Powder Blue Dwarf Gourami

[Nevakonaza]

Hello people,

i have a few Tropical fish in my tank,well about 5,2 of them are alge eaters.

they all seem fine but im concearned with one,the biggest of them all.

Powder Blue Dwarf Gourami

googled pic

he/she seems to have got realy fat,alot bigger than the googled pic! its around the belly part,its been like this for more than a week now.
is it normal?

he/she still appears to be able to swim okay and is eating food.

ive noticed he/she hangs around the side of my water pump alot,like just resting there near the top of the water and sometimes rests at the bottom on the rocks.

how can i help it?

 

[fmervin]

I'm no expert, but I'm sure the real gurus would ask you about your tank size and the water stats and for how long your tank has been cycling So best they have the information when they get to your post

 

[Nevakonaza]

hi thanks for responce,yeah my tank size is

Lenth - 600mm
width (side of tank) - 300mm
depth - 280mm


i have the water pump that cleans the tank and i also haev the heater set at 28c and is heating the tank to 28c according to my thermometer.

you say water conditions,you mean like that Ph stuff? im not sure? you have to buy some sort of kit for this right?

last time i cleaned my tank was around 3 months ago,but teh water is still quite clean so surely it doesnt need cleaning again?

 

[Gilli]

You need to change at least 30% of your water every week and vac the gravel thoroughly or all the uneaten food and poo make the water quality very bad for the fish. You also need a good liquid test kit and should test your tank once a week to make sure there are no issues that need dealing with.

Read up on tank care here

Weekly tank care

Sounds like he may have dropsy from the poor water quality. You can treat him but they nearly always die

 

[Nevakonaza]

thanks for your advice gilli,so i must change 30%water every week,i didnt know thay

yeah i read that most people even professionals who keep them choose not to treat dropsy because they usualy die shortly after anyway dut to organ failiure ;(

anyway heres some pics of my ill friend i took

http/i18.photobucket.com/albums/b125/sha...sz_PIC_0096.jpg

http/i18.photobucket.com/albums/b125/sha...sz_PIC_0092.jpg

http/i18.photobucket.com/albums/b125/sha...z_1PIC_0093.jpg



as you can see,fat and fins sticking out

http/i18.photobucket.com/albums/b125/sha...sz_PIC_0094.jpg

do you think i should clean out the tank fully with fresh water today or wait for him to die off then clean it? i hear getting some Aquarium sult for tropical fish is good for putting in the fresh clean water for when i do the clean?

 

[MHunt]

Unfortunately it doesn't sound good. Dwarf Gourami's are notoriously succeptible to bacterial infections, usually resulting in dropsy. It's the price we pay for the bright coloured strains that we get these days. Line breeding has bred these weaknesses into the fish so unfortunately it was probably a matter of time.

All i can suggest is keep it comfortable as possible, and move out into a hospital tank if possible so you can treat more locally if you want to. Have you noticed anythink like an ulcer on it's side before it got to this point as that's normally a sign that the fish is on it's way.

 

[Nevakonaza]

just an update,she passed away last night

i actualy took her out of the warm tank and placed her in a small unheated tank i had so obviusly it would kill her anyway because the water was not warm enough but i suppose thats better than her suffering with dropsy.