Sick goldfish?

[jsnuffaluff]

Hey guys -
So I've had my 50gal freshwater planted tank for almost a year now, everything is running smoothly. I have a 70gal penguin filter and a 30gal whisper filter, plenty of aeration, growing java ferns, and only keep two golden mystery snails and 1 very spoiled red oranda goldfish named Archie. A few days ago Archie started acting different, sitting on the bottom (no clamped fins), hiding in his sleeping spot, not swimming around as usual. He is still eating but not as ravenously as normal. First thing I did was check the parameters and everything is perfectly normal. The tank is 74 degrees F. No white spots, no red streaks, no signs of illness at all.. Is goldfish loneliness a thing? Maybe he just tired? I feel a little crazy.
Any advice?

 

[ImACoolguy]

Not really sure if he is only bottom sitting...

That temperature is a little warm for him though.


Caleb

 

[jsnuffaluff]

Do you suggest a PWC to cool it off? I'm in Texas and it is a little hot midday, but aquarium chillers are definitely out of my price range..

 

[kirkland795]

What your describing(hiding) could be the early signs of an illness. I had angel fish who had similar behavior and ended up having wasting disease. My fish became disinterested in food and lost weight. Does your goldfish have any white or stringy poop?

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[jsnuffaluff]

Update:
I read other forums about the API test kit that said you had to really shake those bottles..
So I did that, retested, and my nitrate levels were sky high. In the process of a water change and I can already tell he's acting more alert. I feel dumb that it was something so simple!

 

[thing fish]

Exactly how high are the nitrates? Before you do a huge water change, consider that a sudden drastic change in levels could also be a shock to your fish. It may be better to do several smaller water changes.

 

[coralbandit]

Update:
I read other forums about the API test kit that said you had to really shake those bottles..
So I did that, retested, and my nitrate levels were sky high. In the process of a water change and I can already tell he's acting more alert. I feel dumb that it was something so simple!

Good for you and Archie on finding the issue!

Exactly how high are the nitrates? Before you do a huge water change, consider that a sudden drastic change in levels could also be a shock to your fish. It may be better to do several smaller water changes.

^+1^ with this!
Depending how high the nitrates are a 25% change daily for a couple days are better then changing him up too quick IMO.
It is important to get him better water but also not to shock him IMO.