Advice About a Goldfish

[Seinaruyoru]

So I recently transferred into a new school. I live and work in Japan. At my new school there is a goldfish in the science room. I feel so bad for him. No one seems to care about this goldfish. The tank is filthy. The walls of the tank are black with algae. The gravel is black, though I think it use to be white, and not simply on the top but all the way through. I opened the head of the filter and it appears to have a centimeter or so of algae growing on it. I thought maybe people just didn’t have time to care for him and asked where the supplies for doing his weekly 10-15% water changes were and was told that since there was a filter the water never needed, and in fact ought to never be changed. There are no supplies in the school for cleaning the tank at all. The fish appears sluggish and just kinds chills at the bottom of the tank all the time, though the water doesn’t have any kind of odor. It is about a 10 gal tank for a single goldfish maybe three inches long.

I can’t decide what to do. Part of me says not to push anything about. It’s not my fish it’s not my business. I don’t have any of my own aquarium supplies, as I didn’t bring any of that stuff when I moved here, but it’s hard to watch. I don’t have a lot of aquarium experience either. I had my one betta. I kept him in a 5 gallon tank, bought him RO water and did a small change every week for about 5 years and didn’t get another fish after he died.

How much does algae growth to that level actually affect the life and healthy of the fish? Should I get involved or just let it be? Would trying to address the problem at this point with my limited experience perhaps do more harm than good? I would welcome some opinions. Thank you.

 

[Toad]

Find out who is in charge of the fish and talk to them about possibly working on a better setup. Ten gallons is far too small for a goldfish, so he may be stunted.

If no one is in charge, see if they'll let you volunteer to take care of it.