Flaoting,bloated Belly, Omg Its Getting Worse

[Amina]

OMFG! okay now im really scared, I just went an checked on him, his like butthole thing..is bulging out, its red and he lookis like hes going to explode! whats wrong with him

The only thing I could find was for internal bacterial infections. nothing for parasites. But i put the bacterial stuff in because thats all i could find. heres a recent pic....its so disgusting and im so worried about him

I went to feed my fish this morning and my Pleco was swimming upside down at the surface of the water.....at first i thought maybe he was trying to find food or something. but normally hes really shy and when you approach the tank he swims to the back and hides. I touched him and he didnt even flinch. His belly is larger than normal and it sticks out of the water when hes upside down....hes just floating around the tank....he tries to stick himself to the glass but he cant hold on....Its like hes got a big air bubble in his stomach im really worried, i dunno what to doYou can see what I mean by his belly looks larger

He floats up and just sits there with his fins sticking up out of the water

It's not about 1:33pm over here, he hasnt gotten better, seems to have given up trying to go back down to the bottom, hes completley exghausted. Now hes got a little white thing sticking out of his butt, maybe wonder if its some kind of parasite? But I've never heard of a parasite that causes the fish to float.... I'am positive there is air trapped somewhere inside him where it shouldnt be. I videotaped the poor thing so you can see for yourself what i mean. I'll put the vid link up in a bit. But if anyone knows anything, please please tell me, Ive had this pleco for years, and never had a single problem until now.

Heres some pics I just took

This is a pic at the water line to show how much his belly sticks out

 

[Amina]

And no, that is not his home....I put him in a plastic container thing so I could examine him closer. Now he's back in his big tank.


Anyways....heres that video link. Watch the hole thing. You'll see why i think theres air in there....
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkOZn9l0pf8

 

[Jonno]

not sure on the answer, but i'm sure a 38g is far too small to house a plec - 55g minimum iirc.

 

[Amina]

Yes im aware of this, I'm talking to some friends on getting him to a bigger tank...but right now the only thing that matters is the facct that hes got air is in system...and cant swim

 

[Amina]

Okay.... after doing a little research im almost positive this must be some internal parasite.

One of my angelfish has a bloated belly too.....but its because he keeps eating the algae discs that I've been putting down for my pleco...which he hasnt been able to eat due to his condition. ....Anyways I have NOTHING for internal parasites. My tank has no live plants because my pleco ate them all awhile back.. -.- so im not worried about killing plants. Its just the pleco and two angelfish. If anyone knows a good med, or if there is a med I should stay away from, just anything.

 

[Amina]

WTF ARE YOU TELLING ME NOT A SINGLE PERSON KNOWS WHATS WRONG WITH HIM?!?!??!?

 

[rowdyburns21]

chill out dude, how long has it been in the tank

 

[Tolak]

It's a swim bladder problem, more than likely bacterial. Not knowing the country you are located in makes it difficult to suggest a med, as not all meds are available in all countries.

Often constipation & bloat preceed swim bladder problems, this would be brought on in a plec from a diet deficient in fresh veggies, along with too much protein. You need to get some antibiotics, and a med tank. Epsom salt in the water will help with the constipation issues, but often when the swim bladder gets this involved it is a tough one to treat.

 

[Amina]

I brought him to the vet this morning....and what he did was shocking but it might save him.

he took a needle..like from a shot..and just poked where the air was trapped, I was holding him upside down as he did this. and it was like a deflating baloon. his skin is stretched out alot, but most of the air is gone, and he can swim right side up now. I've got him in a 10 gallon hospital tank for now. So I can watch his food intake and....uhh outake? I've put anitibiotics in, and stuff to help repair his fins. The angles chewed him up a bit when he was in the other tank unable to swim. I've cooked some peas and removed the skin. He dosnt seem to want to eat them. but whatever. I'am however starting to notice some like.... well it looks like hes got gold dust or sand sprinkled on his fins and tail. I dont ever remember him having it before. I've heard something about this but i dont remember anything about it. Anyone know what it may be? And if he does have swim bladder disease, will the antibiotics help? I've thought about giving him a Epsom salt bath, but I dont know if it's constipation. Should I give him a Epson salt bath? I'm afraid to feed him his normal algae discs. He hasnt eaten in a long time. Do you think i should feed him? if so, what? ...i was thinking about cucumber...hmmmm

 

[Tolak]

Sounds like you have a good vet, ones that treat fish are tough to find. The antibiotics will help with the swim bladder problem, which is usually bacterial. Usally a fish with what looks like a sprinkling of fine gold dust is suffering from velvet. Velvet needs light to reproduce & survive, blacking out the tank will help, if this is not possible copper sufate pentahydrate does the trick, and can be used along with antibiotics. One tablespoon of epsom per 10 gallons of tank water will get a sluggish digestive system moving, any of the squash family, such as zuccini is excellent food for plecs.

 

[Britesprite]

I hope he pulls through, it sounds like you really care about him.

 

[Ilya]

Give him the most expensive cucumber you can find. I'll even sell you one from my garden for $50.

 

[Amina]

50$ for a cucumber?! lol i think i'll pass. I get all my fruit from the farmers market, so it's all fresh organic.

Yea our vet is really amazing, hes a good friend of the families. hes even saved our gunea pigs once.

 

[Amina]

wow this has been like a miracle....

I'm still not 100% sure what was wrong with him. But poke-ing his belly and releasing the trapped air has saved him.

And my Angelfish took advantage of him not being in the tank and layed eggs..... So I guess hes gonna have to live in the 10 gallon for awhile >.<

And my friends tank sprung a leak so he brought his fish over to my house...now ive got 4 cichlids in a 15 gallon with the evil crayfish...this has been the most insane fish day everr...

 

[mxzmadness]

its also a good idea to have driftwood in the tank for pleco's mine devour it