Fish on Bottom...Is something wrong...HELP

[crenier]

OK I have a 4 year old fancy gold fish that I just acquired from someone that could no longer take care of him. I came into work this morning and he is layin on the bottom of the tank by the front. When I walk up to the tank he swims but then comes right back down after a couple minutes...

He is in a 20gal tall tank that has been set up for 3 days. With and Emperor 400 filter. About 3/4 of the water was taken out to move him and new water put in. I do not have a test set yet as it is in the mail and I'm in Iraq so can't run out to a local pet store. I have the water level dropped in the tank so that the filtered water has about an inch to drop into the tank for oxygen because he spent a lot of yesterday piping. The filters were rinsed off with water. I also rinsed off some river rock from outside and put it in the tank 2 days ago. Now the water looks a pink and I'm not sure what to do...

Should I take the rocks out...replace 50% of the water? Without a test kit I'm not sure what else I can do...HELP
Cherie

Answer these Qs to ensure we have as much information as possible about your ailing fish and its environment:

 

[Blueiz]

Did the water you use have chlorine or chloramine in it?

First, its not uncommon for fish to be disoriented, etc after moving homes and not be as active or feed for the first couple days after being moved.

Second, and most concerning since you do not have a test kit for ammonia is the ammonia level being elevated and poisoning the goldfish because the tank isn't cycled.

In light of the circumstances with no test kit, I reccomend doing an immediate 50 percent water change. Change at least this amount of water daily until you get your test kit and can get some readings to guide you on how much, how often to do water changes. Also, feed lightly and remove uneaten food after an hour.

Another thing to consider is if the fish is suffering from old tank syndrome. In other words if the conditions the fish was removed from were as such that he was in water that hadn't been changed in a very long time, it could be suffering from osmotic shock in the clean water. If this is the case, there really isn't much you can do to my knowledge other than wait it out and see what happens.

 

[jsoong]

How big si the fish? And can you be more specific on the "water looking pink"? <Take some water out, put it in a white cup & look closely under good light, do you see anything unusual?>

Other things - is the fish eating? Are the fins erect? Any spots, sores, etc. Did you see any poop?

In the absence of a test kit, I would agree that a good sized water change is in order. <Make sure the water is dechlorinated if the water had been treated, and temp match the water as much as possible.> Since the fish is moved to a new, unprepared tank. I would think that the tank may well be cycling, and you are starting to run into an ammonia spike.

The pink water is worrisome. This may be a sign that the fish is having bloody diarrhea. <ATM, I don't think there is too much you can do if indeed that is the case. Clean water is the first line of treatment....>

 

[crenier]

The water is bottled water made on the base here in Iraq from the Tigris or Eurphrates rivers. There are no labels on it but he has been living in this water for 4 years now.

The filters were completely caked when I got him and the water was fishy smelling an a lil green. So the old tank syndrome could be a cause but the day after I set up the tank he was so active and seemed to play a lot. Now he is just laying there. I've read that this can be normal behavior and I'm thinking that maybe he is just trying to sleep as his tank is in an office that is lit 24 hours a day...I'm going to put together a cardboard box today to cover it at night.

The thing that worries me most is the fact that the water is pink...I can't find any info on that and I'm wondering if there is something in the rocks that did it...headed to do a 50% water change now...How frequently should I do water changes until I get the test set?

 

[crenier]

To jssong

He is about 5-6 inch long and 3-4 inches wide.
Did not notice anything unusual about the water.
There was a piece of poop floating on the top of the water and I just did a 50% water change and fed him and he is eating and swimming around like normal.
The tank was the same tank he had before just had about 70% water change, rinsed off filters with water, and added some river rock that we rinsed off from outside...I read later that I should have boiled them but unsure now if I should take them out and do that or just leave them in there.
The water is a lil warm so I'm going to float a water bottle that I froze on top to hopefully cool it down a bit. Its hard to keep the office at a constant temp with the seasonal change right now...Outside its in the low 60s at night and back in the 90s during the day. But the fish is from this climate and has been in it for 4 years so again not sure that would effect him greatly.

EDIT: By pink I mean that it just looks a light link color vice clear water. Some of the bumps on his hood were raised yesterday with a string of white stuff coming out (not a worm)...He brushed it off on the glass and today the bumps are back to normal.

 

[EscVelocity]

I would take the rocks out and do a water change.

 

[Lynae]

Definately a part water change....
You can never go wrong with fresh tank water!!

 

[Blueiz]

I'd change the water at least once a day. I'd also take the rock out for now.. they may have something on them, or may be raising the ph. The pink stuff may be something that naturally grows in the water.. You could try boiling the water before adding it to the tank..

 

[austinsdad]

I'm a saltie, but would be concerned about rock from the river.

 

[jsoong]

5-6" long, that is a big fish! A 20 might even be too small, and certainly will make a lot of waste, so water changes are definitely in order.

Bumps on hood - I assume that this is an Oranda? White stuff in the bumps (the "wen") is normal. It is just a bit of dead skin & other debris, no need to worry.

Floating poop - this might be indicative of constipation. Normal poop whould be short & disintegrate in the water rapidly <so you almost never see it.> Constipated goldies can have swim bladder dysfunction so may bottom sit or float. <OTOH - seeing the poop make bloody diarrhea much less likely.> It won't hurt anything to feed the fish a bit of veggies for the constipation. <Skinned, blanched chopped peas are good for that.> Actually, fancy goldies should have veggies regularly to prevent gut problems. <Another possibility is feeding floating pellets/flakes ... this cause gas in the gut, hence the floating poop. Feeding veggies fix that too.>

 

[LilMooCow]

Hi, sorry to butt in on your thread, but I have a similar issue with my gorgeous bubble-head oranda and gonna be taking the advice on water changes . I was wondering when you say feed them veggies, what kind other than peas?

Cheers, hope your oranda gets better crenier!

 

[dkpate]

Peas are a laxative for fish, which is why we recommend them.

But you can also feed veggies like zuchinni. Just cut it into 4 long pieces and boil it for a few minutes to make it soft.

 

[LilMooCow]

Thanks, I'll try that!