Swollen Belly on Tetra

Question
QUESTION: I have a two year old Orange Glo-Fish Tetra. He shares a 20 gallon tank with a one year old pleco. Normally my tetra is a good eater, but a few days ago I noticed his midsection was quite large on one side like he swallowed an entire pea. After a few minutes it subsided but he is still a little bloated. It doesn't seem to effect his swimming or his mood. It keeps changing shape and size, though. Sometimes it is much larger but then a few minutes later is shrinks only to grown and reform shortly there after. I was told from another expert, Richard, that he is being over-fed. I tried adding a few green peas to the tank, but he didn't seem interested in them. Richard suggested a teaspoon on Epsom Salts which I added yesterday afternoon. His condition remains unchanged, however and I am concerned. Any suggestions or alternate diagnoses?

ANSWER: Hi Raina,
Swollen bellies on fish like that are tricky to diagnose. It may be a female swollen with eggs and the reason her belly size keeps changing corresponds with whenever she eats so it just fills her up even more at that time.

Little fish like that also seem prone to tumors as they age. And two years means he is getting up there in age. The pea and epsom salt recommendation are both very good. They help relieve internal swelling and/or constipation.

But your situation with the glo-fish may be tumors due to old age. Regardless, I would continue with the epsom treatment for at least a couple of days, and try mashing up a pea to see if that interests him better than a whole pea.

If this still doesn't help. A tumor or other internal disorder is probably whats got him. Its interesting how these fish can still swim well and seem to live quite comfortable despite their little deformity.

Best of luck and I hope this helps!
Karen~


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Well, our fish is male so I doubt that pregnancy could be it. Sorry I forgot to mention that last time. Also since the lump seems to expand and contract constantly throughout the day I don't think it could be a tumor.

I tried mashing up the pea as suggested and he was not interested. I also crushed up his food flakes after fasting him for two days and he didn't want to eat. I have added 1 teaspoon of epsom salts twice in three days. I'm not sure if that is doing anything other than make my pleco (also male) poop like crazy.

If this is an internal disorder, do you think that it could be dropsy? Does that swelling change in size and shape? How would I treat that? I have a pleco so I can't use certain antibiotics unless I transfer the tetra to a different tank. Would the move to a new tank cause him to go into shock and kill him? I am quite worried.

Thank you for all your help and advice. I really appreciate it!
Raina

Answer
Hi Raina, sorry to hear that

It sounds like an internal swelling problem definitely. Perhaps kidney failure and fluid retention. Its very difficult to diagnose problems such as these. Dropsy is possible but usually this condition characterizes itself with an all over body swelling and the scales sticking out. Unfortunately once they reach this stage its usually impossible to reverse. You can read more about that here- (including pics)

http://flippersandfins.net/Dropsy.htm

Its always possible for the swelling to change with dropsy or some other internal issue. The sad thing is I don't think there is much you can really do for him at this point. Only a fish vet would be able to accurate diagnose and be able to treat such a condition that can be triggered by so many things. Is there any way you could include a pic?

I once had an 5 year old Oscar cichlid whom developed several soft lumps on his belly and sides. They were not hard as a tumor would be. And while the lump swellings often fluctuated in size and almost distorted the fishes whole middle-section, he still thrived on and ate extremely well for a good year or so after they first appeared. Seeing his quality of life seemed to be decent and he didn't act miserable and after many failed attempts at strong antibiotic treatments, I left him alone. And he did well, But unfortunately earlier this year his condition progressively started getting worse and he stopped eating. I had to euthanize him the humane way with clove oil (which slowly and painlessly puts fish to sleep).

I wish you the best!
Karen~