Black Ear Shark Catfish Twitching?

AG458

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Jun 7, 2017
261
201
51
36
So this morning, I noticed my black ear shark catfish was twitching while swimming. He wasn't going crazy or anything; he was swimming very slowly, and every now and then he would make some jerky movements that were definitely not normal. His mouth would open whenever he twitched; it almost seemed like he was choking on something, but I'm not sure. He's still doing it, and today is the first time I've ever seen him do this. Do any of you know what's wrong? Any advice will be appreciated.
 

tlindsey

Silver Tier VIP
MFK Member
Aug 6, 2011
23,368
24,276
1,660
Ohio
So this morning, I noticed my black ear shark catfish was twitching while swimming. He wasn't going crazy or anything; he was swimming very slowly, and every now and then he would make some jerky movements that were definitely not normal. His mouth would open whenever he twitched; it almost seemed like he was choking on something, but I'm not sure. He's still doing it, and today is the first time I've ever seen him do this. Do any of you know what's wrong? Any advice will be appreciated.




Check your water parameters
 

jaws7777

Probation Member
Probation Member
Mar 1, 2014
17,773
20,943
740
White house 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington
I though i read some where thst they were prone to freaking out when kept in smaller tanks... i could be wrong tho


+1 check water parameters
 

thebiggerthebetter

Senior Curator
Staff member
MFK Member
Dec 31, 2009
15,691
14,059
3,910
Naples, FL, USA
I've not seen this with mine but I had at least one case of a catfish (Pimelodus albicans) twitching or having spasms of sort. After I fed it with food soaked in praziquantel and metronidazole, it stopped doing it. Hence, I tentatively penned it down to internal parasites affecting it's nervous system, or brain, or both.

Water check is a must anyway. As probably going through this check list when thinking of what to do or asking a health-related question: https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/...ealth-diagnostics-read-before-posting.210102/
 
zoomed.com
hikariusa.com
aqaimports.com
Store