Banjo Cat ....Shedding!!

[Freakdaddy]

Hi y'all
I was just about to turn off the lights on the small aquarium which is home to a couple off Banjo Cats and Sumo Loaches last night When I was pleasantly suprised to actually see one.
Normally all I see is a nose or a tail poking out of the sand.Then I noticed something very strange .The Cat in question was partway through shedding its skin!.....like a snake

I've hit the books and the net and have found no reference to this phenomena anywhere.

Has anybody else witnessed this with theirs or heard of it before?

Is it how they grow? Or a sign of illness( I dont think its illness personally)

Last year I found a transparent lump of goo in their tank which must of been a previous shed but at the time a Dwarf frog was eating it so I thought it was to do with the frog and let him continue.(free food is all good).

Or am I on the verge of contributing to something new to science ?

Your thoughts please...

 

[amesbien]

weird

 

[Freakdaddy]

I just found this on Planet catfish

Q: Do catfish shed their skin?

A: Most catfishes don't shed their skin, but a few that have heavily keratinized skin do (keratin is a waterproof protein that makes up a large part of your skin and hair). These include the South American banjo catfishes and some Asian hillstream catfishes. The skin peels off in chunks as it is being shed and the fish is none the worse for wear (except that tankmates may sometimes try to eat the dead skin off the fish). This shedding process is the natural result of the keratin deposition and it happens to humans on a daily basis as well (your skin is shed as tiny flakes which one does not usually notice).


So its nothing new just rarely seen

 

[fishcatch22]

do plecos shed? at least the ones with the heaviest armor? anyway, that's cool.

 

[Copeina]

Never seen a pleco do it, but my banjos shed on a regular basis.

Congrats! Your fish is healthy and growing.

/Kris

 

[equidae9854]

Hey, I'm new here!
Anyways, I've been to a couple of different fish forums and no one could give me an answer to this question, so I'm relieved!!!

My lima shovelnose cat (about 8") sheds frequently. I've only had him since early in the summer, and I've already seen him do this three times!

I'm glad it's nothing serious though!

Thanks guys!