Please help!

[AllOne]

Ganta, my African Cichlid is not aching his normal feisty self. He started the day staying pretty still on the bottom of the tank. He’s now hanging out mid-depth looking at the back wall (or his reflection). He had a long translucent yellow string hanging from his bum. Not his normal poop color at all.
Please help! I can’t lose my buddy.
Thank you!

 

[Gourami Swami]

Looks like Malawi bloat to me. I would separate the fish and treat with metronidazole right away. Unfortunately once the abdomen is swollen like that, there is usually damage to internal organs and may lose the fish. But metro and clout are supposed to be pretty effective, worth a shot since you care about the fish.

You can read more here https://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/malawi_bloat.php

 

[AllOne]

Thank you!!!! I was hoping that wasn’t it...
Oh I feel in love with this guy. I answered and ad for a free aquarium and he came with it so I’m very new to fish In general and Cichlids for sure.
He’s acting like himself again today but I’m going to see where I can get the meds you mentioned. I couldn’t stand losing him ...
I’ve also been trying to pick a better veggie food for him.
Not sure why so many “veggie” foods have fish as their first ingredient...

 

[Gourami Swami]

Thank you!!!! I was hoping that wasn’t it...
Oh I feel in love with this guy. I answered and ad for a free aquarium and he came with it so I’m very new to fish In general and Cichlids for sure.
He’s acting like himself again today but I’m going to see where I can get the meds you mentioned. I couldn’t stand losing him ...
I’ve also been trying to pick a better veggie food for him.
Not sure why so many “veggie” foods have fish as their first ingredient...

Yea very difficult to find a veggie food that doesn't have fish, most do but just in smaller porportions. I use Omega One Kelp flakes/pellets for vegetarian fish. Still has some fish in but protein only 33%, pretty low compared to most foods, and that level should be fine for Malawi cichlids.
Usually the bloat is brough on by either too much protein content, or by water conditions/stress. Or, by parasites. Can you think of any stress factors that would have increased lately? And do you test your water, if so what are levels of ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, Hardness like? Sorry for so many questions but better to understand the root of the problem so you could stop it from happening again.

 

[Reiner]

How long has this tank been set up? Is it fully cycled?

 

[AllOne]

Yea very difficult to find a veggie food that doesn't have fish, most do but just in smaller porportions. I use Omega One Kelp flakes/pellets for vegetarian fish. Still has some fish in but protein only 33%, pretty low compared to most foods, and that level should be fine for Malawi cichlids.
Usually the bloat is brough on by either too much protein content, or by water conditions/stress. Or, by parasites. Can you think of any stress factors that would have increased lately? And do you test your water, if so what are levels of ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, Hardness like? Sorry for so many questions but better to understand the root of the problem so you could stop it from happening again.

Thank you again! I will order some of the Omega One Kelp now
Ganta is completely back to himself. He has an appetite and is hiding and “playing” like himself. That was so scary.
The ph is 8, the temperature is usually around 78.5 & our water is very hard here in Texas as it filters through limestone. I have ordered a master test kit so that I can get the rest of the details. It’s just Ganta in this 20 gallon tank, as I have been warned is very aggressive and will Maime any tank mates.
Every other week, I vacuum the gravel til the tank is about 5% lower and then add in water that has been sitting for at least 24 hours for the chlorine to have dissipated. (I change or clean the filter on the other week).
The previous owner had given me tetra ph balancer, so I’ve always added the correct amount of that before adding the water in. This time the tetra made the water look yellow. I’ve never had that happen before & then Ganta started hanging out on the bottom and scaring me.
I was so worried I was going to lose him!
I can’t think of any other stressors, but he doesn’t usually react to tank cleaning at all. He plays with my hand as I’m reaching in and has never had a reaction afterwards...

I have a 55 gallon tank I was going to move him up to. It has water, some of his old tank gravel and decorations. My plan was to get the water to match his as well as possible, stick his old filter on the new aquarium and then when all tested well, add his current water and him.
After this scare I am terrified, but really want to give him more room as he currently bounces off the sides and makes waves int his 20 gallon.
I’m thinking of draining the water from the new tank and working backwards to eliminate stress. By that, I mean adding his water, the rest of his gravel, decorations & filter and Ganta so that he’s in his usual water in a bigger tank. Then add water slowly as if I was giving him water changes.

Any advice on that theory would be so completely appreciated!

Namasté Swami

 

[AllOne]

How long has this tank been set up? Is it fully cycled?

I’ve had him for about 6 months so he’s been in this tank with this gravel and decorations for that long at least. The previous owner said that he had him for about 4 years but not sure if this was always his tank or if he got downgraded when he maimed his tank mates.

I really want to move him up to this 55 gallon, he so needs the swimming room. but I am so worried about stressing him out again.
Any advice is appreciated!
Thank you!!!

 

[Gourami Swami]

Thank you again! I will order some of the Omega One Kelp now
Ganta is completely back to himself. He has an appetite and is hiding and “playing” like himself. That was so scary.
The ph is 8, the temperature is usually around 78.5 & our water is very hard here in Texas as it filters through limestone. I have ordered a master test kit so that I can get the rest of the details. It’s just Ganta in this 20 gallon tank, as I have been warned is very aggressive and will Maime any tank mates.
Every other week, I vacuum the gravel til the tank is about 5% lower and then add in water that has been sitting for at least 24 hours for the chlorine to have dissipated. (I change or clean the filter on the other week).
The previous owner had given me tetra ph balancer, so I’ve always added the correct amount of that before adding the water in. This time the tetra made the water look yellow. I’ve never had that happen before & then Ganta started hanging out on the bottom and scaring me.
I was so worried I was going to lose him!
I can’t think of any other stressors, but he doesn’t usually react to tank cleaning at all. He plays with my hand as I’m reaching in and has never had a reaction afterwards...

I have a 55 gallon tank I was going to move him up to. It has water, some of his old tank gravel and decorations. My plan was to get the water to match his as well as possible, stick his old filter on the new aquarium and then when all tested well, add his current water and him.
After this scare I am terrified, but really want to give him more room as he currently bounces off the sides and makes waves int his 20 gallon.
I’m thinking of draining the water from the new tank and working backwards to eliminate stress. By that, I mean adding his water, the rest of his gravel, decorations & filter and Ganta so that he’s in his usual water in a bigger tank. Then add water slowly as if I was giving him water changes.

Any advice on that theory would be so completely appreciated!

Namasté Swami

Hello,
I think moving him up to the 55 would be good, and you could attempt to add some more cichlids with him (although he is one of the more aggressive species and is a big guy- might be violence from him)
A few things stand out to me when reading your post
1- Should be doing much more than 5% water change bi-week. More like 50% per week for a fish this size in a 20 gallon. I would bet that your nitrates are very high, which probably caused the bloat. I'd start doing the 50% weekly right away.

2- I would not put a "pH balancer" in the tank, sounds like snake oil to me. If your water is hard because of the limestone, pH is probably high, and that is perfect for African cichlids like this one

3- I would recommend buying some seachem prime or other dechlorinator, yes chlorine will gas off in 24 hours but chloramine is commonly used nowadays and will not gas off as quickly, stays in water. Better to use a chemical to neutralize the disinfectants in water.

4- You say you want to transfer his old water to the new tank- this is not helpful, no beneficial bacteria lives in the water itself, it lives in the filter and on surfaces in the tank. Bringing his old water would be less beneficial than using new water, since the old water will have nitrates built up in it. The thing to do, is set the new tank up with 100% clean water. Then move the fish and the filter over at the same time, without cleaning the filter. the bacteria will continue to live in the filter. Just make sure the new water is about the same temp, and is dechlorinated.

5- Not sure how you are cleaning your filter, but you don't want to be replacing 100% of the media ever. When you do your water changes, keep a bucket of the used water after you take it out of your tank. Then just take everything out of the filter, and swish it around in the bucket with your hand. Rinse it in the old water- if you use tapwater, it will kill the cycle bacteria. If you completely change the media, there will be no bacteria on it and water will turn toxic because nothing to turn ammonia to nitrate.

I would have a read of this, it is bread and butter of keeping fish, something everyone needs to know https://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

Sounds like you care about the fish quite a bit. Awesome! Get his tank clean and get him upgraded, will be much better for him.

 

[AllOne]

Hello,
I think moving him up to the 55 would be good, and you could attempt to add some more cichlids with him (although he is one of the more aggressive species and is a big guy- might be violence from him)
A few things stand out to me when reading your post
1- Should be doing much more than 5% water change bi-week. More like 50% per week for a fish this size in a 20 gallon. I would bet that your nitrates are very high, which probably caused the bloat. I'd start doing the 50% weekly right away.

2- I would not put a "pH balancer" in the tank, sounds like snake oil to me. If your water is hard because of the limestone, pH is probably high, and that is perfect for African cichlids like this one

3- I would recommend buying some seachem prime or other dechlorinator, yes chlorine will gas off in 24 hours but chloramine is commonly used nowadays and will not gas off as quickly, stays in water. Better to use a chemical to neutralize the disinfectants in water.

4- You say you want to transfer his old water to the new tank- this is not helpful, no beneficial bacteria lives in the water itself, it lives in the filter and on surfaces in the tank. Bringing his old water would be less beneficial than using new water, since the old water will have nitrates built up in it. The thing to do, is set the new tank up with 100% clean water. Then move the fish and the filter over at the same time, without cleaning the filter. the bacteria will continue to live in the filter. Just make sure the new water is about the same temp, and is dechlorinated.

5- Not sure how you are cleaning your filter, but you don't want to be replacing 100% of the media ever. When you do your water changes, keep a bucket of the used water after you take it out of your tank. Then just take everything out of the filter, and swish it around in the bucket with your hand. Rinse it in the old water- if you use tapwater, it will kill the cycle bacteria. If you completely change the media, there will be no bacteria on it and water will turn toxic because nothing to turn ammonia to nitrate.

I would have a read of this, it is bread and butter of keeping fish, something everyone needs to know https://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

Sounds like you care about the fish quite a bit. Awesome! Get his tank clean and get him upgraded, will be much better for him.

Thank you so very much for all of the advice!!! I switched Ganta over to the food you recommended. He loves it!

 

[AllOne]

I’ve read up on the nitrogen cycle from the link you sent me and got the master water test kit. I cycled the new tank with some of his old media and got the levels perfect. He went in and started exploring with no transition issues at all. I am so relieved. I was having anxiety over getting everything perfect for him.
Thank you again for all of your help in getting through that!
We are considering the tank mates but I’m afraid if anyone getting hurt so still thinking






QUOTE="Gourami Swami, post: 7990833, member: 11630"]Hello,
I think moving him up to the 55 would be good, and you could attempt to add some more cichlids with him (although he is one of the more aggressive species and is a big guy- might be violence from him)
A few things stand out to me when reading your post
1- Should be doing much more than 5% water change bi-week. More like 50% per week for a fish this size in a 20 gallon. I would bet that your nitrates are very high, which probably caused the bloat. I'd start doing the 50% weekly right away.

2- I would not put a "pH balancer" in the tank, sounds like snake oil to me. If your water is hard because of the limestone, pH is probably high, and that is perfect for African cichlids like this one

3- I would recommend buying some seachem prime or other dechlorinator, yes chlorine will gas off in 24 hours but chloramine is commonly used nowadays and will not gas off as quickly, stays in water. Better to use a chemical to neutralize the disinfectants in water.

4- You say you want to transfer his old water to the new tank- this is not helpful, no beneficial bacteria lives in the water itself, it lives in the filter and on surfaces in the tank. Bringing his old water would be less beneficial than using new water, since the old water will have nitrates built up in it. The thing to do, is set the new tank up with 100% clean water. Then move the fish and the filter over at the same time, without cleaning the filter. the bacteria will continue to live in the filter. Just make sure the new water is about the same temp, and is dechlorinated.

5- Not sure how you are cleaning your filter, but you don't want to be replacing 100% of the media ever. When you do your water changes, keep a bucket of the used water after you take it out of your tank. Then just take everything out of the filter, and swish it around in the bucket with your hand. Rinse it in the old water- if you use tapwater, it will kill the cycle bacteria. If you completely change the media, there will be no bacteria on it and water will turn toxic because nothing to turn ammonia to nitrate.

I would have a read of this, it is bread and butter of keeping fish, something everyone needs to know https://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

Sounds like you care about the fish quite a bit. Awesome! Get his tank clean and get him upgraded, will be much better for him.[/QUOTE]