Faran Posted August 10, 2005 Report Share Posted August 10, 2005 Well, yesterday I moved the Congo Tetras into te new breeding tank and thought capturing them went quite well. The room was dark, water lowered and capturing the 10 of them took perhaps 10 minutes. This morning I went to feed the tank and the Leopard Ctenopoma was no where to be seen. I spent some time looking for him and found him hiding at the back of a large resin " tree trunk" that he sometimes calls home. As this was where he usually goes when there's action in the tank, I wasn't too fussed. It wasn't until the afternoon when I looked back in on him that I noticed that he hadn't moved - at all. I looked at the position he was in and noticed that his dorsal and ventral fins were pinched and looked behind the trunk to find the rest of him sticking out of a rather small hole (comparitively). I gently nudged him and got no movement, so I reached behind the trunk and attempted to free him... to find out he was hopelessly stuck. After a frantic dash about the house trying to figure out how to get him out I got a pipe wrench and slowly started breaking apart the resin trunk and eventually freed him. So, he's not looking that great.... definitely weak and pretty traumatised. I've put him in a 40L (45x30x30) hospital tank with his normal water conditions and treated him with Melafix. What are his chances of survival? He's laying on his side on the bottom breathing at a normal rate. Colouration is definitely stressed and his body has been compressed about half a centimeter directly in front of his anus. Fin and scales are damaged moderately, nothing he wouldn't normally get over in an everyday situation. Any advice on what to do that I haven't done would be appreciated. I guess it's now a waiting game. Last question before I go... do you think I should keep the hospital tank dark for him? -A worried papa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted August 10, 2005 Report Share Posted August 10, 2005 Poor fish. Not sure what more you can do for him Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jude Posted August 10, 2005 Report Share Posted August 10, 2005 How is the fish today? Jude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted August 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2005 Breathing shallow, looking pretty gone... don't know if he's going to make it.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted August 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2005 The leopard Ctenopoma passed this morning. Only with us for 2 months, he will be missed, as we brought him out of his shell and he went from being a very shy, reclusive boy to King of the tank with no fears whatsoever. Sorry the picture is so bad... he was always one that was hard to take pix of... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wok Posted August 10, 2005 Report Share Posted August 10, 2005 Condolences BlueandKim However you now have room for more fish :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted August 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2005 There's a few fish that have a certain personality and interact with you as a person. rather than a threat o food source The larger fish - Oscars, discus, arowandas and, well, most cichlids I suppose - are exceptions and I never thought in my wildest dreams that this little spotted oddball would become so dear to me... there's a lot more room in the tank, but just a big hole in my chest after spending so much time becoming friends with this guy and then seeing him slowly go and there not being anything I could do to help him... Thanks for the condolences, though. Feeling better now... still kicking mahself for prolly scarin him into getting stuck tho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jude Posted August 11, 2005 Report Share Posted August 11, 2005 sorry to hear the news Jude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted August 13, 2005 Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Gee, sorry BlueandKim It is so hard to loose a fish...I never thought I could feel that way about a fish...but...anyway really sorry. Is there a more "common" name for that kind of fish? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted August 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Hiya Caper, thanks. The big gaping hole feeling has passed and now the tank just seems awfully empty! They have a "proper" latin name - Ctenopoma Acutirostre - and are called a variety of "common" names. Spotted Climbing Perch, Leopard Fish, African Leaf Fish, and our name for him - Billy Bob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted July 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2006 Just a quick update. Almost a year after losing Billy-Bob #1 we've been lucky enough to track down an adult male and female. These two aren't nearly as reclusive as the original (okay the boy's still a bit shy, but give him time) and they actually seem to tolerate each other. Perhaps we'll have babies some day Sorry about the dirty glass and the "blue-eye" from the flash but after I turned up the lights and cleaned the glass the buy was hiding for the rest of the day. Here's a nice pic of "Angelina" who has been aptly renamed after realizing she's a she and for the curvaceous body Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted July 13, 2006 Report Share Posted July 13, 2006 What a difference clean glass makes! :lol: Lovely looking fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted July 14, 2006 Report Share Posted July 14, 2006 Yay for Billy-Bob and Angelina! You'd better keep the glass clean because you'll have all the women's mags knocking on your door to buy their story! :lol: Angelina certainly is a lovely looking girl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted July 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2006 What a difference clean glass makes! :lol: Lovely looking fish. Thanks Caryl. Yeah, bottom tank was getting a bit spotty after the bloody tank above it kept leaking all over it these last 2 weeks :sigh: Too bad the new male decided I was trying to kill it when I was cleaning the glass and has been lurking in the shadows since... As you can see, the glass on this side is pretty streaky as he got very very irritated when I went over it the first time... Yay for Billy-Bob and Angelina! You'd better keep the glass clean because you'll have all the women's mags knocking on your door to buy their story! :lol: I can see the paparazzi vans congregating at the bottom of my street now! Angelina certainly is a lovely looking girl I'm sure you wouldn't think that if you were a guppy! "Is it just me or is that leaf getting closer.... wait... are those eyes?..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted July 14, 2006 Report Share Posted July 14, 2006 Even when you think the glass is clean you get the photo up on the screen and it has reflected streaks and blobs all over the place! :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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