I have two fantail goldfish in a 10-gallon tank. I'm unsure of their genders. One fish follows very closely behind the other one almost constantly. The "leading" fish had fin rot a few weeks ago, which I treated, but it's sick with fin rot again. Could the other fish's constant close swimming be causing stress in my fish, leading to illness? (Note: I've haven't observed any signs of nipping or fighting.) If so, what should I do to stop the behavior?
2007-01-29 14:11:31 · 5 answers · asked by Marie 3 in Pets ➔ Fish
I should also note that both goldfish are very small right now-- about one inch each, not including the fins. I plan to upgrade when they grow a bit, but, for now, I read that all I need is two gallons per inch of fish.
2007-01-29 15:37:53 · update #1
Fin Rot in Goldfish is rarely
caused by Stress, if ever.
It is caused by bacteria.
Usually by poor water condition.
Use a cotton swab and put
Malachite Green directly on
the affected area. You can
get it at any good pet store.
I always separate the ill fish
into a tank or bowl.
The constant close swimming,
is mating behavior. They will
take turns chasing each other.
2007-01-29 14:30:03 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Stress won't cause an illness like fin rot, but stress can contribute to the fish being susceptible to the disease. But a little chasing shouldn't cause that much stress. As one other said, fin rot is bacterial and most likely you just didn't treat long enough to clear it all up. Keep the tank very clean and do your regular water changes to help prevent the problem in the future is the best advice you can get.
Nothing you can really do about the chasing behavior until you get a larger tank and maybe another goldfish or two.
2007-01-30 00:24:14 · answer #2 · answered by magicman116 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
These fish are only fry, and from a store a one inch goldfish is only a few months old. Waaay to young for mating behavior. My guess is that the first fish is already sick and the second fish is looking out for an easy meal.
2007-01-30 09:35:27 · answer #3 · answered by bzzflygirl 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Marie, you can not keep two fan tails in a ten gal. It is a large fish, and they need about 20 gallons apiece.. you will never be able to keep those water conditions constant enough to prevent disease. Upgrade your tank or get some smaller fish.
2007-01-29 22:59:03 · answer #4 · answered by M CEE 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
chasing is mating behavior -- the male chases the female. if a female isn't around a male will chase another male. i had a goldfish nip a pectoral fin off another goldfish -- it wasn't pretty. some goldfish just aren't as soical as you have always heard they are.
2007-01-29 22:19:27 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋