Sick Siamese Fighter Fish

Question
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Followup To
Question -
My fish has been missing his food when I put it in the water. He seems to struggle to get to the top of the bowl and then he is missing the food. He hasn't eaten for two days now and I'm worried. I've cleaned the bowl and changed the filter regularly, I don't have a heater for it though, I live in North Queensland where the weather is hot and no one at the pet shop said anything about needing that. Is this what is wrong? The tank is only small, holds 9 litres of water. Pease help.

Jackie
Answer -
Hi Jackie;

How often do you usually make water changes?
How long have you had him?

Let me know as soon as you can......

Chris Robbins

Chris,

I've had him for five months and he's been fine till now. I change the water every fortnight. I think I'm feeding him to much as a lot of it ends up at the bottom of the bowl. How many granules should I be feeding him? When I clean the bowl I put him in a little container of water then clean the entire bowl, should i only be doing half at a time? I've had a lamp over the bowl last night but he is still missing the food, he gulps the water next to the granule, it's like he can't see it or something. Thanks for you reply, hope this info helps you figure out what is wrong.

Jackie

Answer
Hi Jackie;

If he is struggling to get to the top he may have a failed swim bladder. The swim bladder is an organ inside the fish that controls buoyancy. If the fish wants to float higher in the water the swim bladder inflates with blood gasses. If the fish wants to sink, the swim bladder deflates and the fish goes to the bottom. When is fails it no longer fills with blood gasses and the fish can't float up. There are many causes for this failure. The most common is temperature shock, but also bacterial infection, dirty aquarium conditions, injury, age and stress are major factors. Some experts even think it is directly related to digestive trouble. There really isn't a "cure" for it though. The usual treatment is with antibiotics in case a bacterial infection is to blame. Then you just have to wait and see if the fish will regain the use of it. To help him preserve his energy for healing, lower the water level so he doesn't have to struggle so hard to get to the top. You can try one of two antibiotics to treat in case of infection; "Maracyn 2" by Mardel or "Kanacyn" by Aquatronics. They absorb inside the fish to get where infection is. Others treat only the outside of the fish.

His difficulty in eating is probably related to the failed swim bladder. He can't balance very well so his "aim" isn't very good. The lowered water level will help him with that a bit. Feed him 3 or 4 granules or pellets a day. A fish that has been pretty healthy until now can go without food for over a week, so don't worry about that right now. Treat him for infection, keep his tank clean and hopefully he will begin eating again soon.

He really needs 100% of his water changed every week. Be sure the new water is the same temperature as the old water and use a good water conditioner to help alleviate stress associated with moving him and any water chemistry differences. It is important to remove excess food right away. If he isn't able to eat all of it, remove the leftovers within a few minutes.

I hope he feels better soon......

Followups Welcome

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins

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