New Fish Update

[GouramiFanatic]

Unfortunately, I lost one of my 3 Bolivian Rams. It was one of the first pair that I added to the tank. The remaining 2 seem to be inseperable rigth now. They are constantly swimming together. Both are very active and look great so far.

However, it looks like I may be losing 2 of my YoYo Loaches. Either that or they're having a blast scaring me!! I checked on them this morning and found one of them was happily swimming along and scavenging for food. A second one was found in between a cave laying it's side, apparently dead. The third was draped over one of the suction cups holding the heater to the glass. He too appeared to be dead.

Right as I was going to grab the net I got a phone call so I had to wait a few minutes. When I came back the one inside the cave had disappeared and the one on the suction cup swam off as well.

Figuring that they were both alive and ok (I read that they sleep laying on it's side), I put the net back down and went on my way. Later on in the day the active one was still being very active, the 2nd one was draped over the bubble wall tube, and the third was laying on the gravel. The gills on both were moving so I let them be.

Just a few minutes ago, I was able to find all three of them again. The first was being active as usual and the other two were still laying on the bottom. They still swim pretty good although they seem to lose their balance from time to time. I think the current may have something to do with it though because they are considerably smaller than the other one that's constantly moving.

Going by this info, do you think they're showing normal YoYo behavior or are the chances good that I have a pair of sick fish?

 

[Squirt0170]

I just did some "quick" reading to try and help you. From what I have read... These fish are Nocturnal. They are very active. They can change color when they eat. Some will hid in filters.

When you feed the fish are you noticing them eating? Sometimes when fish don't eat there is a sign something is wrong with it. What you could do if you have another tank is Isolate the two of them and see if they have "Ich" on them.

I haven't read about any owner saying their fish lays on their side...

If your 2 fish are sick you will want to get them out so they don't harm the other fish you have. Also have you tested the water to see if the ammonia and nitrate levels are okay?

 

[RoK]

What do you mean by they seem to lose their balance? Like sort of swim sideways sometimes?
Are they breathing heavily?
I don't think those behaviors are all that uncommon with these guys. They seem to like to scare the cr** out of their owners sometimes.
There were a few times I couldn't find one or two for awhile but they just popped up later on or the next day.

 

[GouramiFanatic]

Squirt0170 - There are no signs of Ich. These three loaches and 2 bolivian rams are the first inhabitants of this aquarium. It is cycled (fishless) and there is no ammonia or nitrites and nitrates are at 10ppm. There isn't anything in the tap water either. Also, I've read several times that some fish, loaches in particular, sleep on their sides. That's why I wasn't so alarmed when I first saw this happening. I have seen them all eat, but the more active one definitely eats more.

RoK - By losing their balance I mean that while they're sitting on the gravel they knocked over as if a gust of wind or something pushed them over. I haven't seen them swimming sideways. It most happens when they're sitting or just starting to swim.

All of them are definitely moving. If I can't find all 3 at once I'll check again in a little while and I'll find that the missing one had appeared and the other one has moved. It just seems odd to me that there's 1 that's almost always out and the other 2 are almost always staying out of sight. Maybe they're just taking longer to adjust to their new home?

 

[JustOneMore20]

Yoyos like to play dead. I have 4 in my 55g and they do it all the time. They are also very active. They chase each other all the time, swimming from one end of the tank to the other. They do the silliest things. I had a rubber band on my driftwood because some of my moss was falling off. One of the yoyos would get under the rubber band on the back of the driftwood. I thought it was stuck and almost freaked out. I stuck my hand in the tank to help him and he swam off. They have a space underneath the driftwood that they hide. It looks like the wood is sitting on them, but they are fine. These are truly my fav fish. They are so fun to watch.

As long as the parameters check out and they are eating (if you can tell), they should be fine. They are crazy little guys and very hyper (or atleast mine are).

Mine hide when I get near the tank. I watch them from a distance. They hide alot too. Its normal. They are nocturnal like someone mentioned, but mine play during the day when I'm not really close to the tank.