# Possible bloat



## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

i have a question:

i have a fish currently bloated, looks like hes fighting it since he hasnt died and its been about 3-4 days.

should i leave him in my tank? i dont have a hospitol tank.

does bloat spread?


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

Is the fish eating?

Any white stringy feces?

Is the fish being reclusive?

Yes, bloat is contagious. It is believed to be spread by healthy fish mouthing the feces of infected fish.

What size tank is this?

What is your stock list?

Current water parameters?

Any stress/aggression in the tank?

What is your water change schedule?

Have you added any new fish recently without quarantine?

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

Is the fish eating? yes

Any white stringy feces? yes

Is the fish being reclusive? yes

What size tank is this? 38gl

What is your stock list? 19 demasoni

Current water parameters? in sigggy

Any stress/aggression in the tank? yes (their dems)

What is your water change schedule? once a week, 10-15%

Have you added any new fish recently without quarantine? no

im also wondering if i can use clout in my main tank since i have no hospitol tank.
*** had bloat problems for awhile now, i dont think its overfeeding but eating of the white feces.


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

this is going to be my 3rd demasoni that may die....


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

I would treat with something.

Clout may stain your silicone in the main tank, but it will fade over time and return to normal, or at least, mine has.

Follow the link below my signature, but before you initiate treatment, go ahead and do about a 50% water change, making sure you vacuum the substrate well to remove infected feces.

Follow the directions in the link to a tee...No food while treating unless you feed them antiparasitic medicated food.

Post back with questions and let us know how things are going!

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

kk, i guess i do everything except move fish to quarantine tank...

80% water change is HUGE. but i will do this today. hopefully everything should be cured.

i did a water change last night (10-15%) would that afect anything?


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

nicholas316 said:


> i did a water change last night (10-15%) would that afect anything?


No, it won't. Your beneficial bacteria is in your filter.

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

and i should take out the carbon right.


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## natalie559 (Dec 6, 2007)

nicholas316 said:


> and i should take out the carbon right.


Yes. Replace it once treatment is over to remove any traces of the medication.


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

ok, so heres an update:

no fish died yet, but about 3 or 4 of my fish have bloat, and i see constan white feces here and there all the time.

yesterday i went to my lfs and bought clout.

im following cichlidaholics steps...

--im treating my main tank
--took out carbon from ac70 and rena xp3
--put 3 tablets cuz i have a 48gl
--going to treat half strength today

il update tonight.


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

another thing i noticed was that when i put clout in, some of my fish with bloat started shaking, twitching or shivering for about 10 seconds here and there...is this a good sign.


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

Are these fish still eating?

If so, after this amount of time has passed from your first post, it is doubtful that they have bloat.

I think you may be overfeeding.

If you have some that aren't eating, you may have waited too long to treat.

White stringy feces alone isn't always indicative of bloat.

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

no no, ALL my fish eat. i think i do overfeed...i have 17 demasoni 1.5-2" i dunno how much toofeed....


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

If you feed once a day, don't give them any more than they can consume in 1 minute.

If you feed twice a day, don't give them any more than they can consume in 30 seconds.

That's how I taught my husband to feed fish! :lol:

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

update:

treated clout @ half strength, 1 fish acting reclusive for 2mins before he noticed me... 1 fish floating around @ top, gasping. but again 3mins was acting normal like the rest.

anytime i feed NLS:CF the fish race to the top and almost inhale the pellets...their beasts. is that why i may be getting bloat? i think i should feed tiny amounts, and make sure all fish eat the same. instead of 6 of them racing to the top and in a few seconds their gone...because tahts wat usually happens.


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

NLS is very concentrated, so it's even _more_ important with this food that you don't overfeed.

I find that to be true with most pellet foods.

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

UPDATE:

1 fish died, not really hurting over it...fish was a freebie halfbreed thingy with a HUGE head.

-fish colour looking different 3 minutes after i put on lights, my darkest colored dem faded abit.

-this is my "off" day

-noticed one fish with like a 2.5" white feces

, il give u guys another update tomomorrow.


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

ok, kim heres the update:

i did a 80% waterchange in mymain tank

used prime (3 capfulls since i did a masssive waterchange, i have a 38gl)

now do i wait abit to use clout or use clout right away?, how does it affect if i use clout right away. if i dont get a response, im gonna use clout in like 30mins.

-fish look different in colour, very vibrant

-pH level dropped to like 7.5ish, should i use baking soda right away as well??

please reply asap.


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

Not sure why you used 3 caps full of Prime on the tank...More than triple the necessary dosage???

No need to alter your ph. 7.5 is fine.

Why the drop? What is it from your tap? Are you normally buffering the water to get it up to 8.3?

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

yes, its usually 8.2/8.3. tap water dropped i most likely, il do another test.

update: treated tank with full strength clout few hours ago, just woke up il give another update shortly


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

update: 1 fish died, very small..highly doubt it was from bloat.

all my fish colour looks terrible, possibly due to the drop in pH level.

boosting pH shortly....

1 demasoni sortve looking like this:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... p?t=169640

im kinda lost, i dont know what to do, my dems r dropping like flies..

should i

boost pH
treat for culmanaris?
etc?


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

Any white cottony looking areas on the fish?

How big are the demasoni?

How many do you have left at this point?

Are you withholding food?

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

no white cotton spots

they grew alot from when they were small, there about 1.5-2.5

i have about 17, maybe 16

i fed them last night, they ate in aabout 20 seconds, fed only once, i did not feed today.

their all pretty pale in colour now, their acting very aggressive. i seen 2 or 3 flashing. i read that flashing is a result of hardness changes, so il just wait for a reponse to see what i should do.

also, the one dark fish who looks like he has cul still has white feces coming out, but hes still very agressive and eating.


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

It sounds like your fish are stressed, and it could be a combination of things...Some you can control, some you can't!

At that size, they are starting to sexually mature, so this could be an issue if you have an overly heavy male load.

The change in ph could also be a factor, and the meds may be stressing them as well.

White feces alone isn't indicative of bloat. When it's accompanied by other symptoms - such as not eating, reclusiveness, bloating or emaciation, then it's time to treat for bloat.

I really think you may have just been overfeeding these guys initially, and your losses may be from aggression. It's just not something I can say for sure.

Kim


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

kk. going to boost pH and feed later later tonite. they are stressed out alot....


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## nicholas316 (Apr 24, 2007)

update:

jus turned on light, checked back in 2mins fish look REALLY really vibrant in colour. it seems like boosting pH really helped. a few weeks ago i was complaining about faded colour now none of my fish are faded.

dems seem to be shaking and declaring their territory...

only 1 fish with white stringy feces

acting very aggressive, which i feel comfertable with.

feeding soon then i will give an update.


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