endli is sick :(

[harvs95]

hi, i bought an endli about 5 or so months ago. he's gotten much bigger since then, and thicker. up until recently hes been eating well, often getting a nice bulge when he eats.
recently, he has been coming up for air differently. its like he cant move his fins properly and he wobbles from side to side awkwardly. noticeably, different to my other polys.
and he doesnt seem to be as hungry as before despite getting marginally skinnier. i feed frozen foods but i supplement with sinking carnivore pellets. he doesnt seem to respond much to any food. if he has i havent seen it in a few days. i just chalked it up to polys tendency to go on "hunger strikes" but really i think i gave the problem time to worsen.
i noticed also that a lot of sand seems to stick to him, again in comparison to my other endli. but whether or not its caused by him lying on the bottom of the tank all the time or if its because its sick and producing a stress coat, i have no idea.
and heres where my heart sank, i saw it laying belly up once. i poked it with a stick and althought it turned right side up, it did so sluggishly. i dont see bullying as a problem. i just changed 45% of my water and it's crystal clear. ive been treating with bacterial, fungal and ectoparasite medication at half dose. so far he seems to be taking in air no problem, him going the way up is just, worrying. nothing else in the tank is sick. everything else is eating right and acting, for as far as im concerned, normally.

anything you poly experts can teach me will be highly appreciated
thanks in advance

 

[harvs95]

checked on him, he was lopsided at the bottom of the tank. breathing was slow.

 

[Dr.B]

From a quick analysis of what your saying it make me think there may be an air bubble. If you have some pics that would help. I would suggest putting some aquarium salt in there and having some floating plants, or really whatever will float, so that it doesn't stress out trying to stay on the bottom.

A couple questions: what it laying belly up at the surface? When you say it was swimming weird did it look like it had trouble staying down? And also how long has it been like this (minus not eating food).

 

[harvs95]

From a quick analysis of what your saying it make me think there may be an air bubble. If you have some pics that would help. I would suggest putting some aquarium salt in there and having some floating plants, or really whatever will float, so that it doesn't stress out trying to stay on the bottom.

A couple questions: what it laying belly up at the surface? When you say it was swimming weird did it look like it had trouble staying down? And also how long has it been like this (minus not eating food).

i just found him like this, hes still alive though, i just dont know for how long, air bubble makes sense. but previously i dont think he had any trouble staying down. i think its been two weeks.

 

[Dr.B]

Yeah that doesn't look good. I would definitely put some sort of floating plant so he can stay towards the top.

 

[jaws7777]

Goog luck with your endli man

Dr.B whats the course of treatment for an air bubble ?

 

[Dr.B]

Salt and keeping it comfortable. This doesn't really seem too much like an air bubble though. If it is, then it's trapped right underneath his head

 

[Owens]

Like Dr. B said, warm water, salt. I would isolate him into a small tank with very low water level so he can easily breath at the surface.

 

[Dr.B]

I don't know if I would remove him. Would only cause more stress.

 

[harvs95]

he eventually sank down. when i got home, i thought it was a good sign. but yep. he was pale and dead. i think the air bubble was in its belly. when i would press down on its belly it would make a sound. but i guess i let it get out of hand for too long.