Kuhli loaches are one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish because of their unique appearance. They have a lot of personalities and can be quite active. But what happens when Kuhli loach starts curling up and gasping for air?
What are the causes of this behavior and what you can do to help? When your kuhli loach is curled up, trembling, or shaking it could be a sign that something in their environment has changed. When they feel stressed out, they will try to hide because in the wild these fish live in fast-moving water with predators around every corner.
I bet you are one of these people wondering why your Kuhli Loach is curling up. This post will provide some insight into the possible causes and what you can do to help your pet feel better!
Why Is My Kuhli Loach Curling Up?
Kuhli loaches are a nocturnal species of fish that is found in the swampy waters of Asia. These bottom-feeders have a reputation for being shy and scavenger. But they can be curious if they get to know you better or feel safe in their environment.
Kuhli loaches often look like they’re shaking and gasping for air. It is because of the way that their body is built. Their body is very long and slender, which can lead to a lot of problems when it comes to water quality.
You can even see kuhli hanging by the heater sometimes.
Why Does Kuhli Loach Get Gasp For Air?
There are quite a few reasons why your kuhli loach is gasping for air. But perhaps the most common one that you’ll see in an aquarium environment has to do with water quality.
Kuhli loaches have very long bodies and breathe through their skin instead of using gills like other fish species out there. This means that they’re very sensitive to water conditions. It can develop gasping for air or shaking problems when its environment’s not up to par.
Wrong Temperature
Kuhli loaches tend to do best in a temperature range of 72-86 degrees Fahrenheit. So if your home aquarium isn’t set at this temperature you should try increasing it gradually.
You can see kuhli loach suffering and gasping for air when the water temperature is not normal for them. They might feel uneasy and eventually come to top of the tank to breathe more air.
Poor Water Conditions
Not only can water quality affect your kuhli loach’s life expectancy, but it can also contribute to the gasping for air and shaking problem. If you don’t test your aquarium’s pH level or ammonia levels regularly these problems will be exacerbated by their sensitive skin and gills.
You can use an API test kit to get the appropriate water ammonia levels.
Stress And Underlying Diseases
Just like any other fish in your home aquarium, you can stress kuhli loach out by their environment and the changes that you make to it. For example, if you add or remove decorations from their tank they might feel threatened and try to hide more than usual.
Moreover, if they have diseases, they may be more lethargic than usual. Kuhli Loach are sensitive to the water parameters. So, this can cause them to be sick often.
You can know more about various diseases in kuhli loach from these articles:
- Why Are My Kuhli Loach Hiding? With Solutions
- Why Is My Kuhli Loach Not Moving? Is It Dead?
- How Do You Treat Fungus In Kuhli Loach? Easy Way
- Swim Bladder Disorder In My Kuhli Loach: Causes, Symptoms, and More
- How Do You Get Rid Of White Spots On Kuhli Loach?
Overstocking Can Also Cause Stress
Adding too many new fish to your aquarium or trying to mix different species together can stress out your loaches and lead them to behave in an unusual way.
They might also get gasping for air because of simple changes that you make. Like adding new water or cleaning the tank. The best policy is generally “less is more” when it comes to home aquariums. It means fewer tank mates and less decoration mean more room for everyone.
Bad Tank Mates
If you put in the tank mates in the kuhli loach tank that they are not comfortable with, then you might see them gasping for air. Sometimes, the bad tankmates can cause stress in the fish. This in turn makes the kuhli loach vulnerable with the environment and predators present in the tank.
Hence, you must be aware that kuhli loaches are peaceful community fish. You can put in 5 to 6 kuhli loaches in the same tank in a minimum of 20 gallons tank. Thus, go on adding an extra gallon for each one inch addition of the fish. Do consider their full grown size when deciding for the tank size too.
How To Treat Gasping For Air In Kuhli Loach?
Now that we know the reasons for gasping air, it is necessary to know its solutions too. There are several ways that you can help your kuhli loaches to recover from gasping for air:
Increase The Temperature Gradually And Avoid Sharp Changes
You should also try increasing the temperature of their environment gradually to help your loaches’ skin and gills adjust.
The appropriate temperature for kuhli loach is 73-86 degrees Fahrenheit. If you are able to maintain the temperatures in the same range, your kuhli loach will be more than happy in the water.
Adding Aquarium Salt To The Tank Can Help
Adding aquarium salt can also be very effective in helping kuhli loaches recover from gasping for air. But only if you use the right amount of it.
If you add too much you could risk lowering your tank’s pH level or causing other problems in the water, so be careful when adding it. I will suggest API aquarium saltt as it is quite affordable in price and works well too.
Maintain Water Quality And Keep The Tank Clean
Finally, you should try to maintain a high level of water quality and keep your tank as clean as possible. This will help reduce the stress on kuhli loach’s skin and gills. Thus, they can recover from gasping for air more easily over time.
Discover more on the following burning fishkeeping topics.
- Why Does Kuhli Loach Stay At The Top Of The Tank?
- How Long Will A Kuhli Loach Go Missing? | Is It Hiding?
- Can Kuhli Loach Live Alone? Let’s Find Out!!
- Do Kuhli Loach Jump Out Of A Tank?
Make Sure There Are No Predators Or Aggressive Fish In The Tank
You should also make sure that you don’t have any predators or aggressive fish in the tank with your loaches. This can lead to gasping for air.
Predators, such as other fish who are more aggressive than the kuhli loaches. It can cause additional stress on the kuhli loaches. They may decide to attack or eat them, which can trigger gasping for air in the kuhli loach.
More on Kuhli loach tankmates on:
- Kuhli Loach Tankmates
- Can Kuhli Loaches Live With Guppies?
- Can I Keep Kuhli Loaches With Angelfish?
- Should I Keep Kuhli Loach And Betta Together?
- Can Kuhli Loach Live With Cory Catfish?
- Can You Keep Kuhli Loach And Eels In The Same Tank?
Quarantine Your Kuhli Loach
If everything else seems ok but your kuhli loach is still acting abnormally then it might be a good idea to quarantine it for now.
If your kuhli loach is sick, a professional will need to treat your kuhli loach. You risk infecting the rest of your fish. Quarantine your fish and feed it with the appropriate medicines to make it feel better.
Change Water
You should change your aquarium water 50 to 60% every two weeks. This will make sure your tank is completely cycled and does not have ammonia. Ammonia poisoning may also be a huge issue due to which most kuhli loaches come to the shore gasping for air.
Why Does Acclimatizing My Kuhli Loach Be Important To Eliminate Gasping For Air?
Finally, you should also remember that acclimatizing your kuhli loaches properly is very important to eliminate gasping for air problems in the future. This means slowly introducing them to your aquarium and letting them adjust to the new environment before you add any other fish or decorations.
FAQ:
Can Kuhli Loach Have Seizures?
Can kuhli loaches have seizures? These little guys might look cute. But you can see them stressed out sometimes! In fact, one of the most common reasons why people see kuhli loaches gasping for air is because kuhli loach stress out.
If you see your kuhli loaches shaking, it might be a good idea to check if their environment looks ok. There’s nothing stressing them out too much. If everything else seems fine then you might want to find out if these guys can have seizures.
How Can You Tell If Kuhli Loach Is Stressed?
The easiest way to tell that your kuhli loaches are stressed is by looking at their behavior, especially when they’re in a new environment or after you’ve made some changes to the tank. These fish can be really sensitive to their environment and might respond by shaking, gasping for air, or even having seizures.
Conclusion:
In this article, we discussed why you can see kuhli loaches stressed out in different ways and how you can help them recover from it. We have also covered some of the most common reasons why these fish gasp for air and the best way to deal with them.
You can definitely help the kuhli loach gasping by simply changing the water parameters to the desired extent.
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