Help!

[corylover5]

I have a blue Moscow guppy who I have had for 3.5 months the now. He was always healthy and swimming around my 29 gallon tank with my other livebearers. Two days ago he started swimming at the top of my tank with his tail drooping. I have no idea what's wrong with him. He still eats but he doesn't swim around my tank anymore. He just stay at the top. He isn't gasping for air and he has no sympthoms of any illness other than staying around the top and his tail drooping. My water parameters are 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and 8 nitrate. I thought maybe he was being bullied so I sat at the back of my room and watched for half an hour. He wasn't nipped or chased by any fish. He just swam at the top of my tank in the same spot while my other fish were completely normal. His poop is normal too. It isn't white or stringy. I am really confused as to what is wrong with him. None of my other fish are sick or acting sick. @emeraldking @Colin_T Maybe you can help? Thanks in advance.

 

[corylover5]

I know in the pictures my water looks greenish brown but in real life it is clear with a slight amount of tannins from some driftwood I added in on August second. I'm not sure why but when I zoom in a lot with my phone it makes things look off colored.

 

[corylover5]

Please anyone who has any idea of what to do to help my guppy. He seems so weak and I really don't want to lose this little guy. I love him and all my fish so much. Please help!

 

[JuiceBox52]

Do a large water change. That's all I can advise at the moment. Good luck!

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I'm sorry, I hadn't seen this. Do you have a quarantine tank on hand and cycled? I would go straight to quarantine and Colin's salt treatment method, to try to help him with whatever he's struggling with while we search for answers. If you can't quarantine, what else is in the same tank with him? Anything that would struggle with salt?

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Copied from one of @Colin_T 's posts;
"add 2 heaped tablespoons of rock salt for every 20 litres (5 gallons) of tank water. Keep the salt in there for 2-4 weeks. When you do water changes during this time, add salt to the new water before adding it to the tank so the salinity (salt level) in the tank remains stable."

Remember to use rock or aquarium salt, not normal table salt. It's worth doing daily water changes, and re-dosing the salt to the same ratio for the water you're replacing. Keeping the water as clean as possible by doing the daily changes will remove a lot of bacteria and fungus from the water, and any substrate vac-ing will help remove any worms or eggs the salt helps shed.

Even if the salt doesn't cure what's wrong with him, and it very well might since salt has anti-fungal, anti-bacterial and anti-parasite properties, there's a good chance it'll buy him some time until we find out what is wrong.

 

[corylover5]

Thanks for The replies. I had done a 75% water change 2 days in a row and it didn't help him.

I tried placing him in a 5 liter bucket with 2 teaspoons of aquarium salt and an air stone. I did 75% water changes daily adding in 1 teaspoon of aquarium salt each time.After 3 days of no improvment he started lying on his side at the bottom of the bucket. I got scared and put him back in my 29 gallon. This is him now.

 

[seangee]

I tried placing him in a 5 liter bucket with 2 teaspoons of aquarium salt and an air stone. I did 75% water changes daily adding in 1 teaspoon of aquarium salt each time.After 3 days of no improvment he started lying on his side at the bottom of the bucket. I got scared and put him back in my 29 gallon. This is him now.

I can't tell what the lumps are around his organs. I would suggest separating him though. If it is parasitic or some kind of infection and he dies in the tank the other fish will eat him - and that means a good chance of infecting the rest of your fish

 

[corylover5]

I just tried feeding him and he will eat. He ate some fluval bug bites. I noticed he is swimming wierd. He rocks back and forth like he's unbalanced when he swims.

 

[corylover5]

I can't tell what the lumps are around his organs. I would suggest separating him though. If it is parasitic or some kind of infection and he dies in the tank the other fish will eat him - and that means a good chance of infecting the rest of your fish

I looked at the pic I just posted and he looks lumpy in the picture but in real life he has a normal stomach. The picture was a little blurry so it looks like his stomach is lumpy.
He looks normal in real life though.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

He is a very poorly fish. Is there any chance your parents would help you get a little quarantine tank? A second hand one with a filter and heater would work great, would just need a bleach clean before use in case there was any disease in that tank before you got it. Having a quarantine tank on hand that is filtered and heated can help a lot in crises like this, because as Sean said, you don't want to risk spreading whatever it is, and if he's having trouble with his swim bladder, a tank you can keep him in with a low water level would work better than a bucket.

Do you have any medications in stock?

 

[corylover5]

That's a good idea but unfortunately I'm not allowed to get anymore fish tanks. I do have a few medications but I don't think they are any good. I have Melafix, Ich-X, Super Ich cure, and I have aquarium salt.

 

[JuiceBox52]

The only decent one is aquarium salt, and you already tried that?

 

[corylover5]

Yes, I tried aquarium salt for 3 days with no changes in his behaviour. I moved him back in the bucket with 2 teaspoons of aquarium salt again just now.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Is there any news? How is the poor little guy doing now?