kinda an emergancy. what would u do.. picture is attached

[Ky'smommy]

so. i woke up this morning turned on the light. did a head count and this is how i found my gourami. well this fish gets himself into all kinds of trouble. I dont even know how he pulled this one off. but he did.
and i have no idea how to help him.
as u can see he is pretty beat up..
i tried nudging him out but he wont move.
have no other ideas.
hes breathing doesnt look like hes hurt real bad. just scratches.
thanks in advance

 

[bs6749]

If I were you I would push the fish from behind or pull it from the front because you don't want to hurt its pectoral fins by pulling it backworkds. You may have to cause it a little pain by pulling it out but it will certainly not live long in its current state. Maybe put on some latex gloves so that you will not harm the fish as much.

Another idea of mine would be to take some vaseline (don't think it will hurt water conditions but ask others first) and apply it all around the fish with a Q-tip before you pull it out of the hole. Good luck.

 

[Ky'smommy]

ok i cant pull it from behind its closed off thats why i dont understand how he even got in there in the first place... and esspecially facing forward.
i will have to try and get some vaseline.
any other ideas are still appreciated..

 

[Musket]

oh my gosh. That is too funny. Great shot... Looks like he is saying "Oh, great, She found me like this.. crap..." or "another fine predicament I got myself into" or "What chyou lookin' at?"
wow, the least painful way would be to cut the decor and then use aquarium sealant to fix it. Maybe this way you can see how he got himself in there. And seal it off with some mesh, just in case he thinks he can fit again. Or in case someone else decides to try it. Must be open from the bottom, maybe you can get your fingers in there and push.
Maybe he was playing chase the fish and just wasn't paying attention... Or he was "dared" to try it.
Good luck... then give him a water change and some melafix & pimafix, just in case. Let us know how things work out.

 

[petunia100]

I would also try to gently push or pull in the direction of the scales. I would think it might damage his scales or fins to go in the opposite direction. Just a word of caution on Melafix (and probably Pimafix too). Melafix can harm your fish's labrynth organ. I killed my dwarf gourami by using melafix, it was horrible watching him not be able to breath properly, but I didn't know then. I have also heard others caution when using it with labrynth fishes, sometimes it's okay but sometimes it's not good, as was my case. I would just do a couple extra water changes and keep an eye out for infection.

 

[joannde]

I agree with breaking the decor and trying to repair it. I don't use hollow ornaments anymore - lost a betta that got lost inside of one and couldn't find his way out. While I was making the new decor I stuffed filter floss into every opening to keep everyone out.

 

[Smaug21]

Not that it's particularly helpful, but I have to agree with the not using the hollow decorations. I have an oriental/middle eastern castle not all that dissimilar to yours that I don't use anymore. My mother used it for years in her molly tank, but a couple of times a fish would disappear and we'd only find them extremely decomposed months later when we'd do a full tank clean. It was pretty odd to just have a fish disappear.

On a side note, she got an Albino African clawed frog awhile later and we'd have fish disappear and she thought they were dying in the castle but we'd never find them...We're pretty sure now that they turned into frog food...

 

[talloulou]

OMG! That is just too much. I wouldn't pull on him. If you can gently push the fish back in the hole vs pulling him out then you can grease the hole sides all around and see if he can then squirm out on his own. I think pulling on him will hurt him more than pushing him back in. If he can't squirm out even with the opening greased then you will have to break the ornament. Make sure he is pushed back in the hole before you break the ornament. If you break it while he is stuck the pressure from the break will likely damage him.

 

[shayfish]

Holy smokes! How'd he do that?! He seriously looks embarassed to be found like that. I think the best thing you can do is to try to push him out as gently as possible (and maybe lube him up a bit!). There'll definately be some scratches but as already said, he won't last long like this.

Good luck!

 

[coldmachineUK]

Just a word of caution on Melafix (and probably Pimafix too). Melafix can harm your fish's labrynth organ. I killed my dwarf gourami by using melafix, it was horrible watching him not be able to breath properly, but I didn't know then. I have also heard others caution when using it with labrynth fishes, sometimes it's okay but sometimes it's not good, as was my case. I would just do a couple extra water changes and keep an eye out for infection.

Water changes and aquarium salt might help repair any damage, but it's worth noting that the claims about Melafix and Bettafix (with the active melaleuca ingredient) are anecdotal and not scientifically proven. Clinical trials conducted by AP with fish inc. gouramis indicate that these products do not kill fish...I'm sure a reputable company wouldn't sell a product they knew had this effect.

In terms of getting him out: I agree, unfortunately you're best pulling him forwards rather than pushing him back through because you may damage his pectoral fins by pushing and that would obviously be bad.
The effect of breaking the ornament with him still inside might be bad too.

I know from clown loaches getting regularly stuck in things that it's best to pull rather than push. I can't say for a gourami though.
I hope you manage to get him out ok, and that he recovers from his mistake!!!

 

[Ky'smommy]

ok an hour later. this fish is a fighter. we been going at it for 1 whole hour.
i got a butter knife and a net. and i move him with the flat of the knife... no harm to him. and he shakes himself out. we got half of him out. the big half is on the castle part now. hes taking a break... hes been such a good helper.. his body looks bent.. so thats gotta hurt and we are moving him slowly so we can get him out with no real harm. they scales are falling off and his front fins are clamped. they were stuck. but now free.
ill keep u updated

 

[joannde]

wow - YOU"RE a trooper also ! keep up the good work

 

[Ky'smommy]

yah but when i let him take a break.. he died. we only had a little bit to go..........
maybe i should have kept going. he looked like his mouth got stuck open..

 

[hsherman1986]

sorry for your loss. You did all you could. He may have died whether you let him take a break or not.

Good job for helping him though, I would either get rid of that decoration, or stuff it with filter floss.

Its for this reason that I do not use store bought decorations anymore. All of my decor is natural wood (with no narrow nooks and crannies), rocks, and plants.

Sorry again for your loss though.

 

[WaterPond]

aww, thats to bad. Oh well, he died doing what he loved: Getting stuck in random places. I think that would be the ideal last adventure for many fish.

 

[JohnPaul]

Sorry about the fish. I'll be the hundredth person here to say, hollow ornaments are a no-no. Not only can fish get stuck like yours, but sometimes a fish will be sick and just go hide inside of one. When you can't see the sick fish, you don't realize there's a problem. Then it dies inside there, likely fouling the water pretty badly as it decomposes.

Last, even if you have a hollow ornament fish can't get into, they often trap water inside where there is no circulation, which creates the possibility of the water stagnating in there. That's also bad.

Avoid 'em.

 

[LandGhoti]

Sorry for your loss.

That is one hell of a picture, though.

 

[joannde]

Aw I'm so sorry - you both fought so hard.

 

[rich311k]

I am sorry for your loss. You went above and beyond.

 

[Ky'smommy]

finally got him out a bit ago.. i checked him over.. his back half was completely bent and cut open. he was probably bleeding. so i dont htink there would have been much i could do..