Shubunkins Freaking out

[HarleyNQ]

(I hope I'm posting this in the right place, if I am I'm sorry, can someone point me to the right section?)

Hello, I just got two beautiful Shubunkin goldfish a few weeks ago and am very happy watching them swim about~<3 I have a question though, I'm not really too worried about it but it has caught my attention quite a few times. While they have tons of room in their tank, the water is crystal clear, the temperature is perfect and I can see nothing floating around, for some reason one will freak out like someone who thinks there's a spider on their face. Sometimes is very mild like a twitch or very, I wouldn't say severe as it only last a few seconds, but it's like a full body flail. Mostly it's my smaller one but I have see the larger one do it a few times. It's very odd to me because I've never see a fish do that out of the blue, one will just do it in the middle of the tank with nothing around them, and afterwards they seem fine. Is this something I should be concerned about or is this something they regularly do?


Lol I Feel dumb now XD But relieved all the same, I went over my tank with a fine toothed comb today and found they cause of my fish spazzing out. Apparently when I did to 100% water change some hair got into the new gravel I put in to hold down some plants. I guess it was touching them as they swam by and they couldn't figure out what it was. It has sense been removed and I haven't seen anymore freak outs. Thanks for all the help~<33

 

[jlk]

Hi and welcome!!! A few questions first.

What size tank are they in?
Are there other fish in the tank?
Is it cycled?
What are your exact readings for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, & ph?
What type of test are you using (liquid or strips)?
How often & how big are your pwcs?
What is the temp of the tank?
Is there anything else unusual happening (lack appetite, loss color, gasping, flashing, strange poop, etc)?

This is not normal behavior but we really need some more information in order to be able to figure out what is going on.

 

[HarleyNQ]

Hello ^^
Thank you~<3
Wow, so many questions @^@

20gal long but they're still small,2-3 inches, when they get larger they'll be moving to an outdoor pond with some friendly Koi my grandmother keeps.
1 female Betta but she keeps to herself
By cycled do you me filtered? If so yes. 20-40 gal interior filter.
um, I don't know, but I did just do a 100% water change with the conditioner.
What are pwcs?
My thermometer says it's between 75 and 79 degrees
Not that I know of, I feed them flakes twice a day and maybe a frozen bloodworm tablet or a piece of Zucchini once or twice a week and they gobble it up.
Their colors are as vivid as the day I got them, if not more.
I don't know what gasping or flashing is. ^^;
and poo is normal as far as I've seen.
Whew XD

Ok ^^

 

[jlk]

LOL! Great job answering questions!! Let me say first, I am very happy to hear you plan on rehoming them to your grams pond! They truly are pond fish & deserve to live & grow in an environment suited to their specific needs.

Lets see... you need to purchase an API freshwater (fw) master test kit as soon as possible! This will allow you to monitor your tanks conditions & act accordingly by doing partial water changes (pwcs). Your tank is in the process of 'cycling'. Ill post a some links below for you to read. Cycling is the process of growing bacteria that will convert your ammonia (fish poop, decayed food, etc) to nitrite then to nitrate. Ammonia & nitrite are highly toxic to your fish & the behavior you are seeing sounds like ammonia and/or nitrite poisoning. Nitrate is not as bad but needs to be kept to suitable levels as well. Ideally, amm & nitrite should be zero & nitrate less than 20.

Is there a heater on this tank or is this just the temp the tank normally stays at? If theres a heater, you will need to gradually turn it down (1 degree a day) until the tank sits in the 70-74 range. If theres no heater, no big deal.

Ok- gasping is when you will see the fish breathing very heavily/rapidly and/or attempting to breathe air at the surface of the tank. Flashing is the fish basically trying to itch itself by rubbing on the gravel (swimming sideways along the gravel) or on decorations/objects & is a sign of irritation.

Ok- this is enough to get you started! Please dont hesitate to ask any questions you may have!!

I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?!

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/guide-to-starting-a-freshwater-aquarium-186089.html

 

[KaylNeko]

70-74 would probably damage the betta in there--they really don't do well at that low of a temperature.