BOB.T

Hi

My Goldfish (called Fish) seems to be having some trouble He seems to spend most of the day sat on the bottom of the tank, like actually resting on the gravel! He does go for a little swim now and then but not for long and often goes out of control! He seems to go off in odd directions, turns a lot and sometimes goes upside down!

There are 3 other fish in with Fish, they're all fine. We've changed the water and added bacteria control and algae control. They get fed every morning and there's a plant in there which they eat.

Anyone got any thoughts?

Ta

GIRLRACER

Fish might be having little fish's, or the others are ganging up on Fish !

andrewdelvard

Any new fish in the tank?

BOB.T

Fish could be a girl!

Fish is the newest one in there....his / her/ it's full name is Fish, son of Slim, Slim died from chuffin big lump on side disease That was a couple of months ago though and Fish has been fine up untill a few days ago.

(These are the office fish, all bought in memory of Mark and Lard on Radio1, there's Mark and Lard, (Slim) and Shady and now Fish).

LOL @ the Google ads below, Goldfish credit card, if Fish is preggers she might need one for all the baby gear

andrewdelvard

Any white specks like salt on the side of the fish?

BOB.T

No, don't think so.

andrewdelvard

Sounds like Slim died from Fish Cancer. However the symptons you describe for fish differ. If there are no white specks I reckon it's swim bladder problems (common) The best way to treat this is to isolate the fish in a shallow (6 inches) quaratine tank (BIG stress reliever for the fish) Place a teaspoon of salt to a ratio of about 1 gallon of water in the tank. Leave it in there for no more than 2 weeks or until it appears better. If the fish isn't worth it or you haven't the facilitys to do this flush it down the toilet asap, as it will die. Take a careful look for white spots though. Thats a different matter....

mj

flushed down the bog - what a way to go, off to swim with the big brown sharks, for the rest of it's short lived life

BOB.T

Oh, that sounds kinda serious then!

We have a plastic tub that we put them in when we clean the tank, I'll pop him in there. Should I put some gravel in, maybe some of the plant too?

Thanks very much for your help

what would scooby do

Drop some brandy in the tank and what the little ******* fly

fitzscoob

could it not be just a fat lazy deformed fish?

must admit the thought of being flushed down the loo isnt really appealing.

are goldfish edible?

mj

Swim Bladder- Swim or air bladder problems sometimes occur in freshwater fish. I have personally seen this is fancy goldfish such as Orandas, Ryunkins, and Shubunkins. When the bladder is effected, the fish will experience equilibrium problems. Sometimes, the problem is not the bladder but other problems which directly affect the bladder. Diseased and inflamed internal organs, improper water conditions or nutrition, and wounds received from fighting with another fish can also effect the equilibrium of the fish. Constipation is also known to affect a fish's swimming ability! Symptoms: The fish has problems swimming correctly. They may appear to be standing on their head, or floating to the surface and struggling to go down to the bottom, or possibly even have problems removing themselves from the bottom. At the later stages of the disease, the fish could lose its balance and swim upside down. Treatment: There is no specific treatment for this dilemma;however, you can try isolating the fish to a quarantine tank in which the water is shallow(this provides relief for the fish). Add one teaspoon of salt per gallon of water. Some individuals will feed thawed out frozen peas and this purges the fish's system and has been noted to help many fish. After 1-2 weeks a return to the main tank with deeper water may be tried. The best advice I can give is to maintain proper water conditions, feed your fish a well balanced diet, and possibly try feeding your goldfish sinking foods rather than floating types. They won't inhale so much air this way. The pellets if soaked in water before feeding will expand before the fish eats them and this has helped a lot. Good luck with this!! Check out http://www.koivet.com

BOB.T

Thanks mj

I've not had him long but I'm quite attched to the little fella, I couldn't flush him

fitzscoob

how about saving him up and strapping him to a big *** firework rocket? go with a bang? :P

thats a little too sadistic me thinks........hope he gets better mate.

BOB.T

Hmm, the blue touch paper might get wet, might pass on that one

mj

staple it to the stick just below the touch paper, if not barbaric, it'll be quick

BOB.T

Can I just point out, technically, he's not dead yet!

Just a thought, what if (s)he is pregnant, how would isolation and salt effect pregnancy?

16vmarc

To check if its male or female check the fins, females have bigger fins.

Useless fact there!!!

fitzscoob

All you would need then would be some batter and a little bit of vinegar then you would have some lovely little fishfingers that the old sea dog cap'n birdseye would be proud of

BOB.T

Fins in general or all of them?

That's one thing I have noticed, Fish's dorsal? fin, on his back, that's up, that's a good sign isn't it?

16vmarc

Think its the lower fin

fitzscoob

reminds me of free ***** (the film)

ajm

I concur with the swim bladder diagnosis. The swim bladder is effectively the balast tanks the fish uses to regulate buoyancy by expelling dissolved gas from the blood into the bladder and vice versa. If this process is affected by infection or parasite (or simply old age) the fish will lose coordination with the symptoms described above.

What is the active ingredient of this "bacteria control" you have added to the water by the way? You have to be careful not to kill off the nitrifying bacteria in your filter/ the gravel or you could cause more problems.

BOB.T

Thanks ajm!

I'm not too sure what the active ingredient is, I'll look when I get to work, if it helps, all the products we use including the food is from King British.

BOB.T

It's not looking good, he's very still and seems to be stuck in a curve shape?! Have put him in a tub with some salt and some food.

ajm

Doesn't sound too good to me I'm afraid. If you are going to add salt don't put too much in, about 1 table spoon per 5 gallons is recommended I think.

Are there any external signs? Red inflammed gills? Distended abdomen?

SomeDude

Remove the food !

BOB.T

I read a tablespoon to a gallon so I've put a teaspoon worth into 2litres.

He deffo doesn't have white spots and other than lying on his side and being kinda curved there are no outside symptons. However, inside his gills look a little red.

Is removing the food a good idea, I'm not sure how much he's been eating, don't think he had owt yesterday?

andrewdelvard

Just give it time Bob. A few hours isn't going to cure it. Also make sure it's in the shade. No bright light.

SomeDude

Goldfish can go weeks without food, and the food (especially in 2 liters) will just harm water quality, especially where there is no filtering.

Anti-algae stuff probably means you are dumping heavy metals into the water

Inside of gills are supposed to be blood red, no spots of other color.

Curved shape might indicate nitrite poisioning.

An airstone might also be a good idea (a must really).