Has anyone here done the surgery for air-blatter desease? Maybe someone who's local to me will help me here. Anyone live in CA or near the Bay Area?

Im sorry I havent done it.

Try giving your fish frozen peas. I had a fish named Chicklet that died from swim bladder problems. If I would have known about peas at the time I would have given her some. It's worth a try.

I know basically what to do, but I have never done it myself. Hopefull there is someone that can help. How many fish have it? Just one?

my oranda was a floater for 4 months....then one day he just stopped. hasnt floated since.
i know thats not much help, but it could happen.

IT CAN RANDOMLY STOP!?....That's unexpected >_<

I have done the surgery. I know this is an old thread but I couldn't resist. I performed it myself on my telescope Jack who survived three weeks after. The operation didn't have the intended effect. that is to say he didn't flip back over. Instead he sank to the bottom on his side but was able to graze the pebbles for food. After three weeks he got some kind of very severe infection and stopped eating. I ended up euthanizing him.

I think it would have worked better if he was right-side up and floating, but upside down at the surface is kind of a worst case scenario.

i've seen the fish dude at the store doing it to a fish it wasn't plesant to watch
unless you have strong heart i would recommand you have a doctor do it
ofcourse they fish will heal for a short periord of time the problem will just
come back unless you feed them sinking food and peas to help reduce the chance

I agree with Nismo. Any one who wishes to have their fish under the knife should contact a local vet that specializes in fish. They will have all the necessary equipment & know-how to do it properly.

Hearing someone say that they saw someone at a fish store doing the surgery SCARES me. That surgery is possible - but does not have a high success rate - and it is SO easy to mess up and kill the fish. There are some big veins right down there - as well as delicate internal organs. You need to really know what you are doing. A "fish store guy" who does something, then sells the fish to an unsuspecting client will have a VERY unhappy client!!!! I consider it unscrupulous. Post op requires strict cleanliness - and removal of stitches. It is not something for a community tank in a store.

Pushing ballast into the body of the fish is a delicate procedure - if you get too much, the fish sinks... if you get too little, it does not work. If it slides to one side or the other, the fish is a side sitter. Even after the surgery, most fish will bottom sit - and only some will be able to regain bouyancy.

I have one fish that was brought to me recently that is a prime candidate, but I have decided that I am not going to do it. I have never seen or even heard of a fish that had this be a long term solution - it simply does not work for long in my experience.