# Help Asap Emergency ..16" Dying Right Now



## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

hi guys my 16" rhom flipped out two times hard this morning and he hit his head (mouth) pretty hard .and scratched up on the side...he hasn't been eating all that good lately either but that just how he is ..eat a lot for a period of time and eats little for a few weeks... now he looks weak and dying ... like his head is higher than his tail kind of look. im really scared ..I turned up the bubbler in the tank and air flow... he lives in a 220g .... what else can I do ? should I change some water ?? I had him for a long time ......

PLEASE HELP ME ... Ill check this thread every 5 mins. THANK YOU


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

What are your water parameters? (Nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, temp PH etc?)

I will try to check back in shortly as I am at work


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

don't know.. but I just drained some water and added fresh water and prime.

sometimes now he goes upside down and comes back ..... hes really powerful and I think he hit himself pretty hard .....


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## Titus (Dec 1, 2014)

What did he hit? I'm here with you but I don't really have experience to help, I kinda know how it is when you feel helpless and just watch him struggle.

Did you change something? You said that he's been with you for a long time, when did this start? Changed diet? Test tap and tank water if too see if there were any changes. Try to remember everything you did lately so we can get a good idea of whats happening. Ægir will help, stay calm and try to write any recent changes and behavior patterns.


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

he hit the glass ... the lid ... the decors ... he being with me for at least 5+ years... I didn't do anything different ...didn't change diet or anything at all... even my tank lights are on timers...


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

oh my god.... he is just laying on the side on the floor now and breathing heavily ... damn it .


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

You need to get a liquid test kit so you know the water params... I would suggest the API Master kit, as its the most affordable and easiest to use

Without knowing the water parameters, not much can be done or speculation made


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## Titus (Dec 1, 2014)

Something must be stressing him out, I guess he isn't trying to scratch himself...that would be pretty obvious, you must have more experience than me but maybe I can help with these dumb questions, fingers crossed !


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

he lives with a bunch of daniels and a gold fish... they all seem fine... ill go get a test kit..... right now it looks like he is not coming back.


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## Titus (Dec 1, 2014)

Maybe he hit so hard that it caused some internal injury. Hope he pulls through !


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## Colty (Sep 25, 2014)

I think your water contains ammonia and nitrate ..change the water ....a 50 % would do good ..

till u down u r nitrite and nitrate level ...

i think he is suffocated with something ....checkmk your water parameters...


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

I did change some water... ill change some more in a sec. but really ... he hit himself in the head really hard..


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

Changing water with out knowing if your ammonia, nitrates or nitrites are high might just cause more stress.. especially if its not temp and PH matched

Even your tap water could be high


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## Titus (Dec 1, 2014)

Ægir said:


> Changing water with out knowing if your ammonia, nitrates or nitrites are high might just cause more stress.. especially if its not temp and PH matched
> 
> Even your tap water could be high


Exactly, and if the other fish are fine I don't think water needs changing, and you've done that already, it must be something with him. Quoting Ægir because my tap water has nitrates, backing up what he said, without a test kit we're shooting blanks.


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

on my way to get a test kit and some more prime... he just laying on his side only now ....ill be back in a bit


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## Titus (Dec 1, 2014)

Good choice !


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## SKurj (Jan 11, 2015)

Tossing this out there.. any stray voltage in the tank? What made him dash into the glass in the first place?

Too much prime can drop the oxygen levels..


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## Titus (Dec 1, 2014)

SKurj said:


> Tossing this out there.. any stray voltage in the tank? What made him dash into the glass in the first place?
> 
> Too much prime can drop the oxygen levels..


Good point.


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

ive filter blasting from the surface. and a huge bubble head inside. water is fine... he doesn't look good ..doesn't look like he is coming back... ill give him till the morning and see if I should let him rest in peace... he is breathing very shallow now.

its either he blasted his head really hard or he could be old ... I don't know ...this is sad... he is the best p I ever owned too... he always ate from my hand


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

Any luck with the test kit?

If you have a volt meter, you can test for stray voltage pretty easily... Thing is glass is an insulator so typically unless there is a ground probe, or your arm in the tank its isolated.


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

I unplugged the heaters a long time ago after he hit his head.... thanks for all the help guys .... he doesn't look good. ...few more hours ill take him out.. what a sad day


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

Would not let the temp drop, and I also wouldnt give up and take him out until he has totally passed.

Wish ya the best man, I know how bad it sucks


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

ya I aint takin him out ... fk ... Im doing a 30% right now... temp didn't drop much .. I was filling with same temp water.. I might plug 1 heater back after this change

while I wait for water.. ill post some pix of him.


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

As I said before, changing water could be more stress and making things worse...

Unless you have an exact reason for changing it (test kit showing high ammonia, nitrites, etc) I would use caution or SLOWLY add it to the tank to keep from shocking the fish


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

bro... he looks like he is going to die anyway... im just trying something ... im not changing a lot of water .. just a little...

pix are in old to new order

















he has grown abit over the years...... sigh..


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## Brickish (Mar 7, 2013)

not that this is happening with your fish, but my piranha lies on the bottom on his side sometimes throughout the day...to the point where I think he's dead.

he doesn't appear to be breathing or anything.

but when the lighting gets darker, he comes alive and swims around. He REALLY doesn't like the light.


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## SKurj (Jan 11, 2015)

I wonder how many even see 16"... could it be 'his/her time?' ...


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

Its possible... although I have read they can live up to 30 years or more.

I have had my rhom for about 12 years, started at around 1/2"... was around 13" last I checked a year or so ago

Honestly it could be hundreds of things, from internal parasites to something in the tap water.


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

he is gone ..... thanks for the help guys.


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## Titus (Dec 1, 2014)

Sorry for your loss, remember the good stuff !


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## Gigante Pirana (Apr 23, 2004)

Who did you buy this fish from 5 years ago? also sorry about the fish. I thought I was the only person in Ontario that had a rhom 16 inches or above. there appears to be more of us.


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

thanks ... he is acutally 15" ...masured his dead body







I got it from ja'eh... I had many tanks and many p's before... then I got this beast... I just sold all my tanks n got a 220g for him... I thought he was going to grow up with my kid.... sad sad day


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

Sorry for your loss man.

Any smaller ones in the area you could grow out... always wanted a big tank like that to start a smaller rhom and see how fast it would grow with room and a good diet.

Out of curiosity, when you inspected the dead fish did you see anything abnormal? parasites or wounds that might have caused it?


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

im not thinking about getting another fish right now ... not really in the mood.... he looks great even dead ... I know why he passed away exactly.. the other day he hit his head hard at night while the tank light was off ...maybe going after something .. (he lives peacefully with 8 assorted daniels , 1 gold fish , 1 pleco) ... even tho he doesn't eat them but you know how p's are...he goes after it from time to time... he scratched himself on one side and he smashed his head... ever since that day .. he acts alittle more tamed (maybe he was hurt)...and yesterday out of no where he went crazy and smashed into the glass hard 4 to 5 times and almost popped out of the glass lids (after that he started swimming kinda funny) and few hours later he did it again... then I just watched his life slipped away from him slowly..

I believe he mushed up his brain.. I cant believe how sad im over a fish .. its crazy .. he is almost like a dog ... I when toss something across the room for my dogs he will actually go for it.. he chases my dogs... he chases my hand ... he eats from my hand .. he never tried to bite when I clean the tank.... xxxx !


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## bob351 (Oct 23, 2005)

Sucks man, could have been old age... not sure why people think rhoms grow incredibly fast in the wild or that they all grow huge, he could have been imported at 20+ years for all we know.

I have seen piranhas take some serious head shots into glass and other then a little stun they seem fine, although I guess concussion and brain swelling is possible.

Maybe try to get the otolith and ship it to someone who could tell you the age, maybe someone at a university or museum, or frank at opefee.


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

old age is possible .. but I highly doubt it ... he was flawless ..no sign of any aging...


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

sorry for your lost bud!...on the other hand, that's cookie, right!...Kick ass Shar Pei!...one of my favorite dogs of all-time!...


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## DaElongatus (Jul 30, 2005)

!!! how do you know my dog's name !! :O creepy


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## Da' Manster! (Sep 1, 2009)

DaElongatus said:


> !!! how do you know my dog's name !! :O creepy


because you posted him in the "show your pets" section a couple of years ago on this website you jackass!...







...it took me a while but I eventually remembered...unfortunately, that thread got deleted along with many others after Xenon sold the website to Yungster.


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