Due to their bright, reflective appearance, Glofish have been taking over the fish world. If you have one, you probably closely monitor it to make sure it is behaving normally. If you have notices that your glofish is swimming sideways, it could be the result of a serious medical condition.
Why is my Glofish swimming sideways?
The two main reasons why your Glofish is swimming sideways is because of swim bladder disease and stress. If caught early, both are treatable.
Swim bladder disease
Almost all species of bony fish, which Glofish are a part of, have an organ that’s primary purpose is to keep them afloat and balanced. When this organ fills up with gas, it helps keep your glofish right side up and helps them control their swimming patterns.
When this bladder becomes infected, it can fill up with too much or too little gas. This causes your glofish to lose its ability to control its buoyancy. This is what causes them to swim sideways.
Below are some other symptoms of swim bladder disease:
- Glofish floating at the top of the water
- Glofish swimming upside down
- Constantly spinning and turning when it swims
- Big lump on bottom of your Glofish’s stomach
- Change in eating habits.
The best way to treat swim bladder disease in Glofish is stop feeding them for 2-3 days. This will give their organ time to rest and release excess gas.
You can also try raising the water temperature, as this will help kill an infection if your Glofish has one.
Stress
Stress is another common reason why Glofish swim sideways. When a Glofish becomes stressed, they begin developing strange swimming patterns, including running aimlessly into the glass or ornaments, floating at the top, swimming in circles, and swimming sideways.
Glofish get stressed for many reasons, including
- bad water quality
- incorrect water temperature
- overfeeding
- wrong type of food
- loneliness
- presence of a predator
It is important to know that stress could be a sign that your glofish is dying.
Now, there is a chance that your glofish is completely healthy, and that they are just swimming around very fast. This is common in glofish tiger barbs, which are known to chase each other around the tank at high speeds.
How to help your Glofish that is swimming sideways
There are many things you can do to help treat and prevent your Glofish from swimming sideways. The first and foremost is maintain proper water quality.
Water quality
You should perform 20% water changes at least every other week to keep your water clean. You should also make sure that you have an adequate filter for your tank. Many filters require you to clean them to maintain functionality, so make sure you clean out your filter regularly. You should also make sure your water is properly aerated and has enough oxygen.
Every couple of months, you should test the water quality. If you notice that your tank has a lot of ammonium or nitrate, you should get a stronger filter or a bigger fish tank.
Lastly, you should make sure that you have the right water temperature. Most Glofish require a temperature between 74-80 degrees fahrenheight. A warmer temperature will help your fish require form an infection if they have one. The wrong temperature can cause your Glofish to die in one day.
Feeding
The food you give your Glofish can also help prevent them from swimming sideways. I would stay away from food that expands in water, as this can cause digestive and organ issues for your glofish.
As mentioned earlier, I also recommend that you don’t feed your Glofish for 2-3 days if they are swimming sideways. This will give their digestive system and organs some rest and time to recover if there is any inflammation.
Lastly, there is a chance your Glofish is swimming sideways because it eats too quickly. If you suspect this is the case, you should feed your Glofish smaller amounts more frequently.
Add more fish
Lastly, Glofish are school fish and prefer to be in large groups of at least 5. If your Glofish doesn’t have a lot of tankmates and can cause them to get stressed out and even swim sideways. Therefore, I recommend that you have at least 5 other fish with your Glofish.
