Is my catfish choking?

[Damiri]

We have two four line catfish in our tank (120 gallons, several mollies, tetras, cories, gouramis and plecos). They are full size now, about 6-7 inches. In hindsight, it was a mistake to get them, which we learned when our neon tetras disappeared but since then they seemed not to bother any other fish. I fed them pellets and bloodworms so they werent hungry. However.... Wednesday evening i came from work to find that one catfish swallowed one of my young cories. There was still a tail sticking out from its mouth. I assumed it will just finish swallowing poor cory overnight but as of this morning the tail is still sticking out and the catfish seems to be breathing more heavily - unless its my imagination. Can it be choking? Was the cory too big for it to swallow and it got stuck in its throat? Can i do anything to help?

 

[Baker]

Corydoras have spikes in their pectoral fins that they stick out in a defensive manner when threatened. Its harmless to get pricked as a human but these spikes can kill other fish easily. Hopefully you can get the Cory unlocked from its throat but it doesn't sound good for your catfish right now. You may need to try manually removing the Cory as it's probably speared between the sides of its mouth

 

[Damiri]

Thank you. I was afraid it would not be good news. I will try to catch the catfish tonight and see if i can somehow dislodge the cory without harming the catfish any further. If it doesnt work I wonder if i should euthanize the catfish so it doesnt suffer. I feel so bad for it.

 

[Baker]

I know they sell anesthetics at some LFS for when's fish needs to be handled for things like surgery or tube feedings, you might be able to try this. Some people have recommended turning the fish upside down and gently trying to shake the Cory loose but I've never tried this personally so I cannot guarantee it will work obviously.
You might be able to open his mouth if it's big enough and gently wiggle the Cory. There's a possibility the Cory is still alive so be careful. If you're too traumatized at the thought of manual removal you could just euthanize. Either way looks like you have a tough decision to make. I hope the best for you

Edit: if you haven't already you should remove the other cories just to be safe. It's possible these catfish were just waiting to be big enough to prey on the cories

 

[Damiri]

i will stop by my local store to see if they have the anesthetic. That sounds like a good idea. We were actually trying to re-home the catfish because after the neon tetras were eaten i started to worry about some smaller fish we have in the tank. We just found them a place. Hopefully I can save this cat and both can go to their new home this weekend.

i googled and found stories of oscar fish getting a cory stuck in their mouths with some instructions of how to remove it. I will check them out to see if some of it might be helpful.

 

[Munroco]

If the cory is dead it might be possible to cut it into bits with some very small sharp scissors

 

[Damiri]

So my catfish had a happy ending We caught him and during the "surgery" discovered that most of the cory has already been digested but the spike it had in its fin was stuck in the catfish's gill. We managed to cut what was left of the cory into pieces and then pull the spike out. I moved the cats into some temporary housing with melafix and in a few days they will be going to their new home. I am happy it ended well (besides the poor cory) because those catfish are so beautiful. I enjoyed watching them.

 

[Baker]

Excellent job, glad you made the best of a bad situation

 

[thrujenseyes]

So my catfish had a happy ending We caught him and during the "surgery" discovered that most of the cory has already been digested but the spike it had in its fin was stuck in the catfish's gill. We managed to cut what was left of the cory into pieces and then pull the spike out. I moved the cats into some temporary housing with melafix and in a few days they will be going to their new home. I am happy it ended well (besides the poor cory) because those catfish are so beautiful. I enjoyed watching them.

Omg you should get some sort of medal for bravery and heroism!!!
You did an EXCELLENT job!
Such great advice given here (that I wasn't aware about the cories) and you took it and researched further and did what you had to do!
And it turned out in your favor! And the catfish!
Rip little Cory, but lesson learned!
Great Job!

 

[Damiri]

Haha... thank you! I am glad it ended well because i was expecting the worst. And i guess everything is an opportunity to learn something new. I had no idea that cories have those spike in their fins, for example...
And I also learned that catfish can growl. When i fished out the other cat and was pulling it out of the net it growled at me!! Pretty loud too!! I was so startled i almost dropped the fish lol..

 

[thrujenseyes]

Haha... thank you! I am glad it ended well because i was expecting the worst. And i guess everything is an opportunity to learn something new. I had no idea that cories have those spike in their fins, for example...
And I also learned that catfish can growl. When i fished out the other cat and was pulling it out of the net it growled at me!! Pretty loud too!! I was so startled i almost dropped the fish lol..

Goooood Lord! That's terrifying!
This certainly is the hoby that we NEVER stop learning with!

 

[Crystal90]

This is quite a story. I have no idea what 'line catfish' are. Can someone post a picture for me?

 

[Damiri]

This is my four line catfish when it was still small. I loved to watch them.

 

[Crystal90]

Thanks for posting a picture. I'm always interested in the different types of fish that people keep. I learn something every day,