Sick goldfish? :(

o1s1n

We have had a fantail goldfish for a year in a fish bowl and haven't had any trouble with him at all. He's a fairly lively fish and gets quite excited when being fed/approached by people.

Bought a 10l tank and a new friend for him (Another goldfish) about three weeks ago and since being in the new tank he has completely changed.

His fan tail colapsed down/became jagged with a blood streak and he spent most of the time bobbing at the top of the water for air. I have read up a bit on issues with ammonia poisoning but cant understand how this would effect one fish with the other being perfectly fine.

I thought the old fish might just be sick so put him back in his original bowl for a few days. He perked right up and his tail went back to the way it was.

We reintroducted him to the new tank yesterday and he's back to bobbing at the top again.

Any ideas?

As you can see, new fish is completely fine -

robbie_998

he wants to come up for some air :pac:

get him some ornaments and make it feel like home for him

try feeding him a little treat

Shewhomustbe...

Are you oxygenating the water?? Do you have a filter?
Here's a couple of sites that'll help you.

http://www.goldfishcare.org/
http://www.firsttankguide.net/goldfish.php

Fishyfreak

No filter?

Read about the "Nitrogen Cycle", your fish are swimming in its own waste (Ammonia) which is highly toxic to them.

You need to get a bigger tank (not another bowl) and put a small filter in it. The filter will build up enough bacteria to convert the Ammonia to Nitrite and then to Nitrate, which in turn can be diluted by partial water changes with dechlorinated tapwater.

Bowls are not suitable for goldfish and IMO they shouldn't be stocked in petshops.

Shewhomustbe...

Fishyfreak wrote: »

Bowls are not suitable for goldfish and IMO they shouldn't be stocked in petshops.

Completely agree with you, we have a 170litre tank for two goldfish, we had three but Samson sadly passed away, he'd grown to just under 10inches and quite the hefty weight!

ciano123

feed it:)

Shewhomustbe...

ciano123 wrote: »

feed it:)

That's not really helpful :rolleyes:

super_metroid

boil a pea remove the shell and squash it up into small pieces and feed to your goldfish

this will clear out his digestive system and may make him feel a little better

also go to a pet shop and ask for some goldfish weed and some lead weights for it, plant it in the tank

you don't need soil to plant it, just tie a lead weight around the bottom of the plant and drop it in

i am also a big fan of mossballs (plants), get one if you can

these plant will help oxygenate the water and remove harmful chemicals

o1s1n

Cheers for the feedback everyone.

Seems there was an issue with the filter in the tank. It wasn't working properly. Had a tinker with it and it's working now.

What threw me off was the other fish was perfectly fine.

Anyway, crisis averted!

Edit\ what we have them in is a 10l tank. Can't really go any bigger because we're living in a rented apartment and wouldn't have the space. At least it's not a bowl anyway!

o1s1n

Looks like it's not the end of it.

Plenty of oxygen in the water, decent current (The new fish is loving it).

However, the old one has now taken to lying at the bottom hidden in a corner. Sinking and rising. Shallow breathing.

His fins are clamped. Couldn't get him to eat any peas. When he does move around the tank he is banging off the glass as if he's drunk/blind. It's quite disressing to watch (And I would imagine for the fish too) .

buggles

http://www.amazon.co.uk/API-056-Stress-Zyme-473ml/dp/B000255N3W/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=kitchen&qid=1256688977&sr=8-6

Get yourself some of this stuff, we use it everytime we do a water change. Any good pet shop should stock it but it is quite expensive, Ebay is great for bulk buying.

I agree, it is very distressing to see them sick. He may also be a touch stressed with the move.