Denver

Fish with a funny float gets a CT scan at the Denver Zoo

The fancy-looking French angelfish was diagnosed with inflamed intestines and given antibiotics

Adult French angelfish side view, Pomacanthus paru, Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, Digital Photo (horizontal),
Wild Horizons/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

A fancy-looking French angelfish that was found one day with a funny float has its buoyancy back after taking some time from its tropical trappings to get a CT scan at the Denver Zoo.

A zoo worker recently noticed the blue and yellow fish was swimming with a tilt, prompting a visit last week to the facility's on-site hospital for an ultrasound and the CT scan.

The CT scan took place in a machine large enough to fit a 700-pound (318-kilogram) grizzly bear, so some special accommodations were required, zoo spokesperson Jake Kubie said. The approximately seven-inch (18-centimeter) fish was sedated, balanced upright on a sponge and had water poured over its gills to keep it alive as the scan took place.

The diagnosis: Too much gas. Enteritis, or inflamed intestines, had resulted in increased internal gas that was affecting the fish's buoyancy, Kubie said.

β€œIt was treated with antibiotics,” he said. β€œIt's doing much better and swimming normally.”

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