Moved Black Moore to New Tank, Sluggish?

[Jayjangle]

So for the past few days the fantail goldfish I have had for around 5 months now began picking on my new, small Black Moore (I've had him for about three weeks). At first he was sort of just pestering him if he happened to wind up next to him, but I woke up this morning to see the older fish chasing the Moore for a minute straight. So, I went to the fish store and bought a second 10 gal tank, rinsed it out, conditioned the water and matched the temp to the other tank, put down some gravel I rinsed off and some rocks.

I let the tank sit for about an hour before moving the Black Moore into it. When I moved him, I used a cup, and I filled it with the tank water and him and poured it into the new tank.

It has been about thirty minutes and my Black Moore seems fine but a bit tired. He goes back and forth between hovering (looking like he's resting) about two inches from the bottom, to moving to the surface and checking for food, then swimming around a little bit. To me he looks like he is just getting comfy but I am a bit concerned. At the moment he is just sort of cruising around slowly in the middle of the tank.

I have actually been thinking of either moving the Moore to his own aquarium or getting a bigger one for a long time, but the bullying is what made me feel two tanks are best...

 

[blert]

How big is the original tank? A ten gallon is too small for a Goldfish. Two would need a 30 gallon. Did you move some old filter media into the new tank? Might want to check the ammonia level before it gets out of hand.

 

[absolutangel04]

Do you have a test kit to measure your water parameters with? Goldies are very messy so ammonia would build up in a 10g tank very quickly. It is also possible that he is suffering continued effects of stress from his last living situation. Hopefully, he will perk up.
Remember that most of a goldy's growth happens when they are rather young, so its important to get them into properly sized tanks as soon as you can to avoid growth stunting and to help their long term health.

 

[Jayjangle]

Thanks for the responses. I am pretty worried right now but so far I hve not encountered a problem I could not correct. At this point, the Black Moore is being more slow, and is still swimming actively at times but chills toward the bottom from time to time. It looks like he is tired; one of them I had that died a few years ago was only sitting at the bottom and hardly moving around.

I do not have a test kit, but I went to the fish store earlier and they told me they test water for free at tuesday and wednesday, and test it for a small fee on other days of the week. They suggested I buy sort of a 'hospital' tank for the time being, since the Moore is still very small. I plan on buying a 30 or 40 gallon tank in a month or so, when my living arrangement becomes more stable.

The larger goldfish is swimming back and forth in his tank, but he isn't acting more than a little stressed. I think he is pretty stressed since he pooped a little while ago and it was whitish; I am afraid to do anything more that could freak him out more tonight, since I already changed water in that tank (30%) today after a brief siphoning.

Thanks again. I have plans this evening so I hope something terrible doesnt happen...

(oh, and for now, the Moore's tank has no filter, since I have to wait for a paycheck in a little less than a week.)

 

[absolutangel04]

Do you know about tank cycling? The new tank isn't cycled so ammonia will build up really fast in there, especially since goldies poop A LOT!
For right now, I suggest you do a big pwc. Since you have a different established tank, you can borrow some BB from the established filter media.
Here is a link that will be helpful. http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f12/fish-in-cycling-step-over-into-the-dark-side-176446.html

 

[absolutangel04]

Lol, I just realized that you said the new tank doesn't have a filter. In that case, you should do daily pwc to keep the ammo down. White poop also can mean internal parasites. Have you seen the black moor poop recently?

 

[jlk]

Please get yourself an API test kit & a filter for the other tank! Are both tanks 10gal? You will need to change the water in the tank without a filter atleast once a day (50%). Do you atleast have an extra airstone or bubbler you can stick in with him so he atleast has a source of aeration? Goldies are heavy oxygen users as well as extremely messy. Heres another link to read as well because one tank is not cycled-

I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

 

[jlk]

Forgot- his sluggish behavior & tiredness is from the lack of oxygen- you need to supply some source of aeration for him.

 

[Jayjangle]

Hi everyone, thanks for the responses.

I just got home and the larger goldfish was just fine while the black moore was sitting about an inch from the surface in the corner from the tank. He didn't look dead, just exhausted (all his fins were up and he was floating upright). I went ahead and moved the filter from the main tank and I intend to leave it in the Moore's tank for a few hours at least, unless you guys suggest otherwise.

He has since begun swimming around the tank more, albeit a bit anxiously. At this point I just want to make sure he is fine enough to get used to the tank until I can, very soon, buy something else to provide more oxygen to his tank. He is seeming to swim at normal pace for a while, and then he will dart forward and then relax again. This worries me but, since it is so late and fish stores are not an option right now, I'm not sure what else I can do.

Also, I apologize for my irresponsibility. I do want to be a good aquarist and I am finding that goldfish are much more tricky than I thought they would be. But, I love them, and I want to do my darnedest to make sure they are healthy, even if what I have done so far has been ignorant.

 

[blert]

Also, I apologize for my irresponsibility. I do want to be a good aquarist and I am finding that goldfish are much more tricky than I thought they would be. But, I love them, and I want to do my darnedest to make sure they are healthy, even if what I have done so far has been ignorant.

Don't be so hard on yourself. Nobody is judging you. Do the best you can with what you have. Do those daily water changes on that ten gallon and thing will turn out fine.

 

[ccross]

Also, I apologize for my irresponsibility. I do want to be a good aquarist and I am finding that goldfish are much more tricky than I thought they would be. But, I love them, and I want to do my darnedest to make sure they are healthy, even if what I have done so far has been ignorant.

No need to apologize. I did the same thing when I first got my goldfish, except I had 3 of them and a Chinese algae eater in a 1/2 gallon bowl. The people at the LFS told me it would be fine because goldie adapt in size to their surroundings. I came here after they started dying and found out otherwise. Now I have a 20 gallon with 1 single black moore and a pleco and the moore is the happiest fish I own.

Back to your issue tho. Tetra makes a filter called a Whisper 10i. I bought 1 for my 10 gallon hospital tank for about $10 and it works great. It'll help with filtration and provide more aeration for your moore and wont break the bank

 

[jlk]

Dont worry!!! We will help you through this!!! Just keep doing 50% water changes until you get another filter & test kit- moors are sensitive to their water conditions so you will need to keep his water as healthy as possible. Please ask any questions you may have!

 

[Jayjangle]

Hey everyone, thanks for everything.

I woke up and the Black Moore was sitting under the filter. He looked a bit frightened, and reminded me of a cat hiding under a bed when scared. Meanwhile, the other fish was fine in his tank even without a filter all night, and was just pouting for breakfast like he always did.

Anyway, the Moore swam off from under the filter when he saw me, and I moved the filter back into the original tank to give it some oxygen/filtration. Then, the Moore went right back to his corner and looked exhausted again. After I looked at him for a few seconds he woke up, freaked out and zipped around until he got to the opposite corner.

He still repeats the chill-out/freak out routine, but after moving the filter back, he became slightly more energetic. I also went ahead with a 40% water change, and fed him some flakes...but I'm not sure he noticed them.

 

[Jayjangle]

Sorry for a double post but I had a thought. Would it be better to move the moore into the tank the fantail is currently in, and move the fantail to the moore's tank? I'm even wondering if I shouldn't put the black moore back until the new aquarium is cycled properly...

 

[absolutangel04]

Jayjangle, you are doing fine right now. The most important thing in fish keeping to to try and give the fish the best possible life which is what you are doing.
This is just a guess, but maybe he would like a silk plant or something to hide around. Definitely try to get a filter for the moor's tank asap. That will help his behavior.
Good job in switching the filter for some water agitation, hopefully both fish will be doing ok when you can get another filter.

 

[absolutangel04]

Sorry for a double post but I had a thought. Would it be better to move the moore into the tank the fantail is currently in, and move the fantail to the moore's tank? I'm even wondering if I shouldn't put the black moore back until the new aquarium is cycled properly...

IMO, it couldn't hurt. I don't honestly know if it will help, but I think its worth a try. Keep a close eye on the fantail though because switching him into an uncycled tank may just bring up issues for him. If it was me, I would try it though.

 

[Jayjangle]

IMO, it couldn't hurt. I don't honestly know if it will help, but I think its worth a try. Keep a close eye on the fantail though because switching him into an uncycled tank may just bring up issues for him. If it was me, I would try it though.

Thanks, I was thinking of giving the second tank at least another several hours to set up. I am afraid of doing something rash that might put the fish in danger, though, so if you or anyone has any more input there, I would appreciate it.

And thanks for what you said about my fish. I was actually talking with my dad earlier about his fish in the past, and he said the fish that was most difficult to keep alive a long time was a fancy goldfish he had for about a year and a half.

 

[Jayjangle]

Update:

Thanks to your guys' kind words, I was able to control my worries and work rationally. I since switched the goldfish' tanks, and at first, they were anxious. However, I let them be, and fed them in a few hours and they settled down.

Both are doing fine. I have been switching the filter unit twice a day until I can get a second unit. The larger goldfish seems to need less oxygen filtering at a time, so I give more to the Moore by about an hour.

Thanks again. I'll keep you posted.

Question: At times, the Moore poops and it looks normal but looks a bit thin and silky at the end. What could/does this mean?

 

[jlk]

His poop sounds like its probably normal. Add some daily plain cooked veggies into their diet (broccoli florets, cauliflower, deshelled peas, zucchini, spinach etc). Crush peas before feeding. Remove any eaten veggies after 24hrs & replace with fresh ones.