Electric yellow sunken stomach

[mikeybabs]

Hi guys. One of my juvie electric yellow cichlids has a sunken in stomach and is not eating normally... He is in a 55 gallon with 23 other juvie mbuna cichlids (johanni red zebra and yellow lab juvies I am going to remove 6 of them when they get older)

I removed the poor guy and put him in a 10 gallon tank by himself and started to feed him by himself because i read somewhere that he could be timid during feeding and stay away from the others and just not eat.

When i fed him by himself I first tried 1mm sinking NLS and he kept eating them and spitting them out. Next I tried NLS flakes and he would eat most of them and spit them out however he was able to keep some of the flakes down.

I gathered this could possibly be a parasite. Could this be contagious and is there any way to treat it without medication?

Thank you everyone. I'm hoping he will gradually start eating again. If he dies I'll be upset but it will be ok because I have 11 more yellow labs that have been healthy since I got them. He's the only one in the tank showing these signs of malnutrition.

 

[HUKIT]

Sunken stomach, spiting food, reclusive behavior, or white stringy pooh are signs of Bloat. Once the symptoms are seen Bloat can kill a fish within a week. The best thing to use is Metrozoidale found in Jungles Parasite Clear or Metro+ by Hikari, these are the two best quickest working and easy on the fish and biofilter. When treating make sure the lights are out and you remove any carbon from your filters. Below is a good link regarding Bloat, it will talk about Clout as medication but it's too harsh and and should be a last resort. I've experienced Bloat twice and never lost a fish with Parasite Clear, next I would also treat the entire tank since Bloat is contagious. Start treating immediately Mike becaus this can wipe a entire tank.

Malawi Bloat

 

[mikeybabs]

Sunken stomach, spiting food, reclusive behavior, or white stringy pooh are signs of Bloat. Once the symptoms are seen Bloat can kill a fish within a week. The best thing to use is Metrozoidale found in Jungles Parasite Clear or Metro+ by Hikari, these are the two best quickest working and easy on the fish and biofilter. When treating make sure the lights are out and you remove any carbon from your filters. Below is a good link regarding Bloat, it will talk about Clout as medication but it's too harsh and and should be a last resort. I've experienced Bloat twice and never lost a fish with Parasite Clear, next I would also treat the entire tank since Bloat is contagious. Start treating immediately Mike becaus this can wipe a entire tank.

Malawi Bloat

Thanks so much you've always been helpful. I will pick up some parasite clear first thing tomorrow and treat the whole tank. Even though all of the other 23 cichlids have actively been eating the NLS pellets for a month they could still be affected? I will treat both tanks that they are in....

By the way I fed my red devil bubba 2 worms today and he ate them fine... I'm awaiting the 3mm sinking NLS For him. But I'll stay on topic in the other thread

Thx for the info on parasite clear. I will treat the tank immediately. Do you think the rest of the fish will be fine once treated? Thx

 

[HUKIT]

When treated within three days of first symptoms with Parasite Clear I've never lost a fish. Treat the entire tank even though they are not showing signs but still have been exposed to Bloat. For some reason locally the PC is not available any longer at LFS and can only be purchased online, but my local Walmart stocks it so that's where I would fry first.

 

[mikeybabs]

When treated within three days of first symptoms with Parasite Clear I've never lost a fish. Treat the entire tank even though they are not showing signs but still have been exposed to Bloat. For some reason locally the PC is not available any longer at LFS and can only be purchased online, but my local Walmart stocks it so that's where I would fry first.

Thanks for the heads up on walmart. My local walmart carries some so im going to go pick some up tonight to treat it right away...

What should I do with the filter bags? I think they have charcoal in them. Should i take out the whole bag? How fast will I see results in the one with the sunken stomach if he's able to be saved?

Thanks soooo much. Hopefully you'll save all 24 of my fishes lives

 

[HUKIT]

Not sure what kind of filter bags they are, but you could just slice them open and remove the carbon. You should start to see results in a couple of days or so, plus don't feed while treating for this. And last go through two treatments not just one, follow the directions and it will be over quickly.

 

[mikeybabs]

Not sure what kind of filter bags they are, but you could just slice them open and remove the carbon. You should start to see results in a couple of days or so, plus don't feed while treating for this. And last go through two treatments not just one, follow the directions and it will be over quickly.

Thanks!! I should have bought another box of parasite clear because one box is only 8 tablets... Oh well it says I have to wait 48 hours between treatments so I will buy a second box tomorrow. Each tablet treats 10 gals.

Should I leave the lights off for 2 days? Thx

 

[HUKIT]

Yes Metrozoidale is effected by light.

 

[mikeybabs]

Yes Metrozoidale is effected by light.

Ok thx. Does the carbon make a big difference and do I need to put it back in afterwards? Can I leave it out?

 

[HUKIT]

Ok thx. Does the carbon make a big difference and do I need to put it back in afterwards? Can I leave it out?

I don't use any carbon in any of my tanks, it's a expense that's not needed. The only thing I would say it's good for is removing medication or tannins from the water, but I prefer to do water changes to remove those.

 

[mikeybabs]

Okay so I treated the 10 Gallon where I isolated the poor electric yellow with the sunken stomach, and I treated the 55 gallon with the remaining 23 mbuna cichlids which wernt showing any symptoms but I just want to take extra caution as you advised...

its been 12 hours since the treatment... should i try feeding them in between treatments? im curious to see how the one with the sunken stomach reacts to food...

also, im expecting company to come over tomorrow evening... when they come over i will be approximately 42 hours into the treatment... is it ok if i turn the lights on then? when should i start feeding them again? right after the treatment is done? how long should i wait before the second treatment? it says to do a 25% water change between treatments... even if the first treatment seems to clear the parasite i should still do a second treatment?

thanks and you'll be a savior if this saves all my mbuna

 

[HUKIT]

I wouldn't feed at all during treatment, five days or so won't hurt them at all. As far as the light leave that off for 24hrs at least after treatment, Metrozoidale has been shown to decrease in effectiveness when exposed to light. And the second treatment is a must with some people actually recommend a third, I've never had to three but always do two.

If I save them all does Bubba get to come sleep at my house?

 

[mikeybabs]

I wouldn't feed at all during treatment, five days or so won't hurt them at all

ok so it's been approximately 12 hours since ive performed the second treatment. When should I introduce food to them again? I noticed the parasite clear tabs make the water a slight cloudy yellow tint but it cleared up completely in about 24-36 hours after I did the treatment. Should I just wait till the water is clear again to feed them? Crossing my fingers and hoping the sunken stomach yellow lab that can't hold food down starts eating normally again. It will be a good feeling

 

[mikeybabs]

If I save them all does Bubba get to come sleep at my house?

Haha no way I love his mean attitude. I found a good toy for him... The magnet algae scraper. He likes to chase it lol

 

[HUKIT]

ok so it's been approximately 12 hours since ive performed the second treatment. When should I introduce food to them again? I noticed the parasite clear tabs make the water a slight cloudy yellow tint but it cleared up completely in about 24-36 hours after I did the treatment. Should I just wait till the water is clear again to feed them? Crossing my fingers and hoping the sunken stomach yellow lab that can't hold food down starts eating normally again. It will be a good feeling

I wait 48 hours after the second treatment, do a 50% water change then introduce food.

 

[mikeybabs]

SUCCESS!!! After I did a 50% PWC I introduced 3 1mm pellets to the electric yellow cichlid that was showing the most symptoms... I'm not sure if I've ever seen him eat and now he ate a pellet fully without spitting it out! I'm so happy and thankful for your help!

Hukit: Get me a female red devil cichlid and you can have bubbas babies

Thanks again! All of my other cichlids in the 55 gallon are eating normally but I'm sure some of them caught the parasite so I'm glad you gave me the tip to treat the whole tank too even if they wernt showing symptoms...

You saved my fish's lives! And it was exciting to see him eat again!

Go Parasite Clear!

 

[HUKIT]

Congratulations, I've gone through Bloat twice and have never lost a fish when treating with Parasite Clear. I'm really happy eveything turned out well, since I know how stressed these little buggers can make us feel.

 

[pcock]

Congratulations to you and your wet pets. Hopefully their health continues to improve. It's frustrating watching them while you know they're suffering.

 

[mikeybabs]

Ok so now that he's been eating for the past 2 days, do you have an estimate of when his stomach will return to normal from its sunken state?

Thanks

 

[HUKIT]

That will take time, don't try and rush it with overfeeding. Feed normal amounts, keep the water clean and in no time he'll be back to normal. Aslo keep in mind they are not suppossed to to have round full stomachs.