new plec

[black_ghost]

hey all.

i bought a new plec yesturday and the guy in the fish shop that i always go to said once ive put it in leave it for a few hours with the light off then, put some pleco wafers in to see if it feeds. he said once its feeding regular on pleco wafers it should be fine. so i put him in,went to work,came home a put a few pleco wafers in. i couldnt see him come out for any so i went back down stairs and had a check before i went to bed and as i turned the bedroom light on i noticed him shoot to behind a log in the corner of the tank and when i looked from were he came from theree was a wafer. so i presumed hed been eating in.

the problem this morning this morning was that he was what look like he was sucking on a leaf upside down just off the to of the tank. but when i opened the lid he was just floating upside down.

as soon as i closed the lid he swam to the glass and started sucking the glass. im wandering if he's got that swim bladder problem when you over feed them? i put 4 pleco wafers in last night, as i have a golden sturisoma that eats them, also a goldfish that near enough eats them whole.

im just wondering (and hoping) if he ate a bit too much last night?

cheers all.

phil

[black_ghost]

http://s627.photobucket.com/albums/tt355/phil_clubman/?action=view&current=IMG_0204.jpg



photos are a bit naff, they were taken off my mobile

[R2 Ranch]

Very Nice Pleco!!!! It might take the little fellow time to adjust to his new home...Personally, I would keep watching him, in hopes you might catch him snacking. Good luckthumbs2:

[black_ghost]

cheers!

when they are against the glass are they eating the algie of the glass? or is it best to make sure that hes eating the plec wafers?

hes been making his way around the tank all morning on the glass.

cheers, phil

[R2 Ranch]

If there is algae on the glass then he'll clean it. But you still need to offer some other food products whether it be algae wafers, shrimp pellets and fresh veggies. Also you should have some driftwood in the tank. Plecos need that in their diet.:fish:

[Crispy]

looks like he needs to eat good.. keep your eye on him. fancy plecs need special requirements. I suggest looking it up on planetcatfish.com. Looks like a snowball pleco maybe? like to have well-established tanks for these guys...

[black_ghost]

There is some wood in the tank and plenty of hiding places. I do usually put in a few different foods, pellits, wafers, cucumber for them. I was just a bit unsure why he was upside down this morning?

Yes he is a snowball plec

[Northernguy]

Plecos will hang around upside down all over the tank.They love to eat the algae and gnaw on wood.The food and veggies are best put in at night because they are mostly nocturnal fish.

[korweabo0]

nice looking pleco you have there.

[black_ghost]

hey again all.

my snowball plec is now eating regular. couple more photos,

http://s627.photobucket.com/albums/tt355/phil_clubman/?action=view&current=IMG_0210.jpg

http://s627.photobucket.com/albums/tt355/phil_clubman/?action=view&current=IMG_0209.jpg

phil

[black_ghost]

Hey all again.

Woke up this morning and my snowball plec is floating on the top with a bulging belly.

I put 3 wafers in last night when I went to bed, is it just a case of swim bladder and he'l be ok tomorrow/later on? It's the 2nd time he's been like this so I'm bit worried. Have I fed him too much? I put 3 In because I have a whip tail that eats those wafers and also a goldfish that seams to enjoy them.

I've isolated him in one of this baby nets to stop other fish getting at him.

He's definatly not dead because his mouth is still moving and every so often he tries to swim.

Any advise appreciated!

Cheers, phil

[black_ghost]

well, just woke up and turned the light on. hes died :scry:

gutted

[Bristley]

Sorry to hear that he died, he was a nice looking pleco. You only had him for about a week from what I understand and he was acting like this from the beginning IIRC. It's possible that he was sick/had problems when you bought him and he wasn't gonna make it anyway, but there's no way to know that for certain.

I'd check the water params just to make sure. Also, if everything else (params, etc) is good you can probably take him back to your LFS and get your money back or store credit. Some of the good stores will have a short term garauntee on their fish and will do that for you, especially if you're a loyal customer who gives them lots of business.