Losin It

[mbsqw1d]

Is three years a good age for a bronze cory? Looks as though the eldest fish in my tank is on his/her way out. It is spending a lot of time at the surface and seems unable to sink to the substrate (swim bladder issue?) Other than using strong nasty medicine, is their anything else I can do to help it out?

 

[fluttermoth]

Without wishing to sound mean, no, three years isn't a 'good age' for a cory; they should live a lot longer than that; more like 6 to 8 at the very least, I would say.

Sometimes you need to use 'nasty, strong medicine' to save the animal's life, same as you'd give chemotherapy to a kid with luekaemia.

Separate the fish (doesn't have to be in an actual glass fish tank; a plastic storage box or 'tupperware' container would do) with a heater and filter. Keep the water fairly shallow, turn the heat up a bit (to around 80°F/27°C) and add an anti-internal bacterial med; Myxazin is very good.

 

[mbsqw1d]

thanks, think ill have a go at makin a temp hospital, i have the bits and pieces to do it. would u just use an internal parasite med? doesnt it sound like i need a swim bladder medicine?

gutted hes like this after 3 years then if they can make 8... my only consolance is that he was one of my very first tropical fish in my first ever setup so think iv done well to keep him this long. ill try my best with him.

corys are best at lower temps right? and i should NOT add salt?

cheers

 

[fluttermoth]

There are no medicines specifiaclly for swim bladder problems as it's a bit like 'stomach ache' in people; there are all sorts of different causes.

Most are either constipation in fancy goldfish or bacterial in origin. Yes, corys are best at lower temperatures, but a short period at a higher temp won't do any harm and can help with the healing process (ever noticed how hot is in hospitals? Same thing)

Salt can be a really useful med, but not for cories; they're very intolerant of it.

An anti internal beacteria med, plus a few days with no food and then some lightly cooked, shelled peas is your best hope IMO. I hope the little chap pulls through.

 

[Harlequins]

No dont add salt,yes corys do prefer lower tempertures...it may be bacterial or it could be swim bladder,hard to say really,you could try feeding it a cooked de-shelled pea,if its constipated it may show same symptoms has swim bladder,may help to clear it out...

 

[mbsqw1d]

thanks both of you, think i'll try feeding the shelled pea before removing him. He's not in distress, he can still stay upright and swim around, just seems as though he rises unnaturally to the surface most of the time. Hopefully he'll get to eat some pea before the others do!

after some reading, TB is another factor that can effect the swim bladder, I condemned my tank to having TB about a year ago after losing around 5 fish that developed curved spines. I haven't added any fish since and I'm basically waiting for them to die off