Since my big tank project is on hold, I decided to finally put some time into my convict's tank to accomodate his needs. He's "handicapped" due to a swimbladder injury from jumping out of his tank 5 months ago. Aside from lacking normal buoyancy, he's a feisty active guy, with a great appetite, so I made the decision early on to help him out rather than euthanize him.
To describe his situation, he basically sits on the bottom of the tank on his chest, and scoots around the tank. He can get about an inch off the tank bottom, after which he sails across the length of the tank. If he really wants to, he can use a burst of energy to swim upward about 6 inches off the tank floor, but then his lack of buoyancy soon brings him back to the bottom.
I just moved him up from a 29g to a 40g tank, and it was time to go to work making a good home for him!
- His tank is pretty bare, with just two pieces of driftwood, including his favorite big cave. I lucked out on this driftwood. It has four big openings into it, one on each side, so wherever he is in the tank he has easy access to it. In addition, I had to leave open space around all the driftwood pieces so he wouldn't get stuck between it and a wall. I also got a Fancy Plants Giant bamboo plant and modified it to float at the top. I detached each stem from the base and stuck it in a heater suction cup, minus the heater ring holder. This way they stay in place and don't get pushed to the bottom in the filter flow.
I left out any substrate because it would be irritating to his skin as he scoots along. I put black contact paper on the outside bottom panel. I did a really bad job so there are tons of bubbles, and I mean to do something better in the future, but I had to do this while the tank was full and in place, so it looks pretty bad haha.
That's pretty much it! I also added an Eheim 2217 with spraybar angled downward at 45 degrees so that as much waste as possible is moved off the tank floor, so that he doesn't sit in it.
Well that's that. I love my little con, he was my first cichlid which I got four years ago so, yeah, I can't give up on him.
And for those who are interested, here is his radiograph confirming that his swimbladder was injured. A normal swim bladder should look like a black bubble just below the vertebrae. His is either ruptured or fluid-filled in this radiograph.
To describe his situation, he basically sits on the bottom of the tank on his chest, and scoots around the tank. He can get about an inch off the tank bottom, after which he sails across the length of the tank. If he really wants to, he can use a burst of energy to swim upward about 6 inches off the tank floor, but then his lack of buoyancy soon brings him back to the bottom.
I just moved him up from a 29g to a 40g tank, and it was time to go to work making a good home for him!
- His tank is pretty bare, with just two pieces of driftwood, including his favorite big cave. I lucked out on this driftwood. It has four big openings into it, one on each side, so wherever he is in the tank he has easy access to it. In addition, I had to leave open space around all the driftwood pieces so he wouldn't get stuck between it and a wall. I also got a Fancy Plants Giant bamboo plant and modified it to float at the top. I detached each stem from the base and stuck it in a heater suction cup, minus the heater ring holder. This way they stay in place and don't get pushed to the bottom in the filter flow.
I left out any substrate because it would be irritating to his skin as he scoots along. I put black contact paper on the outside bottom panel. I did a really bad job so there are tons of bubbles, and I mean to do something better in the future, but I had to do this while the tank was full and in place, so it looks pretty bad haha.
That's pretty much it! I also added an Eheim 2217 with spraybar angled downward at 45 degrees so that as much waste as possible is moved off the tank floor, so that he doesn't sit in it.
Well that's that. I love my little con, he was my first cichlid which I got four years ago so, yeah, I can't give up on him.
And for those who are interested, here is his radiograph confirming that his swimbladder was injured. A normal swim bladder should look like a black bubble just below the vertebrae. His is either ruptured or fluid-filled in this radiograph.
