What is this? I have seen a mention of this, but no help on what it is to do. This fish is staying beneath an artificial plant and is acting very territorial. But it isn't the largest in the tank. I'm confused!?!
fat tiger barb with protruding scales?
- Thread starter tigerbarbs
- Start date
Is it dropsy? Usually its not treatable. Very difficult to treat. I never had experience with it. Try searching for something about dropsy.
ok. i was thinking maybe pregnant? didn't know what to do about that either. is this fatal? should i get rid of the fish? is it contagious?
Since you said protruding scales, thats usually associated with dropsy. Why don't you google it or wait for more responses. I'm not aware with dropsy yet.
Dropsy isn't a disease in and of itself. It's more like a symptom of a bigger problem. Maybe a picture of the fish could help someone give a better diagnosis?
It is unlikely that a fish with dropsy is acting territorial, or if it is, that it will continue to do so for long. What do you mean by territorial? Does it chase fish away from its hideout? A sick fish will usually become listless or avoid other fish in the tank.
Do the fish scales stick out a lot, like a pinecone? Or does it just look like a fat/egg-laden fish and the scales are doing the best they can to cover it?
Do the fish scales stick out a lot, like a pinecone? Or does it just look like a fat/egg-laden fish and the scales are doing the best they can to cover it?
he/she was chasing others from its hideout. I put it in a bowl isolated with a teaspoon of salt. it was still eating just not very successfully. The other fish ate the food too fast. It's definitely a pinecone look. Ok, so now I'm kinda accepting that I may lose this fish. My second, maybe even bigger concern is how will I know if the rest of my aquarium is ok. I have a rosy barb with a crooked back/tail. is this a disease or just a deformed fish? It has been like this for a long time and seems otherwise healthy.
The other issue is that we have tried a few other fish over the past month or two. They have died. Symptoms have been sunken in belly and white spots. I'm assuming this was ich. I think one of the new fish we brought (from wal-mart - yikes, I know) brought something into the tank. All sick looking fish are out. non of our fish now seem to have any other symptoms. The only time any of our fish have had a swollen belly is when they eat too much - and then it is only the biggest fish who get to the food the fastest. It always goes away.
In case it helps, it's just a five gallon with a handful of different kinds of barbs.
The other issue is that we have tried a few other fish over the past month or two. They have died. Symptoms have been sunken in belly and white spots. I'm assuming this was ich. I think one of the new fish we brought (from wal-mart - yikes, I know) brought something into the tank. All sick looking fish are out. non of our fish now seem to have any other symptoms. The only time any of our fish have had a swollen belly is when they eat too much - and then it is only the biggest fish who get to the food the fastest. It always goes away.
In case it helps, it's just a five gallon with a handful of different kinds of barbs.
Tiger barbs in a 5g will never work, especially with other fish. They get too big and are just too nippy. The stress will be enough to cause you problems. There is a thread on euthanasia in the article section, you might want to consider it for the sick barb, dropsy is usually not successfully treated. Other than that, you might also consider a larger tank, or returning what you have for some more appropriate fish. Unfortunately I think you will continue to have problems due to the setup alone 