What Happened To My Tinfoil Barb?

[jazz298]

He was fine when i shut the light off, when I woke up, he was bloated and upside down!

 

[WILDER]

Size of tank in gallon or litres.
How many fish and which type.
Water stats in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.
What do you feed your fish.
Are scales sticking out.

Epson salt baths helps draw the fluids out.
If you can issolate him try a bacterial med.

 

[jazz298]

nah he's already dead, just trying to figure out what happened cuz we lost another one recently, minus the bloated tummy.

they are in a 90 gallon tank with african cichlids, we feed them fish flakes, pellets, shrimp pellets, and algae wafers.
the scales were fine on the first one that died, just tummy bloated like a balloon. I didnt see the second one, my other half, just told me he died and took it out right away but as far as i know there was nothing wrong with the scales.

the stats are fine, my other half checked it and he said they were fine, sorry, I don't have the numbers.

 

[Loony Fish]

weird
maybe the light turning off scared him and he took in a whole bunch of air.
what a mystery...

 

[jazz298]

my thoery on it is, when i put the shrimp pellets in, they gobble them up like there is no tomorrow, before they even soak up any water and expand. so if they eat lots and THEN they expand in the stomach because of the water that it bloats them because they have too much in their tummy.

I'm sure thats really far fetched but has anyone heard of this before?

I've lost 2 and I dont want to lose my last 2!!

 

[nosoup4you]

my thoery on it is, when i put the shrimp pellets in, they gobble them up like there is no tomorrow, before they even soak up any water and expand. so if they eat lots and THEN they expand in the stomach because of the water that it bloats them because they have too much in their tummy.

I'm sure thats really far fetched but has anyone heard of this before?

I've lost 2 and I dont want to lose my last 2!!

Sounds plausible, I guess. Are there ever any shrimp pellets that get away? Uneaten shrimp pellets can muck up your water really quickly...I never feed them.

[Edit] I just did a quick search on the web and found several websites that seem to back up your theory.

 

[jazz298]

no, I only put in a few, for that very reason actually, used to put alot more then i do now and it would make a mess!
they get eaten right away, if its not the barbs then its the cichlids, if its not the cichlids its the syno's

 

[nosoup4you]

It seems that I was editing while you were posting. See above post. Here's a link:

Link

 

[WILDER]

To many dried foods in the fish diet.
Frozen foods and veg.
Peas are good for constipation, frozen daphnia good for digesting a fish food
Best to soak pellets in tank waterbefore you feed.

 

[jazz298]

Well I suppose all I can do is try to soak the pellets first, see what happens with my other 2 barbs.
Not sure what else could cause that, especially since they were perfectly fine when I shut the light off.
I watch the ammonia levels and other levels regularly, and I do weekly water changes, so I know its not my water.

Also, I do feed them more then just what i listed, I put cucumber, and lettuce in the tank as well.
But it seems to be the cichlids that eat those the most, not the barbs

I was also thinking it might be the sand substrate that I have, its just regular sand.
I thought that maybe they were digesting it when they shouldn't be. Would this possibly hurt them too?

 

[WILDER]

I would introduce a more varied diet.
Not sure about the sand thought they would get rid of it through there gills.
Keep a look out for when your fish go to the toilet.

 

[jazz298]

That's what I thought too, but I'm just trying to rule things out of the problem!!

What kind of thing would I look for in the waste?

 

[WILDER]

If fish produce long stringy white poo can be constipation, bacterial infection to internal parasites.
Clear mucas poo can be internal parasites.
Healthy poo should be brown, though it can be red sometimes if you have been feeding blood worms.

 

[jazz298]

Alright. I dont see them poop much, but I will keep my eyes peeled
I don't feed them blood worms because of the cichlids in the tank.

I know they are a schooling fish, will the 2 I have left be okay together, or should I get a couple more?
I don't want unhappy fish!

 

[WILDER]

I would let things settle down before you add and more fish, say 4 weeks.
Good luck.