My goldfish (plural-4 in total) have all lived in harmony with my 2 tetra and 2 bottom feeders for about 2 years now. Yesterday I found one of them acting strangely, floating on his side, then swimming backwards, bumping into the side of the tank, etc. He died about an hour later. I assumed it was just his time. These are 2 year old feeder goldfish. Then later that evening another started doing it. It died this morning. And now yet another is starting. I have taken it from the tank to hopefully protect the other, but that one is being "fishy". The other fish in the tank are acting fine. The water was not changed recently (about 3 weeks ago) but is clean with new filter (changed it after second died). They have light and regular temputures, and food of course.
Is this mad fish disease?
2007-01-18 05:29:45 · 7 answers · asked by charice266 5 in Pets ➔ Fish
The fish are not huge fish, they are small goldfish. Not pond koi. And I add water weekly, the last "change" means I cleaned the rocks and plants, etc.
2007-01-18 05:41:50 · update #1
No, it's not mad fish disease, it's ammonia / nitrite poisoning.
2 years is not a good lifespan for a goldfish; properly cared for, they can live well into their teens and before.
You did not specify the tank size? Feeder goldfish are comet or common goldfish, and those can grow to 1-1.5 feet long. They are pond fish, not aquarium fish, and anything less than 50 gallons per fish is not enough water to cope with their size and the amount of waste they produce. So, it adds up in the aquarium which is likely too small (unless it's 250 gallons) and makes them sick. Also, the fact that you didn't clean the water for 3 weeks probably made it worse - you should be replacing about 30% of the water every week.
I would suggest moving your remaining 2 fish to a pond, or give them to a local petstore to take care of.
2007-01-18 05:37:16 · answer #1 · answered by Zoe 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Aaarrrggghhhh!!!! Goldfish are not community fish. They should never, ever be put with any other freshwater fish. Do not put the remaining fish back in with the others. Goldfish have completely different water quality and temperature requirements. Goldfish need more space too. 10 gallons of water up to 3 inches per fish. 15 gallons for 4 inches per fish, 20 gallons of water for 5 inches per fish and above. Goldfish ph levels should be at 7.0, whereas other community fish require higher levels. Goldfish have different feeding requirements. You need to soak their food prior to feeding so that they don't get air in their stomachs. There is something called "cycling" water. For goldfish, you should cycle water, preferably for 30 to 60 days prior to introducing fish, but at the very minimum of two weeks. You never do a complete water change. You change 25% of the water weekly and use a siphon to get the gunk out of the substrate. It is difficult to know what disease your fish may be suffering from without more information, but check this site. It will help you to identify the disease and give you treatment information.
2007-01-18 05:43:39 · answer #2 · answered by Venice Girl 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Goldfish grow. The fact that they are still small when they are 2 yrs old, tells me your not properly caring for them. What Zoe said is correct. All goldfish grow to 12-14 inches. Its also not good to mix goldfish with tropical fish. The oldest goldfish died recently at the age of 43, 2 yrs is considered a baby. No fish grows to the size of the aquarium. The outside may have appeared to stop growing but the insides are still growing causing pain and eventual death.
2007-01-18 05:47:39 · answer #3 · answered by lady_crotalus 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Well without pictures it's hard to say what kind they are? How big are they? If they are too big for the tank they will crash into the sides trying to swim fast to get air exchange into their gills. Check the ammonia levels. If it's high that can make them act weird too. The snails probably came into your tank with a live plant you possibly bought for the tank. That's how most get there. I do't know alot about them, so the other answerer is probably right about the parasites and you'll have to get medicine to treat that. Get rid of the snails the sooner the better. You'll have millions soon if you don't. They're no good for anything so just flush them. Maybe putting some aquarium salt in the tank would kill them? Most, but not all fish benefit from a little aquarium salt. It helps with the slime coat, for one. Plecos don't tolerate it, though, and I'm sure there are other fish that won't also, you'd have to know what kind of fish you have in order to find out if salt would be beneficial to them. I know when I catch snails in the yard I put them in salt and it kills them. It might work that way in the aquarium also. I dunno, you'd have to try it.
2016-05-24 03:47:41 · answer #4 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It might have been swim bladder disease or a cyst that developed and disrupted the swim bladder. I had a 5+ year old goldfish that died last year that was having similar problems, but she had a noticable "bump" on one side of her body. I assumed it was either a cyst or a tumor, since I tried treating her for both bacterial and fungal infections at different times.
2007-01-18 05:44:34 · answer #5 · answered by rockjock_2000 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
goldfish in tanks need frequent water changes and gravel vacuums. i do 1/3 of the water weekly. anytime a fish dies in a tank it causes an ammonia spike because a dead fish makes the bacteria count go crazy. you should always completely empty the tank out anytime you have a death. sounds like an ammonia chain reacaction. no mystery. learn to cycle your tank and do partial water changes weekly instead of full water changes infrequently.
2007-01-18 07:49:08 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Goldfish need colwater tnaks of at least 20 gallons each to live their whole lifespan(about 20 years)
2007-01-18 05:45:36 · answer #7 · answered by Skittles 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋