Fish spazzing??

[JoeyGeeze]

Hey all.... I noticed tonight one of my tiger barbs on his own and his body was curving. He was kind of twitching but his actual body began to curve and he swam around really funny. He was separated from the rest of the pack of barbs. Any ideas what this could be? He definitely isn't normal... I'm kinda worried. I checked ammonia and nitrites and both were zero.

 

[jcolon]

How manyTB's do you have? Is it the smallest TB? Do its fins look nipped? Sometimes, a bullied TB will start to swim weird, as if it had an swim bladder issue. I had this happen to two Albino's.

 

[JoeyGeeze]

How manyTB's do you have? Is it the smallest TB? Do its fins look nipped? Sometimes, a bullied TB will start to swim weird, as if it had an swim bladder issue. I had this happen to two Albino's.

I have 9, he's actually one of the bigger ones. No nipped fins. It's really odd, I just walked In from dinner and he's worst than before, he's literally swimming with a curved spine now. I guess a good way to describe it is he looks like he's having a muscle spasm and is stuck crooked. Veryyy odd.

 

[JoeyGeeze]

This morning he seemed worse. I found him at the top of the tank still spazzing and bending his spine. I tried to grab a few pics but they aren't too great he would stay still. He didn't eat this morning, I'm at a loss with this one. It's very unfortunate to watch, his body is curving when he tries to move anywhere.

 

[jcolon]

IDK... The top pic gives the best idea, Of what you're talking about... I haven't come across a curving body, though the two albinos I had came closest to that your describing. Hopefully someone else will have a better idea.

I ended up having to put down my two Abinos

 

[JoeyGeeze]

IDK... The top pic gives the best idea, Of what you're talking about... I haven't come across a curving body, though the two albinos I had came closest to that your describing. Hopefully someone else will have a better idea.

I ended up having to put down my two Abinos

Thanks for the input. Yea I'm definitely confused, I thought maybe swim bladder but not sure, I've never experienced it so idk how it effects the fish.

Ugh that crossed my mind too about putting him down. If he isn't gonna eat and barely move, he's definitely in some sort of pain / discomfort. And tiger barbs aren't the most forgiving of fish, they will end up picking on him eventually until he's gone..

 

[RussellC]

Thanks for the input. Yea I'm definitely confused, I thought maybe swim bladder but not sure, I've never experienced it so idk how it effects the fish.

Ugh that crossed my mind too about putting him down. If he isn't gonna eat and barely move, he's definitely in some sort of pain / discomfort. And tiger barbs aren't the most forgiving of fish, they will end up picking on him eventually until he's gone..

I'm certainly far from an expert on the subject, but a curved spine can be a sign of fish TB.

Here's one related link, I'm sure a web search will reveal many more:

Aquarium FD - Fish Tuberculosis (Curved Spine) - Disease Identification, Diagnosis & Treatment

Sorry your fish isn't well.

 

[JoeyGeeze]

I'm certainly far from an expert on the subject, but a curved spine can be a sign of fish TB.

Here's one related link, I'm sure a web search will reveal many more:

Aquarium FD - Fish Tuberculosis (Curved Spine) - Disease Identification, Diagnosis & Treatment

Sorry your fish isn't well.

Oh boy, I sure hope not, that's even dangerous for humans! I think that's more of a deteriorating type of disease that may occur over time (no expert either though!). He doesn't show any sign of wounds or sickness, only when he swims he curls up his body and floats kinda erratically.

I'm reading a lot on swim bladder right now. Some articles say it could cause them to bend their spines while swimming, and swim in odd directions. I may feed some peas tonight and I'll be gone for the weekend so they can fast a couple days. Idk...

 

[RussellC]

Oh boy, I sure hope not, that's even dangerous for humans! I think that's more of a deteriorating type of disease that may occur over time (no expert either though!). He doesn't show any sign of wounds or sickness, only when he swims he curls up his body and floats kinda erratically.

I'm reading a lot on swim bladder right now. Some articles say it could cause them to bend their spines while swimming, and swim in odd directions. I may feed some peas tonight and I'll be gone for the weekend so they can fast a couple days. Idk...

I had a fancy goldfish (Oranda) with swim bladder, and you're right, it can certainly cause them to curl and swim oddly.

A bit of advice on the peas, I know it's not the easiest thing to do given the size of them, but do your best to get rid of the tough outer skin and feed only the soft interior.

I don't know about your fish, but the skins were too tough for my goldies to eat and just ended up making a mess in the bottom of my tank.

Good luck!

 

[JoeyGeeze]

I had a fancy goldfish (Oranda) with swim bladder, and you're right, it can certainly cause them to curl and swim oddly.

A bit of advice on the peas, I know it's not the easiest thing to do given the size of them, but do your best to get rid of the tough outer skin and feed only the soft interior.

I don't know about your fish, but the skins were too tough for my goldies to eat and just ended up making a mess in the bottom of my tank.

Good luck!

Oh definitely, I've fed them in the past without the skins, I just use a fork. Thanks for your input on this, greatly appreciated. Did your fish pull through? I'm not sure if this is something that is really bad news, or can be easily taken care of?

 

[RussellC]

Oh definitely, I've fed them in the past without the skins, I just use a fork. Thanks for your input on this, greatly appreciated. Did your fish pull through? I'm not sure if this is something that is really bad news, or can be easily taken care of?

The Oranda in question didn't make it.

That said, swim bladder issues are survivable in a lot of cases, and hopefully yours is one of them.

Best!

 

[JoeyGeeze]

Ok so on Friday, I tried feeding the fish peas and he was in bad shape on the bottom of the tank not moving. I netted him and fed him peas in the net so the others couldn't take it, he wouldn't touch it. I have vegetable flakes so I tried that, and nothing. I let him go and he went right to the bottom curled up. I left for the weekend and returned just now and he's swimming around like crazy!! He's still curling a bit, so I tried peas again and he devoured them! So, I'm hoping he will be OK, but we shall see.

 

[JoeyGeeze]

Ok I just noticed that the anus of the fish is red and looks swollen. Is that part of having swim bladder? Or is it safe to say internal parasites?

 

[JoeyGeeze]

Does anybody happen to know a good medicated food that will clear up an internal parasite or infection? Is there a "catch all" type of medicine? My fish ate again this morning but he's still not well, his anal area is still red and he is still having trouble swimming properly. Thanks!

 

[jcolon]

I've think I read about dipping food in garlic to help with intestinal issues.

 

[JoeyGeeze]

I've think I read about dipping food in garlic to help with intestinal issues.

As in fresh garlic? Or minced garlic in a jar?

 

[jcolon]

As in fresh garlic? Or minced garlic in a jar?

Check out the threas on another forum in the link below.. Hope this helps.

What affect does garlic have on fish? [Archive] - Aquarium Forum

 

[JoeyGeeze]

So last night this poor fish went belly up for about 3 seconds or so...Started to float to the top, then came back to life. I went to petsmart since its close by and they didn't have any meds that were related to internal infections, they were all for fungus and external problems. He's not swollen or showin any wounds.

I netted him and tried to feed some minced garlic I had, he didn't touch it. I have a cycled 2 gallon tank awaiting shrimp, so I placed him in there to monitor him the next couple days. This morning he was really having the bad spasms and bending still. I'm going to give him another day or two and if nothing changes I will chalk one up for Mother Nature..... I can't watch him suffer the way he is so i think it's better off. Ughh.