Sick pacu? Please help

[Deadeye]

100% a pacu. Looks like bubbles to me, but keep an eye out for ich. Piranhas and relatives are usually pretty good at avoiding disease like ich though. Very good immune systems.
To me it looks like it was the bottom of the pack at the fish store and is stressed. Get it some food and it should start perking back up.

 

[Rtc/tsn]

100% a pacu. Looks like bubbles to me, but keep an eye out for ich. Piranhas and relatives are usually pretty good at avoiding disease like ich though. Very good immune systems.
To me it looks like it was the bottom of the pack at the fish store and is stressed. Get it some food and it should start perking back up.

They store only had the two and I got them both and he isn’t seeming to get any better or worse

 

[twentyleagues]

All I'm saying is he looks really rough. I hope he pulls through, and doesn't get worse or infect other fish in your tank with anything.

 

[Marximus]

Didn’t know u had this thread too.. lol . Since u just got them. just do ick cure,raise temp to 82, add aquarium salt. I’d do api general cure or any dewormer too if it was me. Goodluck!

 

[Matteus]

Doesn’t really look much like any typical pacu. The pattern is much different than a typical red belly pacu. I have kept both pacu and piranha and cared for both outside of my own care.

doesn’t mean it isn’t a pacu.

but either way that fish looks like ****. Get your temp at 82-88- salt the water and feed it anything it will eat. Bloodworms, brine shrimp, mysis would be my first go to with it. If it doesn’t eat ASAP you won’t have it for long.

once you get it eating, if you have a dewormer available, dose the food with that for a few days. Usually I use fenbendazole on bloodworms and I thaw out the blood worms with garlic gaurd. Let the dewormer sit and soak in with the bloodworm juices for 15-20 min before dumping it into the tank.