# Swim bladder disease?



## otter (Aug 10, 2012)

Eep my Xray terta is being skittish and he is swimming with his head upwards. 
He seems healthy other than that
I tried to catch him, but he was waay to fast, I was going to quarantine him


Ive never had a fish that had swim bladder! 
Can someone help?


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Well all fish have swim bladders, but we only seem to notice them when something goes wrong. ;-) That being said, tetra are not usually the fish that encounter swim bladder problems. Fancy goldfish are because their warped bodies have warped swim bladders. 

Leave him in the tank. Tetra are not like betta. They can't stand being alone, and putting him in QT might actually kill him. When was the last time you did a water change? What are the parameters of your tank? Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH? How big is the tank? What else lives in there?


----------



## otter (Aug 10, 2012)

monday I did a 10% water change.. he lives in a 55 gallon
nitrites 0
ammonia 0
nitrates.. i dont know :/

my ph is at an extremely high level, because my water is from a well... its 9.

gourami, other varieties of tetra, corys and a loach and a pleco and a female betta


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Nirtrates are rather important as a high concentration of nitrates can cause swim bladder problems. I'd also like to know what other kind of tetra you have. All tetra are schooling fish and need at least 6 of their own species (more if possible). 

You should also increase the amount of weekly water changes. At least 25% is a good starting point.


----------



## otter (Aug 10, 2012)

Thanks. There are 5 X-ray tetra and 3 large ones.. They're red with long fins. I think the name starts with s, I knew it a few days ago because I was reading about them. But theyre mostly red with black fins and have a black stripe through their eye and they're about 2 inches. They seem super happy and have had no problems, them and the gourami get along fantastically, I probably should get more but there are territorial issues with the female Betta so I dont want to over crowd. I want them to have as much room as possible. 
When I move out the female Betta then I may get more, but they really seem fine because they seem really comfortable an aren't scared.


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Would they be serpae tetra by any chance? Click here for a picture Because those can be bad news. They have a nasty reputation for unpredictable behaviour. 

All tetra need to be in groups of 6 or more. Room is not the issue here. The territorial issue with the betta are due to being in small schools. Tetra are naturally aggressive, but with enough of the same species around, the infighting stays in the species. Less than what they need, and they will turn on other fish in the tank. Having less than 6 stresses them and the other fish out. Fish aren't like dogs or cats; they can't communicate stress as well. I guarantee there is aggression in that tank. You just can't see it. This one x-ray tetra's behaviour is a manifestation of his stress. I highly suggest you read this article: http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/freshwater-articles/stress-freshwater-aquarium-fish-98852/


----------



## otter (Aug 10, 2012)

yes! they are serpae! thank you! 
I really don't want to add anymore fish with the female betta because when I added the xray tetra I noticed quite a bit of tension between the gourami and serpae. The female betta annoys them all I can tell, and I don't want to freak them all out even more by adding new fish, when the female leaves in 2 weeks or so I will totally get more, but its a tricky situation at the moment. I don't have anywhere to put the female except for a jar but thats even worse! So when I get my sorority set up, then she will leave and I will get more serpae and corys! 

The serpae arent seeming to cause any problems though which I am glad about, I thought that there would be but the most tension is between the gourami and betta because... theyre both top feeder fish and of the same.. family I think? maybe genus I have no clue, but that seems to be the only problem and there isn't too much fighting either, so I am glad. Hopefully keeping the betta in there for 2 more weeks wont damage anything. 

Thanks so much though


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

The gourami and the betta are of the same family. It not recommended to put them together for the reasons you have seen. They get aggressive with each other. If you're really worried about it, I would put the betta in breeding box. Some are mesh and some are plastic, but they sit on the inside of the tank where the betta will be in warm clean water, but she won't be able to interact with the other fish. 

Top Fin Breeders - PetSmart This is the one I have. I love it because it enabled me to temporarily put betta in tanks where they normally wouldn't get along with everyone (such as in a community with gourami). They even come with tops to prevent jumping. Just remove all of that stuff inside, and they're pretty roomy.


----------



## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

It's also possible they could be Red Phantom Tetra. Just a thought since you say they aren't causing problems.


----------



## otter (Aug 10, 2012)

Thank you! That seems perfect! when I go to the store I will pick one up since I need one anyways.


----------

