Sunken Belly, Bn

[Callie84]

I have two BN, i think both are male. They are both just starting to show bristles.

One is a greeny/brown and patchy, this one is looking healthy. He is slightly bigger.

The other is black and i have noticed he has been sitting behind the heater and filter a lot lately. Not as active as normal. He now looks a lot skinnier than the green one.
And i have just noticed he has a sunken in belly. He is still eating & he is still pooing. What could it be and how do i treat it?

They healthy one seems to be the dominent one, but i have never seen them fight. And they both get enough to eat.

They share a tank with loaches and tetras they all seem ok.

 

[stang1]

It could either be that he's not eating enough or he may have a bacterial infection.
Have you got any bogwood in the tank? Bogwood has lignin in it which the BN will rasp on and it is part of their diet.
Try feeding some bloodworm, vegetables and algae wafers, keep an eye to make sure that he is eating. If he is definitely eating then it may be a bacterial infection/internal parasite. This being the case, then he may need moving to a seperate tank to be treated.

 

[Callie84]

Thanks for the reply They have bogwood and they definitly get enough food. I feed them algae wafers and the other fish get dried bloodworms(sometimes fresh), 2 types of flakes and pellets so the BN get some as well. They spend all day eating and pooping.

I just had another look and the green one has a little bit of white cloudy stuff on him.
Would this be bacterial too? He isnt skinny.

What should i treat with?

I only have a 6L tank i could put them in but i dont have a heater for it.
And the little buggers are so hard to catch

What would you suggest?