Fantail with odd attitude!

[emmaR]

My daughter requested a fantail for her birthday so we bought a starter tank (20 litre), complete with filter, gravel and ornaments and left the tank to settle for 3 days before adding the fish. It spends all its time either sitting under the area where the filter is, quivering or inside the cave-like ornament. It gets fed once a day, does not appear to have any of the diseases I've looked at, the water isn't cloudy and it's only been in the tank for 3 days now so I'm not sure if this is normal when a fish settles in. The tank is not near a heater or a window. What are we doing wrong? To look at the tank you'd think it was empty as we never see the fish!!

 

[timwag2001]

do you know how to cylce the tank?
have you checked the ammonia level?

 

[dmoney87]

My daughter requested a fantail for her birthday so we bought a starter tank (20 litre), complete with filter, gravel and ornaments and left the tank to settle for 3 days before adding the fish. It spends all its time either sitting under the area where the filter is, quivering or inside the cave-like ornament. It gets fed once a day, does not appear to have any of the diseases I've looked at, the water isn't cloudy and it's only been in the tank for 3 days now so I'm not sure if this is normal when a fish settles in. The tank is not near a heater or a window. What are we doing wrong? To look at the tank you'd think it was empty as we never see the fish!!

First I'm glad you and your daughter have decided to take part in this great hobby. Unfortunately 3 days is not long enough for a tank to "settle" or as we like to call it "cycle". A process in which beneficial bacteria is accumulated on the substrate, filters, ornaments etc. Which in turn help remove all the harmful toxins for fish.. eg Ammonia, Nitrites, etc. So I would have to assume your tank is still cycling. Secondly I'm guessing that a 20L tank is roughly about 5 gallons & Due to the common misconception of goldfish being kept in "goldfish bowls" we think that a tank of that size should be suitable. That is not the case. Gold fish are one of the most "dirty" fish to maintain.. eg they like to eat.. ALOT .. and in turn create allot of waste.. also allot of fancy goldfish actually require a heater, not so much as to have the water as warm in the needs of tropical fish but just so that a steady temperature can be maintained. I personally have two fantail fancy goldfish in a 30g. Mind you they are fairly large but I would not house them in anything smaller if you want your fish to be active and healthy. Again good luck and I hope I didn't scare you off

-davE

 

[jsoong]

Agree that the tank is not cycled & you are likely running into ammonia buildup in such a small setup.

The behavior of the fantail is definitely not normal. A healthy goldfish should be "booking" - ie constantly nosing around the gravel looking for food.

First thing I would suggest is to do a 50% water change (remember to use dechlorinator!). In a 5 gal, you will need to do 50% changes every day (if not twice a day) to keep toxin levels in check during cycling.

Next I would suggest heading over to the articles section & read up on cycling. If you intend to carry on the cycling with the goldfish in the tank, you will need a good test kit, a lot of patience & a lot of water changes.

You might consider returning the goldfish & get something more suitable for the 5 gal - maybe some gold colored platy (so you still have the goldfish look) or some white cloud minnows. Alternatively, you might consider a tank upgrade. You will need to do it within a few months if you want to keep the goldfish healthy as it gets bigger. <Note that a common fantail can grow to 6" + & live 10 years or more.> I think a 20 gal is minimum, better yet, get a 40 gal breeder & you can have 2-3 fancy goldfish. <Or go whole hog & get a pond ...... This hobby is addicting!! >

 

[emmaR]

Thanks for all the advice, will probably take your advice jsoong and return the fish while we decide on either more suitable fish or a bigger tank!

 

[emmaR]

Hi all. Thought I'd give you an update and pick your brains a bit further! I've tested the ammonia level and it's just about spot-on. The fish is still behaving oddly, preferring to hide in the cave if anyone's in the room. If you come in quickly you can catch it swimming around but that's about it. If the ammonia levels are ok is it still worth changing a percentage of the water? I have to say the staff at the pet shop were pretty clueless! Advised us we could keep 4 fantails in a 30litre tank!

 

[jsoong]

What is spot on? Zero would be the only acceptable level.

You also need to worry about nitrites - that is the next thing that is going to spike in a cycling tank.

Also, what is the temperature? A very cold tank will make the fish want to hibernate at the bottom.

With a goldfish in a small tank, you are committed to doing water changes every week or more often. Even if there is no measurable ammonia or nitrites (after you cycled), there will be other waste <not measured by the kits> that needs to be removed.

Oh, the lfs would like you to keep 4 fantails in a 20 l .... They won't last too long in that kind of a setup <weeks, months?> .... and they make money when you go there in a panic because the fish got some disease from overcrowding, and more money when you replace your fish every few weeks ..... <And yes, I know some who thinks that goldfish's lifespan is measured in week and it is normal to replace the fish every month! >

 

[emmaR]

Yes, it's zero. Temp must be fine, the tank is in the living room with a fairly constant temp. I've bought a 60litre tank which will get filled tonight. How long do I leave it before I introduce the fish? Thanks.

 

[jsoong]

All you need to do is to make sure that there is no leak, & all equipment are running properly. So, I'd run it for a few hours.

To properly transfer the fish, you need to transfer your bio-filter as well. Make sure you move all decorations & substrate from the old to the new tank. <Any substrate you don't want in the new tank, put in a mesh bag for easy removal later.> Run the old tank's filter with the new tanks filter for the first while so you can seed the new filter. <Alternative, put the old filter's filter pad & media into the new filter - if you have room for both sets of filter pads - old & new.>

After 4-6 weeks, the new tank should have enough colonized bacteria, and you can remove the "old" filter & material from your new tank. <You can use that to start up the old tank for some other fish!>