i have lost 3 gar now to this bloat like problem. i have been changing the water more then i normally would since the first one died. they start to get a bent back that seems to be because their tail is bloated and then they flip over and the rest bloats up and then they die. any ideas as i am at a loss?????
strange bloat problem
- Thread starter sbuse
- Start date
i have added salt and will try to bump the temp up. the last 3 i have seem to have the start of it.
-sounds like a bacterial/infection problem...also, you are changing quite a few variables all at once (although one can appreciate wanting to move quickly), so it is hard to tell what may work and what may make things worse. if i were you i would separate all three into 3 different tanks, that way you have the chance to save hopefully one. when we had issues with larvae we partitioned them into groups that way nothing spread too rapidly. salt will probably stress them more than help, as will the temp increase. have you tried testing the water? as long as the water parameters are sound, i wouldn't be changing the water that often either.
what have you been feeding them? seems like the problem may be coming through via infection/disease in feed (or at least that is a good possibility). unfortunately if it is infection (bacterial or virus), there isn't a whole lot you can do other than separate them and hope that at least one makes it through. if you can take photos that would also help immensely. good luck, and sorry to hear things have gotten complicated with these fish!--
--solomon
what have you been feeding them? seems like the problem may be coming through via infection/disease in feed (or at least that is a good possibility). unfortunately if it is infection (bacterial or virus), there isn't a whole lot you can do other than separate them and hope that at least one makes it through. if you can take photos that would also help immensely. good luck, and sorry to hear things have gotten complicated with these fish!--
--solomon
i have been feeding guppies and the water is good, but when i fill the tank with the guppies i didn't want to overload the system so i up the water changes. have been doing that all the time i have had them. all the guppies i have i got hand selected and they all are clean. they don't even have those growths that most feeder guppies get. i'll post a pic if i can get one. all three gars i have left are showing these symptoms and i have no real safe way of separating them. i am all out of tanks yet again and i got this tank setup special for them since i didnt even have this for them.
these are the pic i got. they have not eaten much for the last day and a half since i ran out of guppies a day ago. now they have guppies to eat so any frontal bulges could be that, but all rear bulges are not from feedings. didn't get the heater to raise the temp so i'll just leave it.
things all around me were going to well, my gut said something is going to go down soon. i can never seem to have to much go right all at once. so when my gatf got killed i thought i was out of the woods...then this....
the front ends up matching the back and then they are upside down till they die.
the front ends up matching the back and then they are upside down till they die.
-this is peculiar as the back end swelling just looks like they do before they have to essentially crap out the waste...something seems to be either blocking it or preventing them from properly evacuating the tail end of their digestive system. the bulges look normal to me from what i have seen in healthy, hungry, and well-fed YOY LNGs. it could be that the water changes were constipating them...just in terms of balance with water chemistry, which can sometimes be a problem. at this point i wouldn't tweak the water any...even with all the guppies, unless you have a ton dying, they won't all put out enough biowaste to equal one large fish, so i would cut the water change volume and frequency. for now, i wouldn't do anything.
you didn't say whether or not your water parameters were normal...what were they at last test? even if everything looks right you may have a problem. young LNGs are fragile, amongst the most fragile in the family (CBGs also pretty testy). keep us posted, but for now i wouldn't do anything too drastic. i wouldn't add any more food either...let them deplete this supply and fast for about a day and see if anything improves. with the dead ones, did you cut them open to see if a lot of waste had built up? this seems like something is constipating them more than some other infection, but again, tough to say with such fragile fish. i hope these guys pull through; keep us updated--
--solomon
you didn't say whether or not your water parameters were normal...what were they at last test? even if everything looks right you may have a problem. young LNGs are fragile, amongst the most fragile in the family (CBGs also pretty testy). keep us posted, but for now i wouldn't do anything too drastic. i wouldn't add any more food either...let them deplete this supply and fast for about a day and see if anything improves. with the dead ones, did you cut them open to see if a lot of waste had built up? this seems like something is constipating them more than some other infection, but again, tough to say with such fragile fish. i hope these guys pull through; keep us updated--
--solomon
that was what i thought, then they died. i didn't think to cut them open in fact just wasn't thinking clearly at all because i stupidly fed the dead ones to my bigger gars.
i have had alot of crap going on lately and my mind has been a bit foggy to say the least. last wc the water was ammo 0ppm, nitrite 0ppm, nitrate 10ppm. it didn't need it, but i didn't want to risk it with a dead fish found. so the wc has been one every 2 days for the last few days until the last 2 days when it was both days. i only got 50 this time since there wasn't as many gars and things weren't right. i have added salt already though. i will stay out of it though.
Other then what Sol already said the only difference i see between your guys and mine is I added floating plants for cover/security/resting. I sincearly hope they pull threw for you. If purging their system doesn't help I would consider Prazi'ing them. for some reason that stuff seems to help those "wth?" cases, when you've trouble shooted the rest. Epsom salt comes to mind but never used it, and not sure i would on gar.. 'nore young ones at that.i thought it was normal then they would bend in half and with in hours be bloated on the surface.
i think the salt may have helped some because they have not bent in half, yet, and 2 seem less bloated, but there is no poo anywere to be found. thats not counting on the guppies not eating it. i'll see how it goes. i may go pick up some hornwert for added everything. i'll prazi as a last ditch effort. i use it on bigger fish and rays, but these small gars and other small gar i have never done it before and these are irreplaceable to me. i have a crazy thing with firsts and these are my first lng fry, my first gars i've caught and they are not something that, well, any lfs or vendor has now that tfd has gone under.
