Electric Catfish Not Eating

kno4te

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Not much to speak of lately. But I would chalk that up to having little to pass due to the loss of appetite.

After some pretty intensive research, I'm kind of lead to believe that the symptoms are leaning towards still being something parasitic. I'm going to they another round of anti parasitics and see what happens.
Maybe try fritz expel-p. Easy to dose.
 

Rougarou

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Maybe try fritz expel-p. Easy to dose.
It's funny you mention that. I've got ParaCleanse on the way, as it it seemed better suited for the symptoms. If that doesn't work, I'll give the Epel-p a try. Thanks for the tip.
 
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jjohnwm

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P.S. When I said viral, I meant fungal. That mistake is kind of the pitfall of having Wonder Woman(Lynda Carter) on in the background while trying to post in a thread.
Good thing it wasn't Gal Gadot...you might not have been able to type at all...;)

I had an E.Cat back in the 1970's and 80's for several...maybe 8?...years. I believed it was M.electricus but back then I didn't know there were any other members of the genus. It grew from only a couple inches to about 18 inches in that time, and certainly wasn't hurting for food, so I suspect that they are perhaps slower growing than things like RTC's, etc. but don't know for sure.

I remember vividly two things about that fish: first, how it caused me to reflexively yank my arm back when it "hit" me once, resulting in putting my elbow through a pane of glass and needing some stitches. Still have a very obvious 3-inch scar as a reminder.

And second, I remember that fish on several occasions simply decided to go on a diet for sometimes several weeks at a time. No changes in environment, food, etc...no obvious cause for these little snits. He just stopped eating completely...and then started again just as inexplicably.

I've read several extremely experienced cat keepers, including our own thebiggerthebetter thebiggerthebetter , commenting on how some cats do this. I had similar issues with a RTC and even a wild-caught Bullhead over the years; they always came back strong after a few days or weeks as though nothing had happened. In contrast, other biggish cats I have owned...TSN, Jelly Cat, some others...never, never...never...turned their noses up at proffered food for many years on end, regardless of how much they had already eaten.

My picky ones may have lost a bit of mass when fasting, but never could be described as thin or emaciated. When they started eating again, I was very sparing with their food intake for a few days to prevent problems with regurgitation, etc. but there were never any issues.

Does your cat look merely empty-bellied, or is it starting to look actually emaciated? Beyond suggesting that you look for actual signs of excessive loss of muscle mass, I have no real suggestions. Good luck with your cat, and please keep us posted.
 

Rougarou

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Jul 2, 2022
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Good thing it wasn't Gal Gadot...you might not have been able to type at all...;)

I had an E.Cat back in the 1970's and 80's for several...maybe 8?...years. I believed it was M.electricus but back then I didn't know there were any other members of the genus. It grew from only a couple inches to about 18 inches in that time, and certainly wasn't hurting for food, so I suspect that they are perhaps slower growing than things like RTC's, etc. but don't know for sure.

I remember vividly two things about that fish: first, how it caused me to reflexively yank my arm back when it "hit" me once, resulting in putting my elbow through a pane of glass and needing some stitches. Still have a very obvious 3-inch scar as a reminder.

And second, I remember that fish on several occasions simply decided to go on a diet for sometimes several weeks at a time. No changes in environment, food, etc...no obvious cause for these little snits. He just stopped eating completely...and then started again just as inexplicably.

I've read several extremely experienced cat keepers, including our own thebiggerthebetter thebiggerthebetter , commenting on how some cats do this. I had similar issues with a RTC and even a wild-caught Bullhead over the years; they always came back strong after a few days or weeks as though nothing had happened. In contrast, other biggish cats I have owned...TSN, Jelly Cat, some others...never, never...never...turned their noses up at proffered food for many years on end, regardless of how much they had already eaten.

My picky ones may have lost a bit of mass when fasting, but never could be described as thin or emaciated. When they started eating again, I was very sparing with their food intake for a few days to prevent problems with regurgitation, etc. but there were never any issues.

Does your cat look merely empty-bellied, or is it starting to look actually emaciated? Beyond suggesting that you look for actual signs of excessive loss of muscle mass, I have no real suggestions. Good luck with your cat, and please keep us posted.
No, it doesn't look emaciated or empty bellied at all. Maybe slightly slimmer, but she could have stood to shed a few ounces any way. That's what's baffling about this. Outside of not eating, and being lethargic , there's not really anything different appearance wise. I hope I'm able to figure this out. She's pretty personable, and a gentle soul, who had rough paper route prior to arriving here. Your Electric Cat experience is an interesting read. Thank's for sharing. Fortunately , I've yet to be hit. I'll keep this updated.

To be honest, I don't know who Gal Gadot is, but I remember watching Wonder Woman as a kid, and remember thinking it was kind of a stupid show. I guess it actually still is, but I have a different appreciation for it now, Lol.
 

jjohnwm

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I'm reminiscing about Ohm (the name a friend bestowed on my E.Cat) and I'm not too certain I would have even noticed if he became lethargic. One of the most inert fish I have ever owned.

If I came across a small one today it would be tough to resist...low resistance, get it? Ohm...never mind... :)
 

Rougarou

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Jul 2, 2022
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I'm reminiscing about Ohm (the name a friend bestowed on my E.Cat) and I'm not too certain I would have even noticed if he became lethargic. One of the most inert fish I have ever owned.

If I came across a small one today it would be tough to resist...low resistance, get it? Ohm...never mind... :)
You should get one. You may be shocked by the results.
 

Rougarou

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Jul 2, 2022
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Update: I’ve started treating with ParaCleanse. Not seems to have changed feeding wise. Only noticeable difference is that the fish goes from relative calm to explosive energy. It seems to coincide with lights being turned on and off. It’s basically tearing the tank up.
 
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