# help upside down rainbow fish



## freshyleif (Jan 9, 2008)

As the title says one of my boesmani rainbows is resting on the bottom of the tank upside down::noidea:. I don't know what to do all my other fish are fine. please any suggestions are welcome I really don't want to lose this fish.


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

I am afraid that by the time they are upside down they will not make it. 
Are there any other symptoms? And are any of the other fish showing these symptoms?

Color Changes: Rainbow fish normally change their colors, especially the males, but if they change to looking sort of dull, and not showing off, or it it is a female that is not the right color... 

Injuries: Open wounds or dark bruising, torn fins or other injuries. 

Bloated/fat or skinny... 

Was the fish eating and behaving normally and suddenly got sick? Or has it been coming on for a while?

Other things that may help? 

Can you also tell us more about your tank? How long has it been set up? What are the other fish in there? How often do you do water changes? How long have you had this fish? 

What are the most recent water test results? 

Have there been any changes to the tank recently? New fish or decorations added? New equipment?


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## freshyleif (Jan 9, 2008)

Thanks for the response Diana. Sorry I kind of answered in random order. I have had the fish for about 1.5 yrs and until this morning it was fine. The tank is well established 2+ yrs. No other fish show any abnormal behavior. The rainbow looks fine otherwise just upside down and gasping some and not moving when I pick it up and hold it upright in my hand in the tank. The tank has pressurized CO2 which I shut off but it has not made any difference. I have not tested the water but that is a good idea I will now. I had been reducing my fertz because I have been reading Niko and Philosophos's posts on water nutrients and where the target levels are. That led me to test and find out I had way more nitrates than I wanted.That was about a month ago. I have not added any new fish or plants or changed any thing else recently. Usually the black mollies are the ones who show stress when things get out of balance but they are fine. I am off to test the water but I think it may be to late for this guy. I just hope it doesn't affect the other fish.


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

Well, it is a mystery then, what has happened to this one Rainbow. Sounds like you are on top of things with the tank, but yes, checking the parameters is always a good idea. Not impossible (though odd) for one fish to be so severely affected by something and the others showing no hint of a problem that ought to affect them all. This suggests that it is an individual problem with that fish, not a tank-wide issue.


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## queijoman (Jun 23, 2008)

It is possible that your rainbow ate something too big. I lost a rainbow that way, it had half of it's meal still in its mouth when I found it.


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