Swordtail Query?

[mizzflick98]

Hello again,

Well today when I came back from uni, I realised that my pregnant swordtail had somehow jumped into my pregnant molly's breeding trap. I haven't put the swordtail in the breeding trap as it hasn't squared up yet.

Anyway the swordtail's stomach is so big and it keeps floating to the top. I'm pretty sure it's not dropsy because it's scales aren't bumpy. For now I left her in the breeding trap because I didn't want to stress her out.

Here is a picture...

sorry for the poor quality!

Pls tell me what's wrong!

 

[mattlee]

it may well just be bloated, try feeding some cooked de-shelled peas. this if it is constapated should clear it out

 

[mizzflick98]

it may well just be bloated, try feeding some cooked de-shelled peas. this if it is constapated should clear it out

I just checked her and she's got dropsy she all bumpy and scales look like they are about to fall off...What do I do??

it may well just be bloated, try feeding some cooked de-shelled peas. this if it is constapated should clear it out

I just checked her and she's got dropsy she all bumpy and scales look like they are about to fall off...What do I do??

We're taking her to the pet shop before she infects anyone else and plus we have a pregnant one in there aswell.

 

[mattlee]

i dont think the pet shop would appreciate or accept a sick fish if it has dropsy then theres pretty much nothing that can help im affraid. i dont think its contageous unless the other fish eat its poo or peck on the fish after its died...

are its scales looking like a pine cone and all sticking out?

 

[mizzflick98]

i dont think the pet shop would appreciate or accept a sick fish if it has dropsy then theres pretty much nothing that can help im affraid. i dont think its contageous unless the other fish eat its poo or peck on the fish after its died...

are its scales looking like a pine cone and all sticking out?

soo when i woke up this morning it's scales were back to normal but it was still hiding a lot.

 

[OldMan47]

It may have been nothing more than over eating that made it swell up so much its scales were sticking out. Dropsy is not a disease in fish any more than bronchitis is a disease in people. It is a convenient shorthand way of describing the symptoms. One reason that dropsy is so hard to cure is because people treat it as if it is always the same disease, instead of looking at what might be causing the symptoms we call dropsy. If I have a fish with a gram positive bacterial infection and treat it appropriately, I will be convinced that a treatment for gram positive bacteria is just the right trick. Next week you have a fish with similar symptoms and I advise you to treat the same way that worked for me. Because your fish is really suffering from internal parasites, the treatment does not work and you are convinced that I am an idiot. It is the main hazard of assuming that the visible symptoms we call dropsy are a single disease. I am convinced my method works and you are equally sure that it doesn't.