plocastamus

Question
I have a 29 gallon tank with 3 Zebra 2 Guppies 2 mickey mouse a little catfish and a 4-5" Pleco...My worry is the
plocastamus swims in circles like he can not swim in a stright line & lays around like He's dead. The little catfish was the last addition to the tank and this started happening a few day after getting the catfish...Can the catfish cause the problem with the Pleco?  

Answer
Hi Rhonda,
The behavior might be a reaction to stress. I'm thinking possibly a water quality problem. I would try to test your water for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates to make sure all are within acceptable levels-

Ammonia-0 Nitrite-0 Nitrate-20 or less

A precautionary water change wouldn't hurt. About 30-40% and always make sure new water is pretreated with a water conditioner and the temp is equal to or a bit warmer than your tank.

Also make sure the pleco has plenty of roomy hiding places in the form of driftwood, rocks, caves, brand new flower pots to make him feel comfortable.

I hope this helps and best of luck!
Karen~