Upside-down Zebra Danio

[SteveVenezia]

One of my zebra danios has just gone upside-down and sinks to the bottom of the tank, panting heavily. I've put him straight into the hospital tank in a net so that he's closer to the surface, and i've put a bit of food in which he tries to nibble at - he swim very slightly but then he just flops over on his back again and keeps opening and closing his mouth rapidly.

I've searched the forums but can't find anything right away. Is there anything i can do for him?

 

[*Fishkies*]

What are you water parameters in your aquarium?
Is the water agitated at the surface?
Do you have aeration in your tank?

Does he seem bloated at all?
Does he look skinnier then normal?

 

[SteveVenezia]

Well he died about 10 minutes after I posted that.

The only thing I could find that was wrong with him was his mouth - it didn't open at the top of his head like the other danios, it seemed to have a vertical slit so that he actually had 3 parts of his mouth to open.. quite odd and a bit scary! Perhaps a birth defect? I had only bought him 5 days ago.

The tank water is fine and the other fish are OK, there are 5 other danios in there with him. A freak accident/occurence i think, sadly.

 

[*Fishkies*]

Sorry to hear about that. Be sure there are no sharp objects in the tank.