Help!! Fish getting eaten :(

[RossyBoy]

Hey guys, i have a 40 litre setup, with plants, internal filter and air pump.

I've had a goldfish, a comet and a red oranda in there for about 3 weeks.

Last week i introduced a brown/chocolate brown oranda as a 4th fish, now unfortunately i've noticed the comet constantly chasing it and now holes appearing in the oranda's fins, obviously being eaten by the comet?

What should i do!?
-remove the 'bully' into a seperate tank?
-take the comet back to the pet store and ask to swap?
-let nature take its course?






Also, besides this for a 40 litres freshwater setup, would you recommend i get snails or a sucker-fish? (sorry nt sure of the actual breed lol).




Cheers guys, thanks in advance.

 

[QTOFFER]

Hi, RossyBoy and welcome to AA!

40 L = 10 gallons

Unfortunately, I think your problem is stress due to severe overcrowding. Goldfish, comets, and orandas are messy fish that generate alot of ammonia and completely turn the 1 inch per gallon guideline on its head. These species require 40 L (10 gal) PER FISH!

Have you checked your ammonia levels? I'd suspect that they are elevated and that your fish may be suffering from finrot brought on by the stress. The faster comet's antics are probably adding to the stress.

You mention a separate tank - how big is that? Are these fish in the 40 L temporarily?

I think your long term solution is one fish in the 40 L or a bigger tank.

Your other question is tricky because goldfish prefer cooler water (less than 75oF (23.9oC) than most other fish can tolerate. Nearly all algae eaters (plecos, otos) require temps in the 76 - 80oF (24.4 - 26.7oC) range. Goldfish can tolerate these temps, but they won't as happy.

 

[theotheragentm]

You should probably just return the fish. That tank is too small, even for one goldfish as they grow large and make quite a mess with the way they produce bioload (ie. pooping).

 

[Pleco]

Goldfish are the non-catfish of the fish world. In fact I think that goldfish actually de-throne pleco's as the irreputable poop king of the aquarium, and that alone is no small feat. I say return the fish unless you have a larger habitat for it, he will thank you for it.

-Pleco

 

[RossyBoy]

Cheers fellas, i've returned the 'bully' to the store today, and now i have just 3 in it, hoping to get a bigger setup around June time so hopefully they won't have grown so big by then.

Reason I had 4 in this tank, was coz the guy in the pet store told me this tank would easily hold 5+ goldfish, so i duno maybe he was getting mixed up with the normal rule and not accounting for the breed.


And as for the snails/sucker fish i wanted either to clean the glass so was just wandering which would be most suitable for my setup.

 

[JDogg]

Reason I had 4 in this tank, was coz the guy in the pet store told me this tank would easily hold 5+ goldfish, so i duno maybe he was getting mixed up with the normal rule and not accounting for the breed.

more fish in your tank = more $$ in the LFS's pocket, sad, but happens a lot IME :?

 

[Sidi]

Reason I had 4 in this tank, was coz the guy in the pet store told me this tank would easily hold 5+ goldfish, so i duno maybe he was getting mixed up with the normal rule and not accounting for the breed.

Goldfish are probably the most abused fish species on the planet. There's a local pond with thosands of goldfish in it, originally some were released as former pets and grew. You can easily pull out 8"+, heavy specimins as they breed in the weeds on the side. In fact, I stocked my mother's garden pond with several from it. Yes, goldfish are cheap and easy feeders. If you throw them in a tank/bowl you're not risking much money. But they aren't little fish, and even when small pollute the water like a big fish. They're great for an outdoor pond, like koi...but they won't thrive in a small enclosure long term. The guy simply didn't realize the max size on a common goldfish is quite large, because you don't see them live that long under the common conditions..

That's probably the most evil thing about pets, is that cheap is considered entry level. If you go with cars, or bikes, or painting, or whatever, the cheap option is usually the best way to start. Get something that isn't going to break the bank and see if you really love it. Unfortunately with pets it turns out "well, labs are really sweet dogs...get one of those" or "wow, dalmations are cute, you need one of those!" When it turns out you live in a small apartment, and the thing is spinning in circles, crazy from lack of space and attention...the pet store is nowhere to be found.

 

[Sidi]

And as for the snails/sucker fish i wanted either to clean the glass so was just wandering which would be most suitable for my setup.

Oh, I missed this part. In a 10 gallon...otos. All the way. They're a bit delicate, so check the guides on how to buy them, but great algae eaters and they stay small. You could put a dwarf pleco (a bristlenose would probably be ok) but it won't be as good.

Pretty much any snail will be ok. Even the largest apple snails are smaller than a fist, and don't pollute all that much. The only problem is that, if you go with pond snails, you may be overrun with few treatment options. The common snail treatments are a bit hard on fish, most of the snail eating fish get way too huge, and you're left with a couple oddball chemicals to prevent breeding/development.

Edit: Oh, I should say, even a small pleco will be a very large addition to a tank that small. They poop a lot, and though they don't need the swimming space, they pretty much need the filtration of the inch/gallon rule. Unfortunatley, any tank under the 29g size becomes very difficult to stock.

 

[RossyBoy]

Oh damn it!

Another problem now.

The goldfish has decided to turn evil now my Comet has gone. It's now munching at the oranda's fins.

What should i do? the pet shop maybe a bit knarked off if i take another fish back!

Will the damaged fins naturally heal on the oranda or will it need treatment?

 

[Zagz]

If you keep the water pristine the fins should heal on the oranda. You may have no choice but to return the attacking goldfish. Even if the lfs is unhappy, they are the ones that told you to keep the fish together.

If the fish doesn't heal on it's own you may have to treat it, you can treat with mela/pimafix as it is relatively mild. The best treatment is pristine water though.