Sick Yellow Morph (l_caeruleus)

[j@mie]

Ok, i just visited my lfs and they had this little fella housed in a tank of his own, they said he was returned cos the owner was fed up with his cichlid tank.

They say he is poorly and this is obvious from his belly, which is beveled inwards. Like he hasnt been fed for Months.

When i asked about him, they said i could have him for free seen as he isnt himself. So i had the heart and decided to take him and house him in my new cichlid tank.

The lfs said they have tried all kinds of treatment to get him back to normal but nothing has worked, they even said he isnt eating which is strange cos i just fed him with the rest of my cichlids and he seemed to ram the food down.

He is also a bit terratorial with my other cichlids which are the same type, seems to nip when they come near him.

any1 know what the problem is with this little guy? all help is appreciated and needed.

Thanks

 

[j@mie]

bump. help me

 

[j@mie]

well im shocked, i thought this place could help me more than anywhere else, and i havent even got 1 reply

 

[glolite]

Yes it is a bit disheartening when no reply comes. Don't take it personally though, remember loads of people got new tanks etc for chrissy. It's happened to me too you just have to be patient. I'm a newbie when it comes to cichlids but would say if he is now feeding with the others, seems like he's got a good chance. Good luck!!

 

[modernhamlet]

jamie,

First off, apologies for no one getting back to you until today. I will point out though that you did post on New Years Eve. Not too many folks have been around the last couple of days. and all that...

To your situation...

First, I would strongly encourage you to not add a new fish, ESPECIALLY one that looks or acts unusually, to your existing tanks. This fish could carry a disease that could wipe out your entire tank. By putting him in a quarantine tank or having the LFS hold him for a couple of weeks, you know he's not going to spread illness to otherwise healthy fish.

It's good to hear he's eating well. Just keep an eye on his appearance over the next few weeks. If he's eating well and that was the only problem, then he should improve quickly. Otherwise, you may want to investigate other potential causes.

As far as the aggression goes, I have a couple of questions... how long has he been in the tank with your other cichlids? What size are your yellow labs compared to him? Has any actual damage been done so far?

HTH!

 

[Fishy411]

maybe he's just an aggressive one or maybe he is just trying to stake out his territory but i am no african expert.

 

[freddyk]

It could simply be that he was treated badly or put in an aquarium that wasn't appropriate, or perhaps he's just a poorly bred specimen... could be any number of things. If he's eating then this is a good sign. If he begins to harm your existing fish then you may have to move him out - sometimes we get an overly aggressive specimen, especially adding a strange adult to an existing tank.

 

[j@mie]

he doesnt seem a bad now, he is eating well aswell - like you said freddy, might just be a bad specimen.



current readings:

PH 8.5
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0.1
nitrate 12.5

how are these? anything i need to do etc? my tank current consits of 5 pieces of tufa rock.

cheers for all replies peeps but i have the feeling this guy is either from a bad batch or was just unhappy cos of his past aquarium

 

[sylvia]

Your nitrIte should be 0 so do some water changes to lower it. Other than that your readings are fine. He is probably just mal-nourished but watch him closely as he may have internal parasites. If it is the former, he should eventualy recover. However, you need to provide excellent water quality to give him the very best chance. Also keep in mind that labs are insectivores in the wild so some live/frozzen brine shrimp, mysis etc would be much appreciated. Good luck and keep us updated