Channel Catfish Muscular Spasms/Canted body

[Kalashnikov1408]

My Channel cat is about 8-10" in a 80 gallon breeder. Just yesterday I notice his difficulty remaining balanced. Not swimming upside down but listing over. When he does take off hes swimming with his body crooked and it looks like muscle spasms. Ive fed Hikari koi pellets since they were fingerlings mixed with bloodworms, night crawlers, shrimp, (protein). The other Cat hes housed with has outgrown him by 1". Skin looks fine (lighter than his tankmate). Appetite was fine. No HITH. Water quality I havent tested but there is a well established cycle with canister filter.

 

[sikoko]

Test the parameters and let us know, though I'm pretty sure it's not that since the other fish is not affected. Is he an easily spooked fish? Part of me wants to say he spooked and got dazed. Or a swim bladder issue.

 

[Kalashnikov1408]

Hes still alive and still out of balance but not as much now. Tested the water. Ammonia/nitrates are low. Dont have a hardness test. Water is oxygenated via airstones. I think there is something wrong either with his anatomy from birth or his muscle structure based on my reading. Idk if some kind of muscle relaxer is on the market or if this could be caused by some intestinal parasite. Regrettably neither have been treated for such. I thought maybe he dazed himself on an impact and perhaps overcome this. My next move is to treat for parasites in quarantine.

 

[sikoko]

How low is low

 

[Kalashnikov1408]

How low is low

Im using the api tests so im ballparking it. Ammonia .25 ppm. Nitrate 0-5 ppm. Ph 7.5. I use sea chem prime for conditioner. The only different thing ive done is a dbl dose of prime on a recent water change. Specs say this is a safe thing to do.

 

[squint]

pH, ammonia, and nitrite are the ones you have to worry about.

I dose Prime at 5X the recommended dosage all the time.

 

[Kalashnikov1408]

pH, ammonia, and nitrite are the ones you have to worry about.

I dose Prime at 5X the recommended dosage all the time.

Ill have to wait on the nitrite until the weekend but I havent been testing it. Im thinking about nutrition deficiencies as well.

 

[sikoko]

I would start with a fifty or more percent water change to lower the ammonia. And see if that helps. Try more filtration or less feeding to keep that number low or non existent (non existent is the better option). Is the cat still eating?

 

[Kalashnikov1408]

Havent witnessed any feeding for a few days. The more I study him the more im starting to think he may be paralyzed. He is shaking his head to swim rather than swing his tail and slight swelling is starting to appear at the rear of his dorsal. ive noticed weight loss. They typically eat aggressively each day. Ill try a water change but ultimately if he cant recover or feed for much longer ill have to think about his quality of life.