Yellow boxfish ingested bubbles!!

kelsib · Jun 14, 2016

Hello , I'm kelsib & new to Advanced aquarist, just signed up.
I was asking for help with my Dilemma ....

"my baby yellow boxfish ,got stuck face down into an AirStone "
and has obviously gulped up some air!!

I've had this fish for a while now and I've become rather attached to him,
I'm hoping I can save his life he's got buoyancy problems now and can only swim for short periods of times face down no deeper than the surface,
with his butt up in the air , (out of the water )
so I put him in the hospital tank ,
Quarantined from the rest of my tank because I'm aware of their toxicity problem putt some small fake plants floating around to Comfort him with an air stone... I'm keeping the depth to about 3 inches so that he doesn't get stuck over the air stone again !,or something!!
I also,
put cellophane over the top of the water because I thought maybe it was a good idea to keep his butt submerged instead of up in the open-air ....
(there's no way that could be good..)
is there anything I can do for this fish I'm at my rope's end would really like to save his life ,
but how can I do this without stressing him to the point of poisoning himself?? Today's been the first day of this I don't know how long it'll last like this...
And as I'm new to all this I hope I posted this in the right place or send it to the right person .
sincerely ,
Kelsib

SantaMonicaHelp · Jun 21, 2016

How's your fish doing today? Does it keep floating to the surface? Make sure to pre-soak the food before feeding and if it doesn't resume its normal swimming pattern, you should definitely take it to a vet. I hope this little guy gets okay..

eatbreakfast · Jun 22, 2016

Quite frankly I'm not sure of how to treat that. I've had boxfish gulp air at the surface but it never caused buoyancy issues.

It sounds as if it has air trapped in it's swim bladder. In 'normal' fish they can be pinned to release the air, but I wouldn't even think of trying it with a boxfish.

Maybe @Humblefish has an idea.

Humblefish · Jun 22, 2016

I've got nothing useful to offer. @Lionfish Lair might though.

Lionfish Lair · Jun 22, 2016

Did you see him do this, or just notice him floating? If it's just ingested bubbles, he'll.... umm.... fart. If it doesn't improve in time, it's more than ingested air.

Wilsoni · Jun 22, 2016

Gotta burp that Boxfish

all joking aside, I hope he pulls through.

Is it a Cubicus Boxfish?

meir · Jun 22, 2016

Is it possible to do the same as divers when bringing up deeper water fish they have to pin it because of the change in water pressure?? If u are worried about pinning it I've found that with a puffer I once had that puffed up and cldnt deflate that massaging it's belly released the air try it might be a bit less stressful and it might work....the only thing is being that it's a box fish from what I remember from snorkeling that aren't soft like puffers so it might be a bit harder to direct the air out but it might be worth the try in order not to lose it But in all honesty I think u will have a better chance with pinning. This is only relevant if it's an air related issue if it's something else then idk