Loaches Online Forum

Hi Im hoping someone can help. A colleague at work has a sick loach suffering from a swollen belly and swollen genitalia. He has two in a community set up. He described his fish as listless and uninterested. Im sorry I dont have more information as it is not my tank and my fish keeping skills are limited to many years ago (rabbits and spaniels however Im your girl !!!). But as I wouldnt want to hear of anything ill and suffering Id like to help. Any ideas???

Sounds like an internal bacterial problem to me. Wait till the experts sign on later tonight.

Hi lucycat,

I'm sorry to say that it is nearly impossible to diagnose the problem based on the limited information you've provided so far.

is there any way you could direct your friend here? Diagnosing from a distance is really just a guessing game without detailed information and observations from the fish keeper. And a picture is worth a thousand words.

if your friend cant get to the internet quickly, could you ask for as much info as possible?

things like;

tank size
water change regime
water quality
other fish in the tank
feeding

as some examples