Guppy w/ Swollen Chest

[Manic Fury]

Hello,

Sadly, I had a guppy die on me tonight.

Over the past month I noticed the male guppy that I have been keeping for about 4-5 months now was getting a swollen chest. I thought that what I presumed to be a male guppy, was in fact a female, and that she may have been pregnant.

With that thought in mind, I watched him/her intently over the past couple of weeks. It wasn't showing signs of pregnancy. I began to get worried and his chest was so big that I thought it might explode!

Well, tonight I came home from work and noticed that the other guppy that I have wasn't following the other one. They were always together and when I noticed that the other wasn't around the now deceased guppy, I got worried. I searched the bottom of the tank and found him at the bottom, not moving.

I took him out and inspected, and his belly was stretched and bulging out. I have no idea what could have happened. I checked water parameters and everything is 100% fine.

Sorry for the long story, but I wanted to make sure I got everything across. Does someone have an idea of what could have caused this? Any and all help would be much appreciated.

 

[anteatergoanna]

Do you have any photos?

 

[Manic Fury]

Unfortunately no. I gave him a watery funeral 10 mins after I took him out.

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[absolutangel04]

Did you see any scales sticking out, like a pinecone? I am guessing either bloat of dropsy was your issue. Dropsy is accompanied by the pinecone look. Bloating can happen for a variety of reasons, including genetic pre-disposition and diet. After a fish has died, I always suggest doing a big pwc in the tank. Other than that, I would just keep an eye on your other fish for any symptoms to make sure nothing is lingering in your tank.

 

[Manic Fury]

No pinecone scales. All other fish seem perfectly fine. Although the other Guppy doesn't know what to do with himself without his friend there.

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[Manic Fury]

Anyone know what this may have been?

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[BBradbury]

Your Fish

Hello Man...

I've seen this in Guppies before. It's typical of fish that are fed too much. This is just fat that has built up over time. Aquarium fish are small with very tiny stomachs. It doesn't take very much to sustain them. They can easily go a couple of weeks without food, so it makes sense not to feed them very much.

I feed mine a little variety every three or four days. The fish are much more active, because they get hungry and spend the time between feedings foraging for leftovers. There is always a little food that goes uneaten. The fish live off that and the algae that grows on the plants.

Feed less and the fish will be leaner and healthier. That's the way nature does things.

B

 

[Matt68005]

It could be belly fat or worms, dropsy usually affects the top scales not the belly, but i suppose it could happen anywhere, either way hes dead now and i don't think dropsy is contagious so dont worry.

 

[Manic Fury]

Thanks for the replies everyone. It sucks losing fish, but things happen even though we try to do all we can.

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[guppygourami]

Hi everyone, I know that I might be on the wrong post for posting this but I rarely get replies on my own so I decided to post it here if you don't mind. I have our male guppies and one is smaller than the other three. They're all cobra guppies but the smallest is yellow instead of red like the others. When I first got them they all had long and beautiful tails but I just noticed the yellow one has a bit of tail left and an arched back. He isn't swimming with the others either. I'm my tank I have two dwarf gouramis, one angelfish, one common pleco and a red eye tetra. Please help me with this guppy, I've had my fish die on me before and it is unfortunate. sorry about the bad quality :/


Namirah?Canadian, Eh??