# glass catfish unkown disease



## Lt.Dan (May 8, 2007)

help please, my glass catfish will sink(they are top swimmers) then go nose down in the gravel and gradually fall over on his side. after some encouragement and gentle proding he will move around and swimm ok for awhile then do it again. can someone help me?


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## tangy (Apr 23, 2007)

i always figured glass catfish needed to be in groups. if not, they tend to pine or hide away from everything, even die off. if you see it head up, then its resting dont bother it, but from what you say it sounds like he might not make it


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

While it is true that the glass catfish is a schooling fish, they can be raised singly without problems if it is done properly.
Can you please post as much information as possible about this tank and the problem?
How big is the tank? How long has it been set up?
What other fish/animals are in it? How many of each kind?
What kind of filtration are you using? What media is in it?
How often do you do water exchanges? How much water do you change at a time?
Water params (test results for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH)
(Please don't use readings from the strip tests, as they are extremely inaccurate. Liquid kits are best to use, and most LFS's will test water for free. Ask the LFS to write down exact results and the kind of kits they used)
What is the water temp?
Are there live plants in the tank?
How much decoration and plants are in the tank?
And, any other information you can give us, such as... how long has this been going on? Is the fish eating? What kind of food(s) and how much and often do you feed the fish?

The more you tell us the faster someone can help you. At this point we don't have enough information to offer even a guess. If you can post a picture of the fish and/or the tank, that always helps, too.
Good Luck to you and your fish!


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## Lt.Dan (May 8, 2007)

i actually have two glass cats but only one does it. i had transfered him and some water from the tank into a smaller tank and left him. by 9:30 last night i thought he was dead, but just in case i left him there about 2 pm today he got up and started swimming around. so i am wondering if 1. he has seizures then needs to rest, 2. he is narcoleptic, or 3. he has an allergic reaction to some of the food(which is suggested for glass cats.)

but here is the tank info:
10 gallons.
3 black skirt tetras, 1 orange von rio flame tetra, and another glass cat.
it has been running with fish since september.
i change 2 gallons at a time once a week
never had problems before.
havent used any type of meds
Whisper Power filter 10(all i know is it uses two filters)
76-82 degrees Farenheit
He does eat when swimming in normal state.
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 7ppm
pH: 7.8-8.0( i know it is alkaline but all of my fish have been in ther a long time and have grown use to it.)
Two fake plants, no live ones.
two medium sized decorations.
it just started yesterday morning.
i feed all my fish at 7 in the morning and 7 at night.
TetraMin tropical flakes, and freeze dried bloodworms.
heated. lots of direct sunlight.
i have a large airation tube in the back of the tank.

i dont have the equitment to get a pic onto this cpu right now, sorry.Please help, if possible.


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

This sounds like a swim bladder problem, but it is impossible for me to say what has caused it.
The best treatment you could offer right now, so long as the fish is still eating...
Metronidazole medication would be the only one I would suggest, and rather than treating the tank water, I would mix it with the food. If you can get it in powder form, use just a very small amount (1/16 tsp and put it into a zip lock baggie with a few days worth of flake food, then shake real well to coat the food with the meds) to treat the food. If it is in tablet form, you have 2 options... either dissolve the tablet in a 1/2 cup of aquarium water and soak the frozen bloodworms in this for up to 10 minutes, or crush the tablet to make it into powder form to treat the flake food.
I would suggest feeding this medicated food for 1 wk.

After the wk of treatment is over, do a 20-25% water change on the tank.

If using the metronidazole mixed into the food it tends to be more effective and also does not require you to remove the carbon from your filter during treatment.
Good Luck and let me know if the fish is still showing symptoms or isn't better after treatment and we can try to find another possible solution.


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## Lt.Dan (May 8, 2007)

MY other glass cat is doing it now. well i went to my lfs but they didnt have many meds because they are going out of business, but i told them what it was and they said that happens in topswimming wish sometimes, and usually heals on its own. they it might be caused by gulping to much are when they eat. they havent sunk in 8 hours now so im wondering if it is healing.


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## fish_4_all (Nov 13, 2006)

I have not had muc luck with glass cats at all. All of mine would slowly turn white and die. Something i have found in a couple different places is that live food is sometimes essential for them as they will often eat nothing else. I thought mine were eating but they would grab the food turn around and spit it out. It is worth a try if you can hatch some brine shrimp or can get some grindal worms or microworms.


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## Lt.Dan (May 8, 2007)

hmm ive never had problems with them before, except when i used to have two tiger barbs they would snap ther back and the fish would look like an S when i found them, fix that problem really fast. i was told to only feed them freeze dried food, which i do, they eat it all the time i watch them. They havent sunk all day so if they arent sunken my tomorrow at noon im going to put them back in the regular tank, im posisitive now , whatever this is, it isnt contageus so ill try.


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## hellow (Apr 28, 2007)

Could you post pics of them and them doing their ritual?


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## Lt.Dan (May 8, 2007)

not really they havent sunk since friday night so..... I think they healed themselves.


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