can anyone tell me me why my fish pick up gravel and carry it a short distance, before spitting it out ??
2007-01-12 03:49:32 · 24 answers · asked by maggotdad 2 in Pets ➔ Fish
No, they are not looking for food. Goldfish are not bottom feeders. They absolutely will not eat old food off the bottom of an aquarium or pond. They are very picky. In fact, your goldfish are redecorating, so to speak. Goldfish love to pick up gravel and move it around. It's a type of nest building. I've talked to some goldie owners who say their goldies will move every single piece of gravel off the bottom and put it in one big pile leaving the rest of the aquarium the clear glass bottom. It's normal. They're having fun! oh, and btw.... goldfish are not slobs nor the white trash of the fish world! They are elegant fish who have been given a very negative view by Americans who think they're for carnivals and feeding to their pirhanas. The rest of this world takes goldfish keeping as a very serious hobby. There are goldies out there worth thousands of dollars.
2007-01-12 04:42:11 · answer #1 · answered by Venice Girl 6 · 0⤊ 3⤋
Because it is fun! Gold fish love moving the gravel around. The other day when I had cleaned my tank I noticed behind a rock I had managed to leave a piece of glass at the bottom totally exposed. A short while later my four fish came along and in a frantic effort got it covered again! I don't know if it is good for the or not, but I sometimes leave little hollows or gravel mountains in my tank for them to sort out - they always disappear!
2007-01-12 22:12:12 · answer #2 · answered by icklnickla 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is basic. They are simply sucking food remnants and algae off the gravel. Most fish do this, it is not just a goldfish thing.
2007-01-12 09:12:23 · answer #3 · answered by ? 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋
All goldfish have this habit. They sift through the gravel looking for items of food.
2007-01-12 06:00:46 · answer #4 · answered by ispooky2 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
It is cleaning it's mouth,they pick up a piece of gravel and swill it around in their mouth to get rid of any bits of food/bacteria etc before spitting it out. it is perfectly normal behaviour and doesn't do them any harm,infact it is the fish equivalent of brushing your teeth.
2007-01-12 05:35:28 · answer #5 · answered by munki 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Gold fish are related to the carp family of fish which are bottom feeders though will take an easy opportunity to grab floating food also . I think they are just trying to get extra food which has settled to the bottom of the tank.
2007-01-12 03:54:55 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 2⤋
my gold fish do that too.. they are basically just looign for left over scraps of food. one time one of my gold fish sucked up too big of a rock and it got stuck! in his mouth! i was so afraid the fish would die on me! but it tried for 10 minutes to get it unlodged from his mouth and he was fine. phew!
2007-01-12 05:23:26 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Ours do the same thing, they are the "pigs" of the fish world, living in some really dirty surroundings quite happily, they are probably searching for food that has dropped to the bottom, but do not increase the food you place in there as you can over feed and kill it.
2007-01-12 04:01:13 · answer #8 · answered by Denise H 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Cause its looking for more food.they can eat all the time .but be careful not to overfeed cause then they will die.Just thinking that the gravel is more food, or turning the rocks to find sunken food.
2007-01-12 03:54:40 · answer #9 · answered by Smiles 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
hes just getting the food out of the gravel
2007-01-12 04:01:07 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋