i have questions...

[iluvmyfishys2]

hi! i have many questions! my first one is that my black moor keeps on sleeping for the past few days...and we can't understand why...he doesn't come and ask for food anymore when he sees us...and his tummy is getting very white..he also has a teeny little bit of red in his eyes and he stopped digging. He use to dig constantly that it bugged the jeebies out of us...but now that he has stopped we are wondering what is wrong w/ him! thanks for listening and the help!

 

[Allivymar]

Hiya iluvmyfishys2 and welcome to Aquariumadvice.

Bunch of questions that need to be answered before we can figure out whats going on:

What are your water parameters (ammonia, nitrite, nitrates)? How big is the tank? What fish are in there? How long have you had them? Anything new added to the tank recently? Is his belly swollen as well as turning white? Are his fins clamped or spread out?

Lets start with those

 

[Christmasfish]

Also add is the gravel small enough where he may eat some? While playing in his mouth he may have swallowed gravel (common and dangerous goldie activity)

 

[Menagerie]

[center:48d5123c10] Welcome to AA, iluvmyfishys2!! [/center:48d5123c10]
In addition to answering the above Qs, can you provide a pic?

 

[iluvmyfishys2]

hey everyone! what are water parameters?! the tank is about like 25 gallons...and he has another black moor, a lil gold fantail, and a chubby lil fantail as his little fishy buddies! well we have fishy fishy...the other black moor since june 14th 2003, go go, the lil gold fantail since august 7th 2003, meme, the chubby lil fantail since october 31st 2003, and bobo...the sick lil one since october 31st also! how do you tell if his tummy is swollen? well it's just turning white, but then again he started turning white from the beginning of january....any new things...well...my mom bought them a new colored light blub because wal-mart was out of their normal ones (the ones that are just plain light blub color) so it might be that but the other fishy's arent' sleeping like he is...he is also eating less! he is the biggest in the tank and is just a lil cutie! but now he just lies there on the marbles not moving at all! i'll try to get a picture of them too! thanks everyone!

 

[Menagerie]

You need a water test kit for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Who are the "fishy buddies?" How many fish in total in this tank? What kind of filter is on this tank? How often are water changes done?

 

[iluvmyfishys2]

do you get the water test kit at a pet store? the fish buddies are meme, gogo, and fishy fishy. (those are their names) lol...all together we have 4 fishys. we don't use a filter because the wal-mart sales associate said that we don't need one really for gold fish...but some of the information they give is wrong...my mom MAKES me change their water once every two days or three days... and their tank is actually 5 gallons....sorry about the typo....thanks again!

 

[Allivymar]

Ooo. I see lots of things that need fixin iluv!

A 5g is WAY too small!! Talk to your mom; you're going to need a 40g tank to keep those cute lil guys happy and healthy.

You also MUST have a filter. Its obvious you have a local Wallymart where the folks there don't know the first thing about fish.

Your mom deserves a hug for making you change that water; if you didn't the fish would have been dead from ammonia poisoning already. Fish produce ammonia as waste (they pee it, breathe it out, the food rots and turns into it) and ammonia will kill them.

So to explain and clarify:
Goldfish need 10g EACH. They are really dirty fish (they give off a LOT of ammonia waste) and they also grow BIG. The bigger the tank the easier it is to keep the water clean enough for them to live in.

A filter is necessary; it sucks up the bigger bits of waste out of the tank. It also gives good bacteria, bacteria which eats ammonia, a place to live.

You really need test kits to test for ammonia, nitrite and nitrates.

My guess is even tho you are changing the water frequently, your guy is suffering from ammonia poisoning. Take a look at this article; it explains about ammonia in fishtanks and all: http://faq.thekrib.com/begin-cycling.html

 

[Christmasfish]

It's all been said...

And that is why I don't change my siggy to some cool quote....

One other thing, your golds would appreciate a salt bath to soothe their irritated skin, but i don't know a recipe for that small a space. Unlike most freshwater fish, golds actually do appreciate a dash of aquarium salt now and again. Especially if your water is soft (low pH number)

 

[iluvmyfishys2]

Thanks Everyone for your help! my fishy's appriciate it! (and so do i!) lol