What is he doing?

[Glasstapper]

Seriously, I just took a video of my tiger barbs earlier this afternoon, and they were all fine. About 10 minutes ago one of them started doing this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMDsKh48UbM

What's he doing? The others are all fine (they keep coming to check out the camera, as you can see) and sometimes they come near him to swim next to him, but then he doesn't follow them and keeps doing this weird shaking thing.

[cocoa_pleco]

looks like he has shimmy.
quick enough response for ya?
Shimmy is an odd disease and the fish shakes and acts like its swimming in a crazy current. As for how 2 treat it, I think theres shimmy blocks for sale.
Its an odd disease

[jman]

it's odd alright and i think if not treated it can lead to a buldge in the stomach

[Glasstapper]

now leave it up to me to get something odd.

It's just him, though. Wouldn't other fish be doing the same thing?

[cocoa_pleco]

no, the disease singles out just a fish. Its a really weird and I think rare disease.

[Glasstapper]

Well isn't that just awesome. Ok, if he makes it through the night I'll try a shimmy block for him tomorrow. I have to go pick up more silicone anyway. That's a big ole IF, though. Old jack the salvini is already giving him the eyeball, and I'm sure once the lights go out he won't be able to get away.

[crackatinny]

Do you have a breeder net you could put him in overnight?

[Glasstapper]

I don't have a breeder net. He's actually sleeping with the others right now, and the salvini hasn't really tried to pick him off. Hopefully he'll be better in the morning. Maybe he was one of the ones I saw fighting earlier today and he got beat up? I don't know. I'll let you guys know how he is tomorrow.

[cocoa_pleco]

its a really weird disease... maybe its caused by a disruption in the fishes nervous system??????????

[jman]

maybe...? it could be

[Glasstapper]

well, the salvini finally got him. Honestly, I thought this little guy was going to make it. He was still shimmying, but he was at least taking food, and some of the others thought he was showing aggression (you know how they wag their bodies near each other sometimes?) hehe, I think they thought he was showing dominance to them. :)

I found him dead and stuck to the filter intake with quite a few large bites missing out of him. I would say it was the other tigers that snacked on him after he was dead, but these bites missing out of his body were the size of my salvini's mouth.

Just a couple of more days and that salvini will be in his new home. I'll miss him, but it can't come soon enough. The salvini is approaching 5 inches now and his aggression is worse than ever. He's not just chasing the barbs at night anymore. He's doing it all the time now, even in the daytime.

[Abbeys_Mom]

Sorry the little guy didn't make it.