Gouramis looks like a puffer

**higginsoft** · 05-10-2008, 06:06 PM

I have a gouramis (no idea of its actual name, but its reddish-orange) that has started swelling like a puffer. It stays at the top mostly, but it will swim in the upper fifth or sixth area of the tank. It's not dormant, except when I walk up to the tank to feed them, it will usually duck up behind something. It will eat, but not aggressively.

The tank is a 55 gallon community tank with other gouramis, three angel fish, six danios, a few mollies and guppies, red tail shark, clown loach, two kulhii loaches, two ghost cats, a glass fish, a couple of cori's, a pleco (rarely seen), and a peacock eel (rarely seen). I've got them all a couple of months ago, all of them small at the time, none are particularly big yet, but of course they are growing. They all seem fine and healthy.

Nothing seems to be particularly aggressive toward the gouramis, other than maybe this one that is blowing up, which might chase off one of the blue gouramis if it comes in its immediate space.

**cocoa_pleco** · 05-10-2008, 06:09 PM

did you overfeed him?

**Lady Hobbs** · 05-10-2008, 06:14 PM

That's a lot of fish in your tank. Could be the gourami is picked on so not more in the open where they usually are. But I have to agree with cocoa that over-feeding will cause them to become constipated and also worms will cause them to swell up. If he is pooping long, white strings then he has worms. Let the fish go a day once a week and let them clean themselves out.

**duce** · 05-10-2008, 06:34 PM

can u post a pic he may have bloat or as the good lady says

**DragonGoby** · 05-10-2008, 06:43 PM

The other possibility is that it's dropsy...
In this link you'll see some pictures of fish who suffers from dropsy...
Does your fish look like this?

Pictures of dropsy

In any case, do you test your water parameters? Ammonia, nitrites and nitrates?
Did you establish the nitrogen cycle in your tank before adding your fish?

**Wild Turkey** · 05-10-2008, 06:48 PM

It does sound like over-feeding, but theres alot of things it could be potentially. I would look into getting a bigger tank, right now you are stocked to the brim, and the pleco will outgrow that tank himself, eventually it will be difficult for him to turn around unless your tank is a cube or extra wide.