HELP! Baby Peacock bass is unwell

[Calvin4924]

I have 3 2-3 inch peacock bass in a 100 gal grow out tank before they will be moved to a pond. All was well until 2 days ago when I noticed one of the pbass resting on the bottom. He wasn't listing at all so I thought maybe I had just spooked him by turning on the light in the room, however he continued to rest there at all times. When I approach the tank, he swims to the surface expecting food, but seems to be struggling to do so, and eventually sings back down. suspecting a swim bladder issue, I've held off feeding for a couple days and He is starting to appear skinny in the belly and showing no signs of improvement. Please help.

 

[kno4te]

Would you please post ur water parameters as well. Consider moving to a qt tank to eval its eating. Swim bladder issues cause buoyancy issues. Is it being bullied? What does it’s stool look like?

 

[Calvin4924]

Would you please post ur water parameters as well. Consider moving to a qt tank to eval its eating. Swim bladder issues cause buoyancy issues. Is it being bullied? What does it’s stool look like?

tank temperature is 80°. PH is 6.5 which is usual for my aquariums because my city tap has very low ph. nitrates and nitrites are fine and ammonia is fine as well. I do water changes once a week. The fish still eats fine, but it seems hard for him to swim for long periods of time and spends most of the day resting on the bottom. my normal quarantine tank is emptied at the moment however I have a 10 gallon I could put him in for a while being that he is only about 2 inches. Thoughts?

 

[kno4te]

tank temperature is 80°. PH is 6.5 which is usual for my aquariums because my city tap has very low ph. nitrates and nitrites are fine and ammonia is fine as well. I do water changes once a week. The fish still eats fine, but it seems hard for him to swim for long periods of time and spends most of the day resting on the bottom. my normal quarantine tank is emptied at the moment however I have a 10 gallon I could put him in for a while being that he is only about 2 inches. Thoughts?

Would attempt it and keep the level low. See if it’ll eat and things change. Can add some prazipro and feed some hex shield. May have to mix with food.

 

[Calvin4924]

Would attempt it and keep the level low. See if it’ll eat and things change. Can add some prazipro and feed some hex shield. May have to mix with food.

was able to move the pbass to quarantine today. I also stopped by my LFS and talked to an experienced friend. He believes the symptoms suggest a parasitic issue because the bass isnt floating it is sinking, however I only feed cichlid sticks and frozen food and no fish have been added since the bass 2 months ago. Where would a parasite have come from? I will continue to monitor the pb.

 

[kno4te]

was able to move the pbass to quarantine today. I also stopped by my LFS and talked to an experienced friend. He believes the symptoms suggest a parasitic issue because the bass isnt floating it is sinking, however I only feed cichlid sticks and frozen food and no fish have been added since the bass 2 months ago. Where would a parasite have come from? I will continue to monitor the pb.

Believed to be colonized in most fish’s intestines in small amounts. Starts to become a prob when the fish become stressed.

Add some metro and Epsom salt (1 tbsp per 5g)to the tank and get it to eat medicated food.

 

[Calvin4924]

Believed to be colonized in most fish’s intestines in small amounts. Starts to become a prob when the fish become stressed.

Add some metro and Epsom salt (1 tbsp per 5g)to the tank and get it to eat medicated food.

what do you recommend for medicated food?

 

[kno4te]

what do you recommend for medicated food?

Hex shield or metroplex.

 

[philipraposo1982]

I would not medicate just because you think it's parasites.

A fish sitting on the bottom doesn't scream parasite to me at all. You would also notice white or clear poops and other symptoms like not eating, flashing, bloating, or extreme wasting, hole in the head of lateral line.

Meds cause stress, fact. Medicating to try and solve problems with zero real evidence is something that is accepted in the hobby but it's my opinion that it only hurts the hobby.

All these meds become weaker as we give it to your fish against the things we want it to beat. Too much exposure to meds, lack of knowledge, no good fish vets in many cities, to much get feel type of medicating or preventative medication is just some of the reasons we have so much issues with fish health issues.

 

[Calvin4924]

Hex shield or metroplex.

update: a second small pbass has started behaving the same. both eat, but sit on the bottom the rest of the time. I moved that one to quarantine as well, hoping the 3rd larger bass stays healthy. none of my LFS carried hex shield so I ordered some online. now that both fish are acting strangely I would assume it is something that can be transferred from fish to fish.