Concave belly

[newhobbist]

I've noticed that two of my fish (Kribensis and German Blue Ram) have concave bellies. Is that normal?

 

[Stuart]

I don't think so - both of my kribs have nice rounded bellies - are they eating well?

 

[Zagz]

What are your water parameters? Is there any other symptoms? It isn't normal for any fish to have a concave belly.

 

[newhobbist]

I've noticed that both these fish are shy when it comes to eating. When it is normal for fish to push each other when trying to grab better piece of food during feeding time these fish usually step to the side and eat only when there is no competition. How do I make sure that they are fed?

 

[jrp1588]

I had the same problem with a couple of angels i had a while back...I never got them to eat...then i gave them to a friend, and they eat just fine. The only difference was that his tank was pretty much empty of fish before the angels were introduced.

 

[newhobbist]

I will try different kind of food to see if there is some food they would prefer more (since they both are cichlids).

 

[Essayons89]

A concave belly may also be a sign of a more serious problem. Has there been a darkening of color with these fish? Are they skittish and do they hide a lot? What does their feces look like? Is it white and stringy?

Bryan

 

[TankGirl]

I am going to move this to the Unhealthy forum, since I believe the fish are going to need to be treated, or at least removed to a separate tank where they can be conditioned and reintroduced.

 

[newhobbist]

Has there been a darkening of color with these fish? Are they skittish and do they hide a lot? What does their feces look like? Is it white and stringy?

I haven't noticed any darkening of these fish. They both are nicely colored and behave normally except that they are last to go for food (expecially Krib). Not that they show no interest in food, although the Krib eats only meaty food, but they just don't want to participate in feeding when several fish are gathered in one place. I've been trying to put food closer to them so they can be first to see it. Also, I ordered some meaty food in small bits because they are not able to fill their bellies with tiny freeze-dried bloodworms and not able to swallow larger bits.