YWG bloating and lethargy

[trapphd]

Hi all, a bit of a distressing sight in my tank today. My 6 year old yellow watchman goby has been out in the open (highly unusual for him to venture beyond his caves and rockwork) and his stomach is very distended. There’s no reason to suspect any overfeeding issue as my routine has been consistent. I haven’t introduced anything new, either — and my bonded clown pair are doing just fine, as are all of my CUC.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Hi all, a bit of a distressing sight in my tank today. My 6 year old yellow watchman goby has been out in the open (highly unusual for him to venture beyond his caves and rockwork) and his stomach is very distended. There’s no reason to suspect any overfeeding issue as my routine has been consistent. I haven’t introduced anything new, either — and my bonded clown pair are doing just fine, as are all of my CUC.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Is the swelling mostly symmetrical left and right, or is it more evident on the left side as in the photo?

If symetrical, this could be egg binding. If it is one-sided, it could be a tumor.

Here is a post I made about abdominal swelling in fishes:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/causes-of-abdominal-swelling-in-fishes.1098720/

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hi all, a bit of a distressing sight in my tank today. My 6 year old yellow watchman goby has been out in the open (highly unusual for him to venture beyond his caves and rockwork) and his stomach is very distended. There’s no reason to suspect any overfeeding issue as my routine has been consistent. I haven’t introduced anything new, either — and my bonded clown pair are doing just fine, as are all of my CUC.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

I too believe this may be an egg bound fish while they do tend to overeat

 

[trapphd]

Is the swelling mostly symmetrical left and right, or is it more evident on the left side as in the photo?

If symetrical, this could be egg binding. If it is one-sided, it could be a tumor.

Here is a post I made about abdominal swelling in fishes:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/causes-of-abdominal-swelling-in-fishes.1098720/

Yes, it appears symmetrical! Thank you for the quick reply.

I too believe this may be an egg bound fish while they do tend to overeat

Interesting! I always assumed it was a male lol. Hopefully her(?) condition improves on its own then soon.

 

[trapphd]

And she(?) turned around so here’s a shot from the other side (in natural light).

 

[vetteguy53081]

And she(?) turned around so here’s a shot from the other side (in natural light).

Looks to be Egg bound for sure

 

[trapphd]

48 hours later (and ~72 hours total), still kicking. Pretty much stationary in the sandbed corner but still has some color. Ate a couple of flakes earlier as well. Not sure if she’ll be able to pull through but there hasn’t been a precipitous decline like I may have guessed a couple of days ago?

 

[trapphd]

While the distended abdomen hasn’t improved (at least visually), no real signs of distress today. Still out on the sandbed much more than usual but, for the most part, perched in a steady position when doing so. I don’t know if she(?) is out of the woods or if it will take days/weeks to show progress, but I’m at least encouraged that it’s been a few days now and things haven’t deteriorated.

 

[trapphd]

Over a week since my initial observation (i.e., not sure when the onset of the problem actually was), but still kicking!