Goldfish HELP...

[cota1]

Hello,

I am not a newbie and I have a lot of aquarium experience from freshwater to saltwater...I also breed and raise seahorses. I am having a boat load of trouble with, of all things, one of my goldfish. She is a 3-4 year old lionhead and has always been very healthy and active. She has spawned many times and I have raise many of her offspring. I finally took away the males last year so I wasn't making myself crazy by trying to raise every single baby goldfish. Anyway, she has become listless and has been lying at the bottom of the aquarium for weeks....probably close to two months now. I have researched and tried every method I have found. I have used generalized medications for internal and external ailments with no success. It is hard to tell if she is actually bloated more than her normal body shape..so Im assuming she isn't bloated badly. She aggressively eats anything I can get near her....I have been feeding her nothing but shelled frozen peas and she loves them....but there has not been any sign of her getting better. I am to the point that if I cant find something to help her, I feel like I should put her to rest....which I haven't looked up humane ways to euthanize a goldfish....but I would prefer to just get her better...but it has been so long that I do not know what to do. if ANYONE has any ideas or recommendations for healing..please let me know asap...I feel like she is suffering thought there is no signs of it other than he lying at the bottom of the tank. I should mention that the other 3 goldfish that share her tank have no signs or symptoms. Please help! Thanks, Michael

 

[Delapool]

Hi, that's a tough one. I assume you have checked all the water specs, ph and temp are stable and tried increasing water changes? Was there any change in the tank when she got sick?

Edit - if you could list water specs, pwc schedule, meds used, any other details this will all help. I'm not trying to insult with the water specs but it is good to close this out.

 

[jlk]

Welcome to AA!!!

How are your parameters and water change schedule? Tank size? Exactly what type of meds have you used? Some more specific information will help us to try and make further suggestions!

 

[pip walters]

If she is eating well and has a generally healthy appearance - good fins etc, then my guess is a swim bladder disorder - fancy goldfish are rather prone to swim bladder problems due to their deformed body shape compressing their internal organs. I would have thought 2 months would be long enough for any pathological disease to have taken a good hold on her and probably ended her life!

If she does move, does she appear to struggle, with laboured, exaggerated swimming movements? And, when she stops, does she simply sink again?

If she is unable to inflate her swim bladder, the she cannot gain buoyancy. If she cannot swim to the surface, she cannot take in air with which to inflate the swim bladder.

Try maintaining her for a while in a separate container with just enough water to cover her body by a small amount - say half an inch. If she starts to move more freely, start to gradually increase the water level and see how she goes.

You may be able to maintain her in the main tank by suspending a net or trap near the surface and putting her in that, as long as it is large enough. Either method will reduce the water pressure on her body and may enable her to re-inflate the swim bladder as she is nearer the surface.... you could even try holding her near the surface to see if she attempts to take in air???

If your other fish are fine as you say, I am sure your experience will mean you test your water regularly and maintain healthy parameters

Keep us posted

 

[Delapool]

If she is eating well and has a generally healthy appearance - good fins etc, then my guess is a swim bladder disorder - fancy goldfish are rather prone to swim bladder problems due to their deformed body shape compressing their internal organs. I would have thought 2 months would be long enough for any pathological disease to have taken a good hold on her and probably ended her life!

If she does move, does she appear to struggle, with laboured, exaggerated swimming movements? And, when she stops, does she simply sink again?

If she is unable to inflate her swim bladder, the she cannot gain buoyancy. If she cannot swim to the surface, she cannot take in air with which to inflate the swim bladder.

Try maintaining her for a while in a separate container with just enough water to cover her body by a small amount - say half an inch. If she starts to move more freely, start to gradually increase the water level and see how she goes.

You may be able to maintain her in the main tank by suspending a net or trap near the surface and putting her in that, as long as it is large enough. Either method will reduce the water pressure on her body and may enable her to re-inflate the swim bladder as she is nearer the surface.... you could even try holding her near the surface to see if she attempts to take in air???

If your other fish are fine as you say, I am sure your experience will mean you test your water regularly and maintain healthy parameters

Keep us posted

Wondering if we have lost the OP

So fish kind of take in or expel air to maintain swim bladder? I've never even thought of it really - I know it exists but no idea how it works?

 

[pip walters]

Yes, when fish larvae have almost used up their egg sac, they will swim to the surface to take air and process it to the swim bladder via capillaries attached to the gut so that they can start swimming properly. This 'swimming up' is the signal for us fish farmers to start feeding the larvae.

When I stocked ponds with fingerling carp, I would always observe them racing to the surface to take in air so as to adjust the swim bladder, which was affected by changes in water pressure as the ponds were deeper than the growing tanks where they had been grown indoors.