Plecostomus 911

[Ludwig Venter]

Approximately 27 hours ago, I did some water changes in the garage and (probably then) my Plecostomus (10") decided to explore the outside world. He was in with the Discus and normally pushed them aside at feeding untill he had his fill, but this afternoon at 17h00, I noticed he was not there to annoy his bedfellows.... I looked around and found him bone dry behind one of the stands some 15 feet away, but still moving a little.

I've now put him into a tank by himself & he/she just lays there with some gill movement visible... How long will they survive out of the water & do you think "where theres life, there' hope??"

 

[piranha_tim]

Approximately 27 hours ago, I did some water changes in the garage and (probably then) my Plecostomus (10") decided to explore the outside world. He was in with the Discus and normally pushed them aside at feeding untill he had his fill, but this afternoon at 17h00, I noticed he was not there to annoy his bedfellows.... I looked around and found him bone dry behind one of the stands some 15 feet away, but still moving a little.

I've now put him into a tank by himself & he/she just lays there with some gill movement visible... How long will they survive out of the water & do you think "where theres life, there' hope??"

I have no idea how long the Pleco was out of water but the fact he/she is hope inspiring for sure. Just keep an eye on him ... There probably isn't much else you can do.

 

[ox5477]

Do you have lids on your tanks? A lid on any tank this guy is in will help to stop this from happening. They can exert quite a bit of force when shooting out the tank so make sure the cover is on the heavier side. If it is still breathing that is good. Im sure its still getting over the shock. Just keep watching and make sure the tank it is in is fully airated so it has as much oxygen available to it as possible. Good luck

Ox

 

[Ludwig Venter]

Phew!!... close shave.... Checked on him/her this afternoon and non the worse for wear... Fins are a bit tatty, but cheerfully vacuming the tank.

Great survivor.... I honestly think he/it was out the water for about 27 hours

 

[ox5477]

Glad to hear the big guy is doing good. Now make sure you get a cover on that tank.... don't want this happening again

Ox

 

[piranha_tim]

awesome ... Glad to hear it

 

[dave1987]

some plecs can actually survive out the tank for a short while as they have to do it in the wild when there is a draught they stay alive in a muddy wet hole but not sure how long for though.... He should be fine

 

[Ludwig Venter]

Sadly, I found him/her floating this morning..... I really don't understand this, cause he seemed to recover so nicely and even yesterday showed no obvious signs of distress. Could well be some internal damage as the tank he jumped from is about 6ft from ground level.... (top tank in a stand with 6 tanks in)

 

[Dorkhedeos]

Sadly, I found him/her floating this morning..... I really don't understand this, cause he seemed to recover so nicely and even yesterday showed no obvious signs of distress. Could well be some internal damage as the tank he jumped from is about 6ft from ground level.... (top tank in a stand with 6 tanks in)

Might be that, or there might be stuff on the floor that mightve killed him that you werent aware of.

 

[ALW]