seahorsecrazy Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 Anyone have any explaination? Two of my seahorses have started to get really skinny, fast,( over about a week) and are now hanging upside down. One is pointing his nose to the top of the tank and leaning over backwards, the other is hanging literally upside down. The only thing I have changed is added my sole surviving baby seahorse (just over 1 inch) and therefore adding bbs daily and I did a partial water change on Sunday, but they were kind of looking a little off colour, so I thought they must need new water, but this hasnt really changed things. I took out some of the plants that had started to die off thinking that the water was getting fouled, but that hasnt changed much either. Not really sure, but they are not too keen on the food over the last two days, and yet it is the same food I have been feeding for the last couple of months, so I think I can eliminate the food as a problem. Ideas? One keeps rubbing herself over all the liverock as though she has 'passengers' but I cannot see anything on her. I am at a loss. Their colours are still fairly good, slightly softened in tone, but nothing alarming. I think I am clutching at straws here, but hey, anything to give someone an idea of the cause. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 at least 50% waterchanges with fresh NSW may help take out any dying weed etc are you getting shells in their off the BBS? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 Done all that, bar the 50% change. Done about a 30% change. Only using bbs from the second tank and filtering off the bbs when they come to the top of the tank in the lights - no eggs in the main tank where the horses are. Will do another change tomorrow and see if that helps. Checked the new water and it seems to be OK, so no worries there. Maybe they are just having a weird phase? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 post some photos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 are the floaters male or female? are they rubbing themselves with their tails how are other horses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 One male pointing upwards and one female hanging upside down. they have been rubbing themselves with their tails, but not very often, or intensly. The others are fine - or at least seem that way, infact one of the males has an unhealthy like for my hand and will not let me go if I put my hand into the tank. He even drops everything he is doing when I go near the tank and he parades himself for me... I think he likes me too much :oops: I have had a fine cover over the filter pick up for the last week since I put my baby in the tank to make sure she doesnt get sucked up the filter, but I have been changing that every couple of days. Do you think maybe the gauze is stopping the filter working properly? There seems to be ample water coming thru the inlet pipe, so there is plenty going thru the filter I would think... There is a little bit of debris on the bottom of the tank, but I am vacuuming that every other day to make sure the tank stays clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 strange that the youngster is fine i have seen similar in young horses i have raised ingestin brine shrimp eggshells an not digesting them how is weight on other horses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 The new baby is fine - chasing bbs like it was superman!! Flying all over the place. The adults are a little lighter than usual but not anything I would be worried about. Just the two that are acting unusually that are skinny. The pipefish is still fine too. Tom has just mentioned that he thinks they are breathing alot more rapidly than usual, I honestly havent noticed, they are breathing faster than usual - all of them. Water problem? Surely the baby would be having problems if that was the case... Trying to get pics for you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 do another water change is the water fresh good disturbance of the surface baby may have lower oxygen requirement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 http://www.seahorse.org/library/article ... uide.shtml Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 Finally got some pictures He is the stargazer, who looks so far upwards he even starts to fall backwards, and is in this positions for several minutes at a time. My upside down female... She has lost alot of weight over this last week and is hanging upside down all the time now, even when on the bottom of a plant, she is lying on the ground rather than upright Quick pic of my babies, (before I accidently plugged in the filter instead of the air and turned them into burley!!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 turn the lights off and see what they do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 No lights doesnt seem to make any difference. What about air pressure and weather patterns? We have suddenly had a change in the weather and even my ears have been popping yesterday and today with the air pressure. Could that affect them? I know fish go into a feeding frenzy just at the onset of a storm (best time to go fishing), what about horses? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 there is a possibility that air pressure could affect there swim bladders Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 We have suddenly had a change in the weather and even my ears have been popping yesterday and today with the air pressure. Could that affect them? i highly doubt it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 you may as well set up a hospital tank and try treating the 2 horses maybe acriiflavine and meth blue for starters and see if that has an effect Acriflavine is useful for the treatment of open wounds, external protozoan infections and skin parasites, and the control of Columnaris bacterial infections (Flexibacter sp.). Consider using it when seahorses show the following symptoms: increased respiration, loss of normal body color, scratching themselves with their tails or scratching or on objects; lethargic behavior, randomly distributed powdery or dust-like spots on their body, having a yellowish cast (Oodinium); frayed fins, body lesions with reddish color and diffuse white areas (Flexibacter). Methylene blue also transports oxygen and aids breathing. It facilitates oxygen transport, helping fish breathe more easily by converting methemoglobin to hemoglobin -- the normal oxygen carrying component of fish blood, thus allowing more oxygen to be carried through the bloodstream. This makes it very useful for treating gill infections, low oxygen levels, or anytime your seahorses are breathing rapidly and experiencing respiratory distress. It is the drug of choice for treating hypoxic emergencies of any kind with your fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 upside down has passed away, but the stargazer is still going. He is really hungry and I am feeding him extra by hand, but the others are still ok. I will try the methyl blue today and see what happens. Thanks guys all suggestions appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 27, 2010 Report Share Posted April 27, 2010 have you got acriflavine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2010 Sorry LA, didnt get back to the computer until now. no I havent,and the vet didnt have any methyl blue, I will try again in the morning. Have done another water change, this time 50% and gave the tank an extra clean to remove the red/green algae-like deposits (which are extremely hard to remove) The stargazing male is looking a little better today though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 28, 2010 Report Share Posted April 28, 2010 keep up the water changes may help they have a small throat and may have a restriction, if your lucky it may pass i see that stiff posture in youngsters i have raised when the food is too big or not being able to digest it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2010 Thanks for the help - I am not giving up. I am determined to get it right eventually. :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted April 28, 2010 Report Share Posted April 28, 2010 i know how determined you can be Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2010 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seahorsecrazy Posted April 30, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 30, 2010 Have not as yet been able to get hold of either products. I have ordered some from the vets. The SH's are still doing OK, and are for some reason only feeding from my hand, not hunting for the frozen food. Baby SH is hunting well, and the bbs are thriving in the other tank. Their breathing is still fairly fast, although not as bad as the other day. It seems the extra water change is helping. I will do another change tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djsurfs Posted April 30, 2010 Report Share Posted April 30, 2010 hmmm, sorry I don't have much useful advice on this one! very odd... it seems as if their equalibrium is lost!? My SH's have hung upsidedown quite often and happily, but that is just when they are hunting and wanting to check every nook & cranny! You boy does look awfully skinny, but that is great he is taking food from you so if handfeeding is what it takes, keep up the good work *if he will eat it, a mash of shrimp with added fishoil & spirulina could help fatten him up I would normally say a FW dip would not go astray for itching/signs of external parasites, but in this case I think it could add too much stress. OH! hey, I just remembered, if you are putting brineshrimp in the tank, you could very well be introducing ******* (oh crap i just forgot the name,*little microscopic jellyfish*) that can cause irritation. LOL, edit to add: that would be Hydroids stinging from the hydroids could be very irritating Also, scratching can also indicate discomfort due to ammo/nitrIte spikes... So, meth blue would be quite good to ease the dicomfort of either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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