Cherry Barb head down

[ET1]

Hello,
One of my female Cherry Barbs has been spending much of her time on one side of the tank in the head-down position. It's been probably 3 or 4 weeks that she's been in this position. She still eats when food comes to that side of the tank and at times mostly when the lights are dimmed I do see her swimming normally but most of the time she is vertical. Her scales and her colour look good. Water tests are normal, temp fluctuates between 76 and 79degrees. Any thoughts?

 

[ET1]

well, now she is spending all her time in this position and spitting food out when she eats. Its got to be a swim bladder problem but I'm not sure what to do for it.

 

[jgulecas]

Both of my Cherry barbs "hang" at about a 45 degree angle when they are not swimming around, and always have.

Are you sure this is not normal behavior?

 

[rodinia]

my gold barbs swim at odd angles too. they always have.

 

[ET1]

Yeh, I thought of that. My cherry barbs do sit at an angle when they are still. This one is straight up and down most of the time now and she seems to have a hard time getting to the bottom to pick at food when she sees there. I'll keep an eye on her and hopefully there is nothing wrong. It is possible she is carrying eggs or constipated?? I fed peas this morning but she didnt eat any that I could see. She had a very very fine thread-like poo about a half inch long this morning.

 

[ET1]

My barb definitely has a swim bladder problem. She cannot swim straight now and spins around upside down. Is there ANYTHING I can do for her? I feel terrible. She can't coordinate her movements well enough to eat. Help!