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Is my Platy okay?

18K views 12 replies 2 participants last post by  platyfishlover123 
#1 ·
When I first got this female Bumblebee Platy she was aggressive and I wasn't sure if she was male or female. But those were my least of worries... Now all she ever does is stay in the very very very corner of the tank and lies on the gravel. Sometimes I think she is dead because she is not moving. And whenever feeding time comes around she waits for the flakes to sink to the ground before she eats any. This worries me and I wonder if she has a disease or is sick? Could someone please help me!?
Thank you for your time,
Platyfishlover123
 
#3 ·
her appearance is normal and all the levels are normal... My other Platy is completely fine? She has a frayed anal fin and whenever I get near tucks in all her fins so that I know she is scared of me and that she is still alive.
 
#7 ·
Here is some information that I found on swim bladder disorder. What type of foods are you feeding them? Also have you noticed if the fish is pooping normally? It is suggested with swim bladder disorder to try feeding more fiber and less protien. You may want to try feeding your fish a pea, frozen peas will work. Put one in a cup of water into the microwave for about 30 seconds, let it cool and pop the inner part out of the shell, mash up the inner part and offer it to your fish. Peas are good with helping with constipation. The following info is from the site here under the freshwater and saltwater disease thread.

Swim Bladder Disorder
Symptoms:

Limited signs of bloat though usually no physical damage is found, fish struggles to balance itself sometimes going “belly up” due to lack of proper buoyancy

Causes:
Often indigestion with Goldfish, blood parrot cichlid and “balloon” strains becoming more vulnerable to the disorder rather than most fish species, bacterial infections, damaged swim bladder, the use of floating foods which when ingested allows entry of air to the digestive system, congenital or development causes, birth defect, sudden trauma from sudden changes in water conditions or failure to acclimatize the fish properly.

Causes can be difficult to determine although possible causes are often leaned on the use of floating foods, indigestion and damaged organs by assumption. It has long been argued that floating foods should never be used at all especially for Goldfish. It is in the best interest of the safety of the fish that sinking foods be used instead of floating foods or try to squish the foods until they sink.

I’ve personally seen the crossbreed of the parrot cichlid and flowerhorn struggling to swim properly due to its balloon appearance. It will always be noted that balloon strains are rather deformed and should be avoided at all costs. Their vulnerability for this disorder renders them incapable to live a longer life span in comparison to the normal fish species.

Treatment:
Change of diet with foods containing high fiber content, fasting for several days or antibiotics. Unfortunately, there is no cure for such disorder although in some cases, the fish can recover depending on the cause of the disorder. Fish that suffer from this disorder due to sudden trauma from improper acclimatization usually will never recover at all. In this case, it is recommended to destroy the fish.

Read more: http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/...-saltwater-diseases-8179/page4/#ixzz1Y8a9qKsF

I found this info on another site, basically says the same as posted here
Swim Bladder Disease

Posted by Admin on January 27th, 2009 1 Comment Printer-Friendly
General Information
Swim bladder disease is most often noticed when a fish floats at the of the water, or a fish that stays on the bottom of the tank and doesn’t seem to be able to rise easily . A fish that has normal buoyancy but is laying on one side or the other does not mean it has swim bladder disease, but could have other diseases. The swim bladder is a small epithelium-lined sac in the abdomen and is responsible for maintaining buoyancy in the fish. It has a close association with blood vessels so that gases can move across and in and out of the sac according to the fishes needs. The sac inflates when and if the fish needs to be more buoyant, and it will deflate when the fish needs to be less buoyant.A few different things can cause swim bladder disease.Some of these include, A Virus, Bacterium, And diet.
Diagnosis
Fish that have swim bladder disease appear to have an abnormal swimming pattern, usually with the tail end up. The fish may even float upside down or look to be stuck at the top of the water and unable to swim down, or sometimes its the other way round and they may lie on the bottom of the tank,and then are unable to rise to the surface of the tank. Fish that have swim bladder disease will continue to try and eat,with a normal appetite.The most common cause of swim bladder disease is improper diet. An improper diet can end up leading to intestinal gas or intestinal blockages. Intestinal blockages can irritate the bowel, which gives bacteria or other parasites an entry point where they can cause damage to the fishes swim bladder.Fish that are fed a lot of dried foods, like pellets, are more likely susceptible. This condition is frequently observed in the later stages of Malawi Bloat, which is normally due to an improper diet as well an intestinal irritation.
Treatment
This disorder is due mainly because of an improper diet, a change to their feeding needs should be made. Dried food that contains lots of protein should be kept to a minimum. Pellets and other dense foods should be soaked before feeding or completely removed from their diet. Food contains alot of fiber should be introduced, such foods include zucchini, squash, spinach,lettuce, peas, and grated carrots. If you think that your fish is a victim to a bacterial infection, treat the fish with some sort of medicated food.

Hope this helps, also you should check your water parameters if you haven't yet, levels for ammonia nitrite and nitrates.
 
#8 ·
Thank you, and I am feeding them TetraMin tropical fish flakes and sometimes baby brine shrimp when I get my hands on some. Actually now that you mention it I haven't seen her poop since I got her... She will ONLY eat food off the ground once it sinks. But I wonder what the brown stick like things are growing out of her..
 
#9 ·
That does not sound good, are you able to post a picture of her? Also if you can fill out the following information

1. Size of tank?

2. Water parameters
a. Ammonia?
b. Nitrite?
c. Nitrate?
d. pH, KH and GH?
e. Test kit?

3. Temperature?

4. FW (fresh water) or BW (brackish)?

5. How long the aquarium has been set up?

6. What fish do you have? How many are in your tank? How big are they? How long have you had them?

7. Were the fish placed under quarantine period (minus the first batch from the point wherein the tank is ready to accommodate the inhabitants)?

8. a. Any live plants? Fake plants?
b. Sand, gravel, barebottom?
c. Rocks, woods, fancy decors? Any hollow decors?

9. a. Filtration?
b. Heater?

10. a. Lighting schedule? What lights are used?
b. Any sunlight exposure? How long?

11. a. Water change schedule?
b. Volume of water changed?
c. Well water, tap water, RO water?
d. Water conditioner used?
e. Frequency of gravel/sand (if any) vacuumed?

12. Foods?
How often are they fed?

13. a. Any abnormal signs/symptoms?
b. Appearance of poop?
c. Appearance of gills?

14. a. Have you treated your fish ahead of diagnosis?
b. What meds were used?

15. Insert photos of fish in question and full tank shot if necessary

Read more: http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/...orm-read-before-you-post-61135/#ixzz1Y9p35Nec
 
#10 ·
1. 5 gallons

2. All levels are at 2 or below

3. 82-87

4. FW

5. A few months now

6. 2 fish in total both about 1 inch and they are both BumbleBee Platies

7. Nope

8. a. 2 fake plants

b. gravel bottom

c. none

9. Both

10. 7:00-8:00 AM and 4:00-9:30 PM

No sunlight

11. a. every week

b. 20-30%

c. Tap water with conditioner

d. TetraMin

e. Weekly

12. Twice daily

13. a. Weird stick like/ thorn like brown things protruding from back and side

b. Never seen by me...

c. Fine

14.None

15. Will insert one in a second :) Thank you for your help
 
#12 ·
Just a couple of things for your water parameters ammonia and nitrite should be 0, with a reading of nitrates 20 or below. What type of test kit are you using? Also the other thing is that the temp of your tank is a little on the high side. Do you have your heater set to this temp, or is it this warm because of the temp of the room? If you have your heater set this high you will want to lower it, platys actually appreciate water that is just a tad cooler than what it is now. In the profiles here 76 is the max temp on these guys. Warmer temps will be okay for short periods of time, like in the summer when the outside temps are high, a few weeks. But you do not want to keep them at this temp for long term, higher temps will actually shorten the lifespan of your fish.
 
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