Tadaaahhhh

[pnyklr3]

I'm not sure if this is normal....my dwarf goes to the surface, gets a running (swimming) start, AND GETS HALF OF HIS BODY OUT OF THE WATER!!!! Sorry to shout, but honestly, he would jump out of the tank if it didn't have a hood on it. He starts off in what I call dolphin-style (you know, when the dolphins are mostly out of the water, swimming backwards with their tails), and then looks more like I'm skipping stones across a lake. It's very noisey.

I am baffled. Normally, he is very peaceful, but tonight, he is out of control. As wierd as it is, about 2 days ago his started to show the odd coloring that my previous dwarf did. Link to thread with pictures

Anyone have any ideas or suggestions? Anyone else have active gouramis? Please let me know if I should worry or not.

EDIT: OK now I'm worried. He seems almost frantic. He was resting, and seemed to be breathing heavily (not at the surface, and not gasping, but more like taking really deep breaths). Them he started swimming around quickly again (quick for my gourami) and he was bumping into things and not using his "feelers" at all.

 

[sylvia]

Test your water immediately for any changes whatsoever to water parameters... ammonia, nitrites, nitrates and pH. Then also check your temperature and make sure it isn't too high or too low.

 

[pnyklr3]

Well, my nitrAtes are on the high side. Weird because I just did a water change, and not terrible because a few months agon I was battling with VERY high nirtates that would lower unless I sold my soul. None of the fish showed any sign of stress then, and the nitrates were very high for many weeks (about 4-6). I have no live plants.....should I get some to take care of the nitrates since water changes don't seem to work all that well?

I'm concerned now because my apistos are supposed to be somewhat "intolerant" to high nitrates .....they just flat out don't like them.

 

[sylvia]

High nitrAtes is usualy a sign of over-stocking but if I remember correctly you are not over-stocked... maybe your tap water contains high nitrates? I think adding some live plants would be a very good idea. I don't know about the apistos but your gourami would appreciate some live plants.
If you see the gourami acting unusualy BTW, maybe you should put him in a hospital tank and treat for an internal bacterial infection. You said he is showing the same strange color change as your other gourami and that is worrying.
Is the water temperature ok?

 

[pnyklr3]

Temp is fine, as far as I can tell. I'm now thinking I'm a little reckless because I don't have a thermometer, I mistakingly trust the thermometer to make sure it's at the right temp. Going to get a sticky one now.

I tested it, and it's ok. I'm no longer using tap water; I'm slowly switching to RO water by means of my water changes.

My stocking in my 55 Gallon is:

3 blackline tetras
8 bloodfin tetras
1 ghost catfish (3 inches)
1 Dwarf Gourami
2 Bala Sharks (3 and 4 inches)
3 clown loaches (3 inches each)
4 Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlids (1 male @ 3 inches; 3 females @ 1 inch)

At their current sizes, I'm pretty sure it's alright. And don't worry: A tank upgrade is soon on the way...I"M HOOKED! Do you think this is overstocked right now?

So, it's off to buy some live plants; which I've been thinking about for a long while (but have had trouble keeping the last one I had in a 10 gallon alive), and my apistos would love.

 

[sylvia]

At their current sizes I think you are still not over-stocked.
I realy think buying a thermometer would be wise - I can't tell you how many times people have told me about how their heater got stuck and boiled the fish because they didn't check the temperature. Also, it is a good habit to check your thermometer every time you feed your fish - then you can avoid and control any sudden changes...
If you are changing to RO water, this may be stressing your fish out and you may have had quite a significant change in pH.
I'm not too good with plants either If your plants die they can do more harm than good as they'll rot and add to the load. Make sure you remove any dead or decaying leaves and only get some realy hardy species at first.
If you want a plant for back-up (like incase all the rest die ) I would reccomend duck-weed. It floats so it won't get in the way and the gourami will love it... plus it's indestructible.

 

[pnyklr3]

I have been very careful to add in the RO slowly. I have done 2 water changes @ 8 gallons each. I'm sure that my tank, at the most, has 10 gallons of RO and 45 of tap. It is going to be many months until I can say my tank is completely switched over.

Well, my Gourami is still alive, although very lethargic. I'm starting to wonder if the previous one had the same bout of activity and I didn't notice it. Oh, and one more thing. When this Gourami does swim, it seems wobbly, and he only rests on his side against decorations and the tank. Could this be swim bladder problems?

I forgot to mention that I have a bristlenose plec that is about 5 inches. I forgot because I rarely see it!!

 

[sylvia]

The bristlenose (and other plecs in general) is quite messy but it still shouldn't be causing major problems...

Yes that could be swim bladder disorder. Give him a shelled pea and see if that helps. If you can isolate him, some salt may help too.

 

[pnyklr3]

The plec has been in the tank the longest; he's actually from my first tank. I'm going to try the shelled pea with the gourami, but I'm not sure if he'll even eat it. He rests a lot, and then has a burst of energy. Thanks for all of your help; this time and the last time!! I'll let you know how it turns out.

 

[pnyklr3]

I lost him. All of my other fish appear to be fine. My apistos are even breeding. I guess this is just going to be one of those "things that happen." Hopefully this will help someone else if their gouramis show the same symptons. Maybe then we can figure out what is actually going on.

 

[sylvia]

Aww... that's too bad. At least your other fish are ok.