First of all, thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this and respond. It is very lengthy but I am trying to give as much information as possible because my fish needs help!
I recently got a very young Oranda goldfish from my local petstore. He is still very small, his total body is probably just over an inch in length. I have owned bettas in the past and they lived long happy lives and he is my first goldfish.
Anyway, I have had my goldfish for just over a week. I am keeping him in a 5 gallon tank with a 10 gallon filter. First of all, I KNOW that a 5 gallon tank is wayyy too small for even a young oranda. Unfortunately I do not have the money to purchase a bigger tank but I plan on moving him into something bigger (10 gallons or more) ASAP. I love my goldfish very much and I have bought ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH test kits so that I can make sure he is as healthy and safe as possible.
Another thing that I know I made the mistake of doing before purchasing him... I did not cycle the tank previous to buying him. I used API quick start and stress coat because I had been mislead by a source that told me that by adding quick start, the aquarium would not need to go through the month-long cycling process.
When I picked him out at the pet store, he and all of the other fish in the tank looked very healthy. He was very active and swam all over the tank. When I brought him home he continued to act very energetic and curious. However, within the past 24-48 hours, he has suddenly become very lethargic. He spends most of his time facing the same corner of the tank near the surface. He has always spent a lot of time in this particular spot, even when he was active, but know he just rests there and does not move with the exception of his fins moving slightly. Occasionally he swims around other areas of the tank, but he does so very slowly. I suspect that the culprit may be ammonia because the tank is not yet cycled and the tank levels range from 0.5 ppm to 2.0 ppm from day to day. However, I purchased and have been using API Ammolock to stop the ammonia from affecting him.
Today, I performed a water change of about 30%. After I changed the water, he seemed invigorated for about 20 minutes. He was swimming around, exploring, and I thought I had fixed the problem. However, after about an hour he returned to his lethargic self.
I am so worried about my goldfish. I know I have made mistakes with my tank and cycling it, but I really do love my fish and I want the best for him. I suspect the cause is ammonia or some othe water toxin, but even after treating the water with Ammolock this has happened! Will this pass? Or is it a sign or something more serious that I should be concerned about? I do not know what to do. I don't want my fish to suffer. Please help me!!!
I recently got a very young Oranda goldfish from my local petstore. He is still very small, his total body is probably just over an inch in length. I have owned bettas in the past and they lived long happy lives and he is my first goldfish.
Anyway, I have had my goldfish for just over a week. I am keeping him in a 5 gallon tank with a 10 gallon filter. First of all, I KNOW that a 5 gallon tank is wayyy too small for even a young oranda. Unfortunately I do not have the money to purchase a bigger tank but I plan on moving him into something bigger (10 gallons or more) ASAP. I love my goldfish very much and I have bought ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH test kits so that I can make sure he is as healthy and safe as possible.
Another thing that I know I made the mistake of doing before purchasing him... I did not cycle the tank previous to buying him. I used API quick start and stress coat because I had been mislead by a source that told me that by adding quick start, the aquarium would not need to go through the month-long cycling process.
When I picked him out at the pet store, he and all of the other fish in the tank looked very healthy. He was very active and swam all over the tank. When I brought him home he continued to act very energetic and curious. However, within the past 24-48 hours, he has suddenly become very lethargic. He spends most of his time facing the same corner of the tank near the surface. He has always spent a lot of time in this particular spot, even when he was active, but know he just rests there and does not move with the exception of his fins moving slightly. Occasionally he swims around other areas of the tank, but he does so very slowly. I suspect that the culprit may be ammonia because the tank is not yet cycled and the tank levels range from 0.5 ppm to 2.0 ppm from day to day. However, I purchased and have been using API Ammolock to stop the ammonia from affecting him.
Today, I performed a water change of about 30%. After I changed the water, he seemed invigorated for about 20 minutes. He was swimming around, exploring, and I thought I had fixed the problem. However, after about an hour he returned to his lethargic self.
I am so worried about my goldfish. I know I have made mistakes with my tank and cycling it, but I really do love my fish and I want the best for him. I suspect the cause is ammonia or some othe water toxin, but even after treating the water with Ammolock this has happened! Will this pass? Or is it a sign or something more serious that I should be concerned about? I do not know what to do. I don't want my fish to suffer. Please help me!!!
