Mr Stripes losing his stripe

[Roz]

Hello,
I have noticed from looking back through my pictures, that Mr Stripes (a young fantail) is:
- gradually losing his black stripe on top of his head and body.
- losing gold colour.

He has definitely grown in the 5-6 weeks I have had him, and he has a healthy appetite and swims all over the tank.

However, he may be a little stressed as one of my other fish, Spotty, sometimes chases him away from a particular area of gravel. I have tried to rectify this by changing the tank layout subtlety, but I know I need a bigger tank.

My tank details are 50 litres with a Marina filter and bubbles. The last water test on Monday was ok but not perfect. I am currently changing 20% water every second day.

I can buy a bigger tank in one month.

Is Mr Stripes ok? I read online that colour change can either be normal (ageing) or a sign of poor health (e.g. Parasites).

I apologise if this is a stupid question - I am very new to this with no one else to ask. R

 

[Fishfur]

If you don't know the answer, it's not a stupid question. Unfortunately I am not sure what a fantail is. Species name would help.

And by not perfect water, what exactly do you mean ? It is always much more helpful to put the exact rest results you got so we can see what they are.

 

[Roz]

Hope this works - 'before' and 'after' pics of Mr Stripes. I'll post water parameters later

 

[Roz]

Hello, water tests tonight :
Ph 7.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10-20

Thoughts ?

 

[Krissycakes]

Maybe the coloration in the fish changes, as it matures?

 

[Teakwood]

If those are the water parameters they should be fine. I would keep up on water changes as those fish have a big Bioload and for the time being it is quite a small tank. Some fishes striped darken when they they are stressed so maybe he's just settling in to his new surroundings.

 

[Fishfur]

Ok. Goldfish. He doesn't appear to be unhealthy from the pics, not in any obvious way. Some fish will lighten colours on a light substrate.. and some will change colours with growth or maturity too. Water's fine.. if that's what you think is less than perfect, wow, I'd be happy to be less than perfect all the time .

But he will outgrow that tank very soon, he and his buddies I can see in the pictures. Goldfish need large tanks and plenty of room, both to swim and support their fast growth. You've already seen how quickly they can grow, so be prepared, at some point, either to buy them a really huge tank, or find them a pond to live in all the time. Gold fish are so popular but the sad fact is that they are not the best aquarium pets, simply because they do outgrow their space so quickly.

And they can live decades, especially if well kept, so it's a shame to shorten their lives by forcing them to live in small tanks for too long. It can stunt their growth.

I'm not meaning to be unkind, I know the pet shops don't tell you the fish get so large or that they aren't the most practical of pets.. they want to make money. I just wanted you to know what's going to happen in the next year or so, so you can decide what you'd like to do for the fish.

 

[Roz]

Thank you!

I am planning on getting a 40-55 gallon tank in a month. Do you think that would be ok?

I don't have a pond or know anyone with a pond, and I think it would get too hot for the little guys to be outside in summer (up to 45-46 degrees).

I wish the fish shop had given me better advice, but I am so grateful to be getting it now

 

[Fishfur]

Where are you that it gets that hot in summers ? I assume you mean Celsius ?

Though if a pond is deep enough, they can hide in the depths or under the shade of plants in hot weather. Tank size depends on the number of fish you have and how large each one will become. I have heard ten gallons per one gold fish, some say a lot more than that. I am not an expert.. I'd post this question in the Native and Cold water species forum, you'll get a better answer as to how many you can keep in a given tank size.

 

[Krissycakes]

You can try aqadvisor.com to find out how much fish you can stock in your tank =)

 

[Roz]

Hello, yes Celsius. I am in Melbourne, Australia.

Perhaps I'll get the biggest tank I can afford (55g), and if the fishies look like they are going to outgrow that, I'll do everything I can to find them a pond (I'll miss them very much).

Thank you to everyone for helping me out

 

[Fishfur]

Wow. I knew it got hot in Aus, but not that hot. whew. Need a deep pond. But they are kept in nearly every country in the world, in a wide variety of conditions, so I'll hope for the best. Good luck.

 

[Roz]

Thank you