sick calvus

Q&A about diseases and their cure

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calvusthomas
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Jan 25, 2010 12:06 am

sick calvus

Post by calvusthomas »

Hi,
I'm trying this forum because i haven't been able to get much help anywhere else! I have a 240 L tank with a ehiem 2217 filter, heater, air pump, 6 small electric yellows, an afra (8cm), a peacock (10 cm) a peppermint pleco and of course my calvus (8 cm about 4 years old). i use salt and buffer every water change (weekly)
The calvus has been sitting on the floor of the tank increasingly over the last week or so. I have tested the water a couple of times, pH is 8 and nitrates, nitrites and ammonia are 0 ppm. The other fish are all acting normally. He has no external signs of illness and is still eating but is lethargic and seems to cough or hiccup occasionally, sometimes fully extending his jaw. his breathing is also a little laboured. as you would understand I am worried as sick fish can deteriorate very quickly! I have started treating him with Melafix and Pimafix as i thought his eyes were a little cloudy too. any ideas what could be wrong and what should i do?
thanks for your time
zoe
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Re: sick calvus

Post by Pam Chin »

Hi Zoe,

Its really hard to diagnose a fish with out being able to see it. Is it bloat? Hard to say, you have a couple of symptoms, you may just want to keep an eye on this fish, as long as it is still eating okay, I usually don't worry too much. But when they are parked in one place and trying to spit up, I can understand your concern. Generally these are caused by some kind of stress. So take a look at your basics and make sure your temp is around 76 Degrees F. Housing calvus with mbuna types is not the best, since the mbuna are much more active, so are your mbuna may be stressing him out??

I really can't give you much more help then this. Sorry---

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