# Gourami rocking back and forth



## fishbone

I'm probably worried over nothing but thought I'd ask. I'm at work now so I won't be able to check up on him until lunch break, which won't be for another 2 hours.
I got a honey gourami yesterday and introduced him in my 10g planted tank in which I have 6 neons, shrimp and snails. Tank has been up and running for almost a year now. I acclimated the little bugger by using the drip method for 2 hours, then slowly raised his water to 75 degrees over the course of 15-20 minutes.
Do gouramis sometimes rock back and forth when they're a bit nervous in a new environment? Last night he inspected the tank, got acquainted with his new roomates and, as all gouramis are pigs, proceeded to look for food and pick and nip at some plants, gravel, etc. He seemed very happy, shy and curious. This morning when I was getting dressed and the tank was for the most part dark, I could see him close to the filter outlet and as he's standing in one place he's rocking back and forth. Does that sometimes happen when gouramis are transferred/introduced to new environment?


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## fishbone

Here's a couple of videos.
First is of him "idling" and swimming back and forth a bit
http://youtube.com/watch?v=p9Vd2-BUBfc

Second is of feeding time, following him
http://youtube.com/watch?v=k9PoZrvehq8

Also, not sure if he was doing this because he was full, but, as you can see it in second vid a couple of times, he'd bite some food, munch on it and then spit it out.


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## Guest

I've never noticed it happen, then again, I wasn't looking for it. Just keep an eye on him


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## ikermalli

I think it might be the filter and by the way, nice gourami!


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## fishbone

Turned the outlet almost off and he still does it. But when he wants to swim a certain place or certain way, he swims as he should. Strange.
Also, what would cause him to not manage to swallow much? He keeps trying to eat but seems to spit out most of it.


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## Guest

What do you feed him? It could be as simple as him not liking the food. But it could be a sign of an infection or perhaps the tank is too cold for him to eat. I'd imagine that you'd have the tank at a good temperature though.


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## fishbone

The tank is and always has been at a steady 76 degrees.
I tried feeding him Tetra flakes, what I've been feeding my fish for a year now. What he does is he does actually swallow some of it but it seems like he's very picky as far as how much he's gulping and the size of the pieces. Let me put it this way, my neons never spit back anything. He nibbles, what's too big he spits out, tries to swallow again, spits and then goes for another piece.
I also tried feeding frozen brine shrimp, what he's been getting at the LFS too [I'm fairly certain that's what they feed them] and again, he ate some of the smaller pieces. Is his appetite bigger than his mouth/stomach?
Ugh, you know, I should just not bother you guys anymore  , just watch him and return him if he doesn't get better in another two days or so. I just got him Monday.


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## Obsidian

I honestly would not worry about the food piece of things. The reality is that many fish spit things out when they first join a new tank and are getting new foods. He should stop spitting it back out inside the next week. I know many of my fish have done that for the first week. 

The scooting piece looks a lot like how my fry swam before they had all their fins. I can't say I have ever seen it in an adult fish, but I am still pretty new.


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## fishbone

Thanks for your reply!
Well, this morning the rocking back and forth seems to have mostly gone away. I haven't seen him do it anymore. Also, I watched him closely at feeding time and he is in fact eating, just still spitting out some food. He's also pooping, so that means he's not going hungry. I think he's still growing because he's not the usual 1.75 that honey/sunset gouramis get.

Another thing I'm keeping an eye on right now is something that looks like dust on him. Not sure if it's fungal growth or just how he looks because he's lost some of his slime coating, but it hasn't gotten worse in the past 3 days. There's VERY little of it and I'm watching to see if it changes in any way. I thought of quarantine but I'd rather not until I see clear signs of disease, I don't want to keep moving him and stressing him.

He's a lively little fellow! The dwarf gourami that I lost to swim bladder disease was nowhere near this guy's energy. He swims around, checks things out, never sits in one place. I was nervous about two things: his attitude towards my ghost shrimp and the neons. He couldn't care less about my shrimp so on that front things are good, but sometimes he does get close and follows some of the neons. I think he's just being curious, he's not flaring his fins and as a matter of fact they all eat together and the neons treat him like one of their own, even allowing him amongst them in the tiny shoal they sometimes form  They were definitely intimidated by my ex-dwarf gourami, most likely because he was MUCH bigger than them.


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## Fishnchips

*Blue Gouramis*

Hey Fishbone, I know you posted this about three years ago, I was just wondering what ever came of your gourami. I have had a 50g tank established now for over a year, a have a few tetras, some balas, some mollies, a pleco, some corys, and an a algae eater, I just added two blue gouramis, and they are doing the same thing you are describing here. One of them is eating with little issue, the other seems to want to hide in my treasure chest and rock back and forth like he's on a pendulum. When I'm not feeding them, they both do this. They have explored the tank for the most part, but seem to prefer the bottom, which isn't typical if I remember correctly. The temp is closer to 78 degrees and the PH is good. I'm wondering if maybe they are stressed or maybe there is something more serious going on. Thanks for any help you can provide.


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## fishbone

The issue went away on it's own. I was never able to figure it out, I think it was just him establishing to the new tank. Give them some time and they should get used to it. Let me know how they do.


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