# fish not swimming upright



## dexs (Jan 25, 2005)

I have an African Cichlid i guess its called a (convict)

My Fish is actually named "Big headed Paul" hes pretty big around 5 1/2" and hes only about 2 1/2, 3 years old.
I noticed he had a really bulbous forehead Head compared to the other convicts I have in the tank. But now recently hes starting to float/rest upside down positioned against some of the lace rock i have in the tank, and sometimes actually resting his head on the ground where his territory is located in the tank its kind of funny to watch this but i feel really bad cause i'm not sure whats wrong... He eats fine and he swims around the tank fine its just when he is relaxing that he positions him self in a very strange way.?

Any suggestions on his condition would help :-?

ill read what you wrote soon!
Late

Justin C.


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## Robin (Sep 18, 2002)

Hi Justin,

Could be a problem with his swim bladder. When fish have this kind of problem they have a difficult time keeping a normal position in the tank. They may be able to swim okay but then when they stop they either float or sink or struggle to keep from doing either.

Could also be a digestion problem.

Try fasting the fish for the next 24-48 hours and add Epsom salt at the rate of 1 tablespoon per five gallons. (disolve it first and add it slowly). If you can't remove this fish then it's okay to treat the entire tank with Epsom salt.

Also, anytime there's 'something' going on in your tank it's a good idea to test the water parameters, check out the filters, (make sure they're running correctly and they're not clogged), and then do a partial water change using a good quality declorinator.

Robin

I'm not a huge fan of naming fish but Big headed Paul made me laugh out loud.


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