# Morbidly Obese Otocinclus



## speedie408 (Jan 15, 2009)

Nice!! When is his due date?


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## waterfaller1 (Jul 5, 2006)

In my experience they die, it is an IP.{internal parasite}


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## Esox lucius (Feb 17, 2009)

waterfaller1 said:


> In my experience they die, it is an IP.{internal parasite}


jeez talk about a downer


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## lovingHDTV (Oct 15, 2008)

I've had mine get like that with constipation and one day you get a big blow out and they are skinny again.


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## wkndracer (Mar 14, 2009)

Not every 'over eating' fish is sick. Juvenal angels I've had would look like they ate a marble. I've got 'fat albert' otto's too. Zero losses to date. Some critters just won't push away from the dinner plate. Kind a like all goldfish.


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## rasetsu (Oct 11, 2007)

waterfaller1 said:


> In my experience they die, it is an IP.{internal parasite}


Not here. They get fat, poop all day the next, and go back to normal size, and get fat again.


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## binders (Mar 22, 2009)

Let us know how he fairs.


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## rich815 (May 21, 2008)

My suspicion is ill also. Particularly if his mates are not as fat too in the same environment.... :-(


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## rasetsu (Oct 11, 2007)

Not enough light to see if there are eggs in that one or not, but if it's a female with eggs AND she's fat, they can get this plump and be healthy.


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## Tex Gal (Mar 28, 2008)

I guess we'll all know soon enough. That sure is FAT!


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## Superedwin (Jan 19, 2009)

Very nice Otto that sure is one fat Otto, just make sure if he/she is doing well and digesting his/her food!


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## requiem (Oct 25, 2008)

side question here - I thought Ottos only ate green algae, not diatoms? Mine certainly seem to ignore all the diatoms and black algae, only munching on the green fuzz on random rocks...?


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## o snap its eric (Jan 12, 2004)

ottos will eat any soft algae. They are known for eating green soft algae and brown algae.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

That's not a gravid female, if so the belly would be yellow and you could see the eggs.

I agree- there's something wrong. That fish is too bloated.


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## organic sideburns (Dec 22, 2005)

waterfaller1 said:


> In my experience they die, it is an IP.{internal parasite}


haha debby downer!


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## Esox lucius (Feb 17, 2009)

lauraleellbp said:


> That's not a gravid female, if so the belly would be yellow and you could see the eggs.
> 
> I agree- there's something wrong. That fish is too bloated.


Well it has been that big for a while, weeks or more. No sign of distress or any other symptoms that would point to disease or IPs. It eats really well, I will keep you all updated... but I must say this thread is depressing overall


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## waterfaller1 (Jul 5, 2006)

Listen, you can take it as a downer or depressing..but wouldn't you rather know, and know there's something you can do about it, than watch the poor fish die? It may not be too late to safely treat that fish for IP's. I have been told by several sellers who *do* treat their fish on arrival, that otos are notorious for IP's. That may be why many of them do not make it, most places don't treat.
One thing you should understand about things like ich, flukes,internal parasites, etc...
Fish live normally in the wild with these, it's only when the fish gets stressed{ie: handled, bagged, shipped, etc} that these parasites become a problem. They take advantage of the fish's weakened immune state, and multiply.


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## Aquarist_Fist (Jul 22, 2008)

I have two otos that are fat like the one in the picture. Both have been like this for more than 6 months, their buddies are much skinnier - some of them too skinny.

However, I have never lost any one of them, and they seem happy and healthy. So I decided not to worry about them.


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## fishme (Feb 10, 2009)

If your oto doesn't have a parasite, he must be one happy fish. Of course, my oto's are very happy with the amount of algae in my tank!


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## inkslinger (Dec 28, 2003)

I have 6 otto's and 4 are as fat as in the pic , I haven't lost any yet.

:fish1:


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## Voozle (Mar 22, 2009)

lovingHDTV said:


> I've had mine get like that with constipation and one day you get a big blow out and they are skinny again.


You should try feeding it prunes . Waterfaller, do you know of any way to test for IPs before treating? It sounds like that might not be the case, and it would be shame to put it through the added stress of the treatment process if it's really just carrying a little extra baggage.


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## rich815 (May 21, 2008)

An oto like that is not normal. Some say their's are just as fat. Where are the pics?


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## binders (Mar 22, 2009)

How is the fat guy doing? Any updates?


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## waterfaller1 (Jul 5, 2006)

Voozle said:


> Waterfaller, do you know of any way to test for IPs before treating? It sounds like that might not be the case, and it would be shame to put it through the added stress of the treatment process if it's really just carrying a little extra baggage.


No way to really test. Rather, anyone that is really good with fish..like take Frank at Frank's Aquarium for example~he knows what fish are _likely_ to have certain IP's. So he just goes ahead and treats the fish when they come in, so he knows they are good to go for his customers.
One thing many do not realize about parasites and fish. Parasites normally live with fish..period. Particularly some more than others. It is when fish are handled, stressed, that the parasites that normally live in and on fish pose a threat to the fish's health. The fish gets stressed and his immune system is suppressed. This is an opportunity for the parasites to multiply to proportions where they can cause problems, and eventually death. Some fish can handle the stress of being handled better than others. It's what we generally term as "hardy fish". Some just don't, it's the way it is. Heheh..just noticed I basically posted what I said above. Well there,I said it again..


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

That's interesting info, Carole. I always add otos in groups of 5 or more, they get quarantined for a long time at my local LFS and also here, but in every tank they always dwindle to 2, then 1 (1 still existing in each tank). I think I'll have to try treating for parasites right away from now on, see if it gives me any luck. My only other suspicion is starvation, I don't add veggies or wafers as often as I should, but some tanks are riddled with soft algae and otos have green guts.

People commonly say otos are just famous for dying for no reason, but there has to be a reason, and a parasite makes a lot of sense, especially in my experience where it takes months for them to slowly dwindle in numbers, no fast die offs.

That's a fat oto, Esox. Incidentally, a few of mine in the last exodus were that fat every now and then. Knowing now that I've lost another batch, I would personally quarantine him, just to lessen the risk of losing the rest. Good luck!


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## waterfaller1 (Jul 5, 2006)

A couple other fish prone to IP's~ puffers and some plecos.
I have been fortunate, that none of my fw fish have ever had IP's or ich. Well, I shouldn't say_ none_ have had IP's. I had a batch of 17 otocinclus cocamas come in, and they all died. They were in very poor shape, and some had very bloated tummys. I'm sure there are fw fish that are more likely to have ich as well. I have worked in a sw shop, and know certain fish are more prone to ich, such as hippo and achilles tangs. It's just best to practice using a QT tank, and in some instances treating as a preventative measure. GL with your next batch of otos Jaide.


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## Vladdy (May 6, 2008)

It is either parasites or a bacterial infection. I use to have two otos, and both died after a week but they looked healthy. Otos are not the hardiest fish.


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

waterfaller1 said:


> A couple other fish prone to IP's~ puffers and some plecos.
> I have been fortunate, that none of my fw fish have ever had IP's or ich. Well, I shouldn't say_ none_ have had IP's.


My Angelfish came in with camallanus years ago, I caught it at a very nasty stage and was lucky enough to beat it with levamisole. If I remember correctly from my researching, these nematodes are common with Angels. People often don't catch it unless it manifests into severe bloat, and you're lucky enough to catch their little heads hanging out the exhaust. I guess lucky isn't the right word. :icon_conf


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## waterfaller1 (Jul 5, 2006)

There also seems to be certain years, when fish come in with certain diseases more than other years. We were getting fish from ORA one year, and many of the clownfish had brooklynella. Wild caughts were coming in with flukes and all had to be dipped for it. I mean, drop a sw fish in fw and just see dozens of flukes exiting their skin, it was crazy.


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## eprouty (May 6, 2011)

Did it die? Did it poo? Ugh I hate it when we don't get an outcome.


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## jayjigga (Mar 22, 2011)

I totally want to know too!! Please someone, finish the story...


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## jasonpatterson (Apr 15, 2011)

Wow, I hadn't realized just how much this picture was distorted by my browser until I clicked it to view as its own image. If you haven't, you may be seeing the funhouse fat guy mirror version of this fish.  It's still fat, but dang, it was freakish prior to clicking the photo.


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