Callichthyidae Corydoras Corydoras aeneus

Question
hi our tank has been set up for approx 6months now it is a 215 litre tank so its large we have 12 fish 2 bristle nose fish, 4 gouarmi, 3 dwarf loach and 3 Callichthyidae Corydoras aeneus, 1 of the Corydoras is the problem i noticed yesterday that 1 of their stomachs is really swollen i was wondering if this could be a problem and what i can do to help? thanks

Answer
Hi Helen;

It could be an internal problem or the fish could have eggs and it's a female. Females with eggs don't become grossly extended in the belly, just more round. If the fish acts normal and has no redness or other abnormal marks on it's belly, it's probably fine.

If it looks more like swelling and/or the fish acts sick, it would be good to isolate it to a bare tank with no gravel, no filter, only a bubbler, heater and lights. Even a 5 gallon is good. Every hobbyist should have a quarantine/hospital tank handy anyway. If the fish has redness, fuzzy places, etc, you might want to visit your local fish store and get some "Maracyn Two". Redness usually indicates bacterial infection and Maracyn two treats the internal types. You don't want to add this stuff to your main tank because you have to use a lot of it (dosed by gallons) and it will make a horrible mess in there. I hope he is doing okay and you don't have to even do that, but now you have enough information to help him if the need arises.

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins