My fish Chance I'm pretty sure has SBD. He's floating up near the top and can't swim down to the bottom. When he tries, he struggles for a moment at a weird angle, then gives up and floats back up. His swimming seems really labored anyways. I'm just making sure I have this right. All I can do is just fast him until the symptoms go away, right? It's caused by overfeeding? Because he doesn't look constipated, no swollen areas or anything, he's just swimming awkwardly. Other than that, he's fine. Flaring at me and anything else, begging for food when I put my hand over the tank, all that stuff. Can y'all just confirm this for me? And that's all I have to do to treat it right? Thanks everyone!!
How big is the tank, water temp
How much and how often are the water changes and when was the last one
Do you have water pram numbers for, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH
Any additives used, if so, what kind, what for and how much
Has he been treated for anything lately
How old is he, how long has he been doing this
Swim bladder problems can be caused from over feeding, poor water quality, birth defects, too cold and/or dry air, too cold of water and infection in the swim bladder or the duct to name a few reasons.
Best natural treatment,
Epsom salt 1tsp/gal, water temp 80-82F, hold all food, lower water level and turn off filter, turn off the light, make daily water change of 50%, if you have IAL or oak leaves use them as well, also covering the top of the tank with a plastic veggie wrap to make the air warm and humid.... you want to create a calm quiet environment and clean water, the epson salt can help decrease the edema and minor bacterial/fungal issues, however, if it advanced stages of infection you may want to add a broad spectrum antibiotic, if it birth defect or age related he may not recover
It's a 2.5 gallon Kritter Keeper. The water temp stays a steady 80* fahrenheit. (sp?) I change the water twice a week, last change was Monday. I haven't tested the water recently, I do know that my pH is really high though, like 8.5 but it stays steady and none of my other fish have a problem with it. He hasn't been treated with anything at any point, he's a very healthy fish. I just noticed it this afternoon, he hasn't done it before. He sits on my desk where I spend the majority of my time, so I watch him a lot and he didn't start until this afternoon.
Can you give him a nice leafy plant that's near the surface? That way he can chill at the top and not have to struggle to get up there for a breath of air.
I would lower the water level to make it easier for him to get to the surface if he's at the bottom. Romad- Yes, Merlot had it for 7 months then we went to Florida for 2 weeks and my fish got fed every other day. Shortly after we got back he was fine. Maybe the limited food supply helped him.
Sometimes these guy are what is called "fallers" this happens at the breeder as fry, some get over it and develop fine and get sold only for it to return as adults...it is a deformity of the swim bladder, also, during growth and development stages when the air is too cold and dry the swim bladder will not grow properly and for no reason they start showing signs of SBD.
When they get constipated the duct can get clogged and either become infected or the edema puts pressure on the swim bladder even after they pass stool and don't look bloated.
Too cold and dry air that they breath can also cause respiratory infection or pneumonia
I found the treatment I listed in my first post the best treatment in these cases, however, sometimes no matter what you do they don't get over it and as long as they are not suffering they can still live a happy life
Ok well I hope he gets over it. My boyfriends fish has SBD for a week then got over it, so hopefully Chance will be ok. But if not, I still love him. If he doesn't get over it, is there anything I should do to make him more comfortable? His tank isn't super deep, it's only 2.5 gallons and he has 3 silk plants with big leaves to rest on... hopefully that's good. But like i said, thanks for the help everyone!
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