GBR sitting on the ground all the time

[DeirdreHoyle]

One of my GBR's is sitting on the ground all day in the same spot for some reason...like just resting on his belly. Not laying on his side at all, and he still gets up to eat or chase away the other GBR. His color is good but his tail fin is a little torn up. No other fish in the tank behaving like this. My water params are:
25 Gallon tank
Ammonia & Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 15-20 ppm
pH: 6.8
Temp: 79 Degrees
Medium planted, all live plants

What could be wrong with him?

 

[Brookster123]

That's usually what they do if they're about to scatter eggs or die I believe.. at least ime..

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[DeirdreHoyle]

That's usually what they do if they're about to scatter eggs or die I believe.. at least ime..

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Well he's a male so he's definitely not scattering eggs and I've only had him for a few months so he's not dying of old age. Could it be an intestinal parasite or something?

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Also when he does get up and swim it looks like it takes a lot of energy.

 

[Brookster123]

Yah... it's just what happens to rams sometimes, I had one do that, put him in qt with api general cure for 2 weeks and he got better. Was back on the ground shortly after re introduction, died...

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[Lung Fish]

What's a GBR?

 

[Brookster123]

What's a GBR?

German born resident.

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[DeirdreHoyle]

German born resident.

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LOL Brookster

It stands for German Blue Ram, it's a cichlid

 

[Lung Fish]

LOL Brookster

It stands for German Blue Ram, it's a cichlid

Thanks,i'm a know it all to predatory fish,but cichlids,i know as much as a beginner knows about a clown knife.

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

I wanted to do an update on this. The GBR is still alive, but still sitting on the ground all the time except when he gets up to eat. My other, healthy ram has been hiding a lot and seems unhappy because he doesn't have a partner. I want to get a new ram so I can have an active pair and have happy fish, but I don't want to like euthanize the sick GBR (because he's not really on the brink of death) or overstock my tank....I really don't know what to do.

Any ideas?

 

[Brookster123]

Try feeding shelled peas? Daphnia? Could just need a good poo

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[DeirdreHoyle]

Try feeding shelled peas? Daphnia? Could just need a good poo

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I've tried that! He loves peas and seems really excited to eat them but I was feeding him peas every other day for about a week/week & a half and he didn't show much improvement.

Never tried daphnia though, can you just buy it at the lfs?

 

[Brookster123]

Should be in the freezer yea, that's odd though, does it look off??

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[DeirdreHoyle]

Should be in the freezer yea, that's odd though, does it look off??

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I'll pick some up this week and see if it helps.

I mean, besides the fact that he's on the ground, he doesn't look all that sick. His color is good and his fins were ragged but they've recently healed...which is really strange considering the circumstances

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Just to update you in case anyone was wondering, the GBR is still alive. Still sitting on the ground 90% of the time....wtf?!?!?!?!?!?! This fish is so stubborn!! My other GBR is lonely now :/

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[DeirdreHoyle]

Ok here are some pics. He looks all bent in the last one but he was just moving away from my camera. It's the only pic where you can see his whole body

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[Brookster123]

She's a fighter huh? Def looks pretty sad.. here comes the hard question??

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[philipraposo198]

okay so colour is most definitely not good. The fact that he is eating is a great and would likely eliminate internal parasite from the equation.

Have you tried any medication? api general cure would be a good start. or prazipro.

Temp should be raised to about 84. do about 2 degrees a day. Keep lights on for only 6-7 hours to reduce stress. Feed lightly, and get on doing daily or every other day water changes to keep nitrates non existent.

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Thank you for the reply! These are my first GBRs so I guess I thought their coloring was normal :/ I haven't tried any medication because I don't have a qt tank and I'm afraid I'll stress my other fish or kill my plants & bb if I medicate the tank. Is api general cure safe for plants & bacteria? My nitrates are around 15 ppm right now but I will up my water changes for sure.

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[DeirdreHoyle]

Also will my plants and other fish be ok if I raise the temp that much? It's at 79 right now.

Brookster...what's the hard question??

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