Iridescent Shark Bloated

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richiestang_78

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
Oct 27, 2003
Messages
497
Location
Cleveland, Ohio
I just noticed that my Iridescent shark appears to be bloated and also seems to be gasping. He is swimming around fine and has been eating, what could be the problem? Could he be constipated? Also he recently damged one of his pectoral fins to the point of it being a nub.
 

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Also he recently damged one of his pectoral fins to the point of it being a nub.
Probably not part of the problem, but how did he do that?

You need to answer the full array of Qs asked of all ill fish owners and then check out Disease Diagnostic Charts and Other Helpful Sites.

Answer these Qs to ensure we have as much information as possible about your ailing fish and its environment:

1~What type of fish is afflicted? In addition, please describe what is wrong with the fish to the best of your ability (i.e. cotton like growth, bloated, etc.).
2~What are your tank parameters (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, temp, pH)? Please give exact values.
3~ How large is the tank? How long has the tank been set up?
4~What type of filtration are you using? Please give the name and number (i.e. Fluval 304) and amount of gph if known.
5~How many fish are in the tank? What kinds of fish are they and what are their current sizes?
6~When is the last time you did a water change and vacuum the gravel? How often do you do this? How much water do you remove at a time?
7~How long have you had the fish? If the fish is new, how did you acclimate it/them?
8~Have you added anything new to the tank--decor, new dechlorinator, new substrate, etc.?
9~What kind of food have you been feeding your fish, have you changed their diet recently?
 
There are a lot of possibilities that it could be. Menagerie is right, we need more information in order to offer sound advice.
 
Iridescent Shark w/ stomache bloated out, lost fin from swimming through too small of rock during one of his spazouts.
pH 6.5(been acidic for a while seems fine with it)
ammonia 0ppm
nitrites 0ppm
nitrates 20ppm
30gallon tank, been set up for 3 years
Fluval 304
Only fish in there currently are the Iridescent and a Plec
Last water change was today w/ gravel vacuum
FIsh is probably as old as the tank
No new decor in the tank
Been feeding him peelets, flakes and he will eat Algae waffer that fall for the plec.

Im going to stop feeding him for the day or so and see if that helps, thought I may try to pea method and see if that relieves his condition.
 
I would not feed for a day and then try peas.
pH 6.5(been acidic for a while seems fine with it)
Is that the pH of the tap water (best way to know is to let a glass of tap water sit out overnight and then test it)?
 
No the tap water here is slightly alkaline. The tank just always get acidic for some reason but its a good thing since I might be adding Chichlids to it. Anyway hes stomache seems to have gone done alittle over night so I dont think its dropsy and just a case of him eating too much.

:UPDATE:
So it seems that the fishes stomache bloats after I feed the plec in there leading me to the conclusion that the fish is eating the algae waffers and causing him to become bloated. I feed him flake foods and pellets as he picks them off the bottom so I dont know why hes eating the waffers.
 
I feed him flake foods and pellets as he picks them off the bottom so I dont know why hes eating the waffers.
Because fish are opportunistic and some will eat and eat and eat. Cut back on feedings and feed veggies weekly (there's an article on preparing and feeding veggies in the articles section).

No the tap water here is slightly alkaline. The tank just always get acidic for some reason but its a good thing since I might be adding Chichlids to it.
You should fine out why the tank water gets acidic because that's not normal. What kind of cichlids are you looking at for your tank??
 
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