Goldfish is acting weird

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Binxxbear

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
May 30, 2011
Messages
5
Location
Houston
She stayed at the bottom of the tank for two days. My other smaller goldfish started acting aggressive toward her. I moved her to another tank alone thinking she was afraid of him. She perked up, but soon was at the bottom. Ph is 7 or 7.1, ammonia levels ok, it is a small holding tank I was cycling. I fed her a few peas (mashed no skin) added a little aquarium salt. Since being there she swimming around very hyper. Returns to the bottom digging divots.!? I had her (and not even sure it's a her) for a month. I got her from petsmart. I assume she's young, too young to lay eggs right??!! Any advice would be a VERY appreciated!!
Thanxx
 
What's the water parameters for both tanks? Size? Are there any physical abnormalities?
 
What size tank are they in (just the 2)? What's your water parameters and how are you testing your water (strips or liquid)?

If she's in a bare tank, it could be boredom. Goldfish do 3 things a lot, eating, pooping and booking (scouring the bottom for more food lol). Peas (shelled) once a week is good to flush them out and help prevent SBD. Not sure about the eggs, but mine were about 2 before their first egging.
 
The holding tank she is in right now is only 5 gallons. I bought it with her before I did my homework. I got a ten gallon the next day. Still small, but I exhausted my funds. My son got two as a gift (his grandparents didn't do their homework). My boyfriend said NOT to spend money on another bigger tank. So, I rebelled by buying a biowheel penguin 100 filter and an underwater filtration system. I also grabbed ammonia sponges & a few extra chemicals for mainatince. A bigger tank would have cost much less :) I have liquid test kits (ph and ammonia) The holding tank has gravel and a few decorations. I was trying to finish cycling it. I do 10% water changes on their main tank daily. I did a much larger one yesterday trying to get the ammonia in check. But I'm back to 10% and ammo lock for now.
 
Oh, to answer the question about an abnormality... She has abdominal bloating. Two pea size "swellings" on each side. I have vidoe, but can't figure out how to post it. I'm on an iPhone if that makes a difference.
 
I was reading about that actually. That is why I fed her peas. I figured the peas wouldn't hurt. On one side the pea size swelling went away. The other is still there. You can kinda see it in the pic. Should I lower the water level? I read I makes it easier for her to keep her "balance". I also read Epson salt might help, but I refuse to add it without doing some more research.
Thank you guys for helping. I really come to love my (my son's lol) fish. I'd feel horrible if she died due to the fact I didn't do proper research :(
 

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The holding tank she is in right now is only 5 gallons. I bought it with her before I did my homework. I got a ten gallon the next day. Still small, but I exhausted my funds. My son got two as a gift (his grandparents didn't do their homework). My boyfriend said NOT to spend money on another bigger tank. So, I rebelled by buying a biowheel penguin 100 filter and an underwater filtration system. I also grabbed ammonia sponges & a few extra chemicals for mainatince. A bigger tank would have cost much less :) I have liquid test kits (ph and ammonia) The holding tank has gravel and a few decorations. I was trying to finish cycling it. I do 10% water changes on their main tank daily. I did a much larger one yesterday trying to get the ammonia in check. But I'm back to 10% and ammo lock for now.

That size tank is going to be an ongoing issue too their well-being since even a 10g is too small for 1 goldie. API has a FW Master test kit that actually is the best value, but since you have parts of it already a test for nitrIte (no2) and nitrAte (no3) are pretty important to have too IMO/E.

I'd suggest 50% pwc as goldies are very dirty and create a lot of ammonia from their waste. Any ammo over .25ppm and no2 at all can do serious harm to the fish.
 
Are the scales sticking out? (like a pine cone) ... almost looks like that in the belly.

Peas are good start. You might want to feed veggies exclusively for a few days to see if the sswelling goes down.

What is the activity level of the fish? Staying at the bottom is fine as long as the fish is active. If the fish is not moving much, it is a problem. Agree that water parameter is definitely a concern in small tank. I would be doing 50% pwc daily for now, even if your tests are zero. <And if there is ammonia or nitrites, you need to do even more pwc's!>
 
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