# Rainbow shark with one huge eye.



## puppiesrule (Apr 12, 2011)

I have a 29 gallon tank. Live plants. Fresh water. Established for years. Have had fish tanks for years. All elements of the water are good. Water temp is at 72. I have neons, catfish, one huge angel, huge pleco, frogs, clown fish, but my rainbow shark has one eye that is huge. I noticed it the other day. Did a water change.It likes to swing with the one huge eye at the surface of the water. All other aspects of the fish looks good. No other fish have any problems. Just this rainbow shark. The rainbow shark shows no other forms of stress. The colo, shape, and breathing seem normal just one really big eye. It does swing at the top of the tank with the one big eye at the surface. Any thoughts. I thought maybe it could have been a form of baterial infections like aeromonas or pseudomonas. I have never had to ask for help before but im confused on this one.


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## mcb5522 (Aug 26, 2010)

puppiesrule said:


> I have a 29 gallon tank. Live plants. Fresh water. Established for years. Have had fish tanks for years. All elements of the water are good. Water temp is at 72. I have neons, catfish, one huge angel, huge pleco, frogs, clown fish, but my rainbow shark has one eye that is huge. I noticed it the other day. Did a water change.It likes to swing with the one huge eye at the surface of the water. All other aspects of the fish looks good. No other fish have any problems. Just this rainbow shark. The rainbow shark shows no other forms of stress. The colo, shape, and breathing seem normal just one really big eye. It does swing at the top of the tank with the one big eye at the surface. Any thoughts. I thought maybe it could have been a form of baterial infections like aeromonas or pseudomonas. I have never had to ask for help before but im confused on this one.


Although I am not familiar with how to treat it, I do know what it is. Its called pop-eye. Its treatable(as ive read) but can be deadly if left alone. Its from bad water parameters.

And also welcome to TFK


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## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

This certainly sounds like pop-eye, although I have never heard of a shark getting it, doesn't mean it can't happen.

As mcb5522 said earlier, it is caused (like most diesases) from bad water conditions. You say your water quality is good? What kind of test kits are you using? Dip strips are very inaccurate. Many test kits can lead you to think your water quality is better than it is, which isn't really your fault if you didn't know the test strips were inaccurate.

How reciently have you tested the water? It is always a good idea to test water if anything is ab-normal. 5 minutes could save you the lives of several fish.


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## puppiesrule (Apr 12, 2011)

small fry said:


> This certainly sounds like pop-eye, although I have never heard of a shark getting it, doesn't mean it can't happen.
> 
> As mcb5522 said earlier, it is caused (like most diesases) from bad water conditions. You say your water quality is good? What kind of test kits are you using? Dip strips are very inaccurate. Many test kits can lead you to think your water quality is better than it is, which isn't really your fault if you didn't know the test strips were inaccurate.
> 
> How reciently have you tested the water? It is always a good idea to test water if anything is ab-normal. 5 minutes could save you the lives of several fish.




The test kit: Freshwater master test kit. It checks Ph, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate. I use Neutral Regulator and aquarium salt. 

It has test tubes that i put aquarium water in and chemical drips i add and shake it. Than I compare it to a colored chart.

Some thing is wrong for sure the shark is hiding on the surface behind the water filtration sucking tube. Any ideas. I don't have a separate tank for treatment. The only med. I have are rid-ich and I have lifegaurd all in one treatment. ( I have never used it i just bought it). 

Thanks for your responses


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## puppiesrule (Apr 12, 2011)

puppiesrule said:


> The test kit: Freshwater master test kit. It checks Ph, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate. I use Neutral Regulator and aquarium salt.
> 
> Some thing is wrong for sure the shark is hiding on the surface behind the water filtration sucking tube. Any ideas. I don't have a separate tank for treatment. The only med. I have are rid-ich and I have lifegaurd all in one treatment. ( I have never used it i just bought it).
> 
> Thanks for your responses




Everything else in the tank is good. All the other fish are normal. 


The rainbow shark just has one hug eye and I just noticed there is like a silver or white circle around the eye. Maybe due to swelling or a bacteria or parasite? I don't know. I would say I noticed it about a week ago. It only looked a little bigger thought nothing really of it but today its huge.

Could it be another fish bite the eye or something. Im just concerned because its hiding and on the surface


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## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

Still sounds like pop-eye. You may want to see if you can find pictures of fish with pop-eye, just to see if that is it or not.

When you say,"freshwater master test kit" I assume you are talking about API master liquid test kit. It is a pretty accurate test. When was the last time you tested? What were the results?


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## mcb5522 (Aug 26, 2010)

My oscar had pop eye and it was odd because all the other fish were healthy but ymy water had a reading of 30 nitrates which is dirty enough of water. I dont like the behavior he is showing and I think salt is detrimental to popeye. Read up on it asap as my oscar died within four days of showing bad behavior like that even with large water changes everyday. Although my guy possibly had more problems that I was not taking care of. His fins were ripped apart by other cichlids and I took him from my friends tank as my tank was more peaceful. Anyway im telling you to alert u to look it up elsewhere if no one else can get you an answer on here.


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## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

Yeah, nitrates at 30ppm can be pretty bad, because the fish often show no symtoms of bad health until the moment the catch something.

Do research pop-eye, puppiesrule, and tell us what you find.


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## puppiesrule (Apr 12, 2011)

small fry said:


> Yeah, nitrates at 30ppm can be pretty bad, because the fish often show no symtoms of bad health until the moment the catch something.
> 
> Do research pop-eye, puppiesrule, and tell us what you find.



yes its the same test....


I did look a little but not much time I did find this..



If only one eye is infected, it is usually caused by an injury.
Pop eye caused by bacterial infection or environmental issues usually affects both eyes.
If pop eye on both eyes is followed by a [COLOR=black ! important]fungal infection[/COLOR], it is usually bacterial pop eye.
If pop eye on both eyes is not followed by a fungal infection, the pop eye is usually caused by environmental issues.
more to probably come its an interesting process


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## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

Odd. Many cases of pop-eye I have heard of have been only one eye. Where you are getting your information? I am not saying it is wrong or anything like that, I am just wondering if it is a reputable source. There is alot of conflicting information about many things on the internet.


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## puppiesrule (Apr 12, 2011)

small fry said:


> Odd. Many cases of pop-eye I have heard of have been only one eye. Where you are getting your information? I am not saying it is wrong or anything like that, I am just wondering if it is a reputable source. There is alot of conflicting information about many things on the internet.



I get all the information on the subject I can than I slowly weed out the crap websites. But like most websites they are all crap. But basically this is what Im getting. Most likey its an injury. There are three causes of pop eye bacterial, injury or vitamin A def. 

f this disease is not detected soon after it is caught the fish can lose one or both of its eyes and its eye sight. Any impact the eye might be subjected to generally as a result of fighting, can cause this. If its one eye chances are it's injury, if its both then it is possibly a bacterial infection. Bad water quality is a common reason enough to be the cause. High nitrAtes/nitrItes, ammonia, metal or plastic poisoning can be the reason too. Unsuitable salinity can also be the cause. Bacterial infections, injury and water quality are the most common problems. Vitamin A deficiency, tumors and gas embolism are less common reasons. Pop eye can also be caused by gas bubble disease as a result of oxygen super saturation (excess levels) of the water with the gas, nitrogen. Super saturation occurs whenever the pressure of a gas in the water is higher than the pressure of the same gas in the surrounding atmosphere, whereby the difference in gas pressures causes the gas to get pulled too quickly out of the fish's bloodstream, leaving behind gas bubbles. The other symptoms of this are the appearance of bubbles under the fish's skin. It's caused by excess oxygen in the water, particularly from filters that blow air directly from outside to inside the tank, and from pressurized tap water that did not get mixed. 





He is hiding in a pirate ship so i can't see the fish right now but it one guy said to make sure the other eye is normal......


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