scales and you can see them individually if that makes sense. At least some of them you can. I put dropsy into google and I was happy to see they look nothing like the images it brought up....the fish in them were REALLY bloated and really pinconey. But then I thought Oh god, what if these are just the most extream developed cases and mine are just in the early stages. So basically what I need to know is how obvious is it?

I have noticed they're fat before and they seem happy enough and eat fine so I'm hoping they're just fat. I know Platys are pigs. But I do only feed them once a day and they eat it all in 2-3 mins. I'm guessing that if it WAS dropsy I'd know about it by now though wouldn't I? I first thought the yellow one looked fat about 4 weeks ago!

P.s They're both male!

Well, if I remember correctly, Dropsy seemingly takes place at the same time that various organs start to shut down in the fish. If they are eating well and look 'pinecony' at the same time you really shouldn't jump to conclusions. With Dropsy, I'm sure you'd experience the following simultaneously: Loss of appetite, some/all scales raised, loss of balance and increased gill movement.

You may want to take a picture of them and post the images here so myself and others can have a look to see what may be wrong, if anything. Alternatively, look for pictures of that particular fish species, print the pictures off and compare the bodly features of picture specimen to your own fish to see whether there are any differences.

Mark.

Twinklecaz · Jul 23, 2010

Hiya. Thanks for answering me!

Fattiness has gone down a bit today and both still seem happy. I think they might just be pigs (as Platys can be).

I'm now more concerned by the SNAIL I just found (and vaccumed up) in my tank! :grr:

Jen · Jul 25, 2010

I lost a good number of barbs to dropsy over the years, and I'll tell you, the pineconing is very obvious. On first glance they just looked kinda fuzzy... like the focus of a camera was just off a touch. But after looking more closely, I could actually see all their scales sticking out.

It really seemed to happen overnight each time. One day everyone in the tank was fine, then the next time I looked in there, the poor little guy just looked so terrible. Most of them still ate for a few days and swam normally, but eventually it got the best of them.

I hope yours are ok still.