Helping my black moor

[laur94x]

sorry but this is going to be a long one :S

I've had my little black moor for a while now, hes not had the best start in life, I bought a very small tank a while ago and was told it could house 3 goldfish so I had my black moor in there along with a little ryukin which I bought later on, as soon as I joined this website I found out they need a MUCH larger tank so I quickly put them in the biggest tank I could get at the time which was about a 17gallon, still far too small but it was the best I could do. I gave them lots of filtration, regular water changes and tested levels every few days. I eventually saved enough money and rearranged my whole bedroom to get them a rio 125. 125 litres/33 gallons I think? which they are happily living in now and they seem to love it. (I am aware that if they get too big they may need a bigger tank)

Anyway, since gradually upgrading tanks my ryukin seems to be growing nicely, hes definitely getting bigger and his fins and tail look amazing, he eats well too. Hes still not big but I got them when they were tiny so I think hes growing well now.

Unfortunately I'm worried about my black moor, when in the smaller tanks he lost a lot of his tail, i treated for finrot and bacterial infections etc but I wonder now if it was actually the ryukin munching on him :S Anyway, one half of his tail and his fins have completely grown back and look really nice now, however for some reason the other half of his tail (on the right side of his body) just wont grow back, its just a little stump I dont know how it got this bad. He doesnt seem bothered by it at all and he swims normally but I expected it to grow back and its not. Also, I know black moors eyesite is bad anyway but he really struggles to see his food, I keep an eye on him and make sure he gets some but he doesnt eat even half as much as my ryukin.

Please dont guilt trip me for their past, I felt terrible when I found out and have done everything I could to make things right but its another case of very wrong information from fish stores however both fish now seem happy and I just want some advice on my moors problems to see if I can help him with his eating and his tail.
Any advice would be appreciated, thanks

 

[Fresh2o]

It sounds like you are doing everything right to ensure the health of your goldfish. Thumbs up!

As for the lack of regrowth in one of the moor's tail fins...the infections in the past may have damaged tissue at the base of the tail and affected the ability for regeneration. It may grow back eventually or not at all.

 

[laur94x]

Hey, thank you I feel so bad about the past, I really want them to be happy now. Its so nice to see them with so much room and the ryukin growing nicely. Thanks for the advice, I don't mind if it doesn't grow back as long as he's not affected by it and not in pain x

 

[laur94x]

Another thing which I've just noticed while sitting next to my tank is that my black moor has stringy white poo :s isn't that a sign of parasites or something? They had peas for breakfast this morning and they normally have a varied diet of hikari saki pellets, brine shrimp, blood worm, peas, cucumber etc.
I don't know how long its been white for because I moved house a few weeks ago and I only managed to move my tank a week ago (had to leave it at my parents whilst sorting out the new place) so only went round there for water changes and feeding etc. I'm hoping its a one off because of the peas

 

[jlk]

Hi! If the rays (bones) were badly damaged, this section of tail will likely not grow back. Fish are quite adaptable and it sounds like he has adjusted to his handicap quite well! I would not worry about it at all.

In respect to poop, its likely stress induced from the move. You have these guys for quite awhile and an internal parasite issue would not show up at this late point in time. Feed them veggies heavily for the next few days-all they want to eat. Nothing else. You should start seeing nice, big strands of green poop within 24-48hrs. If you dont, let us know!

In respect to feeding the moor, you may want to consider an inexpensive tank divider for mealtime. A sheet of clean plastic (or something similar) would work fine. This will give the moor ample time to find his share of food and consume it. Just make sure he has plenty of time to find it and eat it (as in half an hour or longer). Good luck!

 

[Sharpchick]

You can also use a plastic kitchen colander to feed your moor. You just dip it down into the tank to catch him, then bring it toward the surface but make sure it's still submerged in the water. (I've used a long barbecue fork to span the short part of the tank to have another place to rest one of the handles - use the tank rim to rest the one on the opposite side.) That way you can feed him separately and release him when he's eaten.

That probably wouldn't be the optimal solution when feeding veggies. I know my goldies take a while to pick at their veggies - pick, pick, go sightseeing, come back and pick, pick...

 

[laur94x]

Thank you for all the suggestions, ill give them a go