I have a fish that keeps ending up nose down and tail up, down in rocks or plants. I thought he was dead twice but when I net him, he slowly swims away. I can't imagine anything being wrong in the pond. It has been netted since early September and the plants (there are many) are still growing. It certainly looks like a healthy, natural ecosystem. It is definitely not overstocked and it is well filtered and aerated.
Normal or abnormal winter behavior?
- Thread starter bagsmom
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The second picture is looking down at everyone - still and quiet, near the bottom. The white one is the one acting odd. I just went out again and thought "well, he is dead" and I tried to net him AGAIN. Again, he slowly swam away and put himself nose first in the plant roots. I can't bring myself to throw him out in the woods when he is alive! I guess I will see what he is doing tomorrow - but this has been going on for a few days.
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it happens; sometimes, the end is slow but my money is he won't make it. Sorry. Were it mine, I'd probably net but keep the fish IN the net down low, so when he dies, you don't have to search. If he makes it, the net won't hurt him and you'll see his behavior is normal again. Last spring, coming out of winter mind you, I had a gf that acted like this. I figured it had a bladder problem and I've revived such before. So, I put it in a narrowed container so the fish could NOT turn around nor flip upside down. Took a couple weeks but the fish revived/healed itself and in a month, was back in the pond. Not sure it HAD bladder issues but whatever, it worked. Can't say YOU do this but you could. If you're going to try, keep the water the same temp and slowly slowly warm them both back up inside (I'm assuming you'd take him inside for easy monitoring). Again, seems cruel but it's this or death anyway and I've done this twice in my fish career, both times with success. For my container, I have an unused plexi filter box which is 12 x 4" and I put a separate piece of plexi to narrow this down to approx the fish' girth. I add an airstone (on the other side) and some gravel, a floating plant, etc to give some sense of cover/safety. Then I just watch. I add a bit of food and if no interest within a couple minutes, fish it out and try again the next day. You don't need much and you may have to change out the water. Anyway, just an idea.
