my fish floats but isnt dead! whats wrong?

Question

my vail tail goldfish is very bloted,(full of air) and floats. its not dead though...

Answer 1

You r fish has a swim bladder infection or disorder. As noted above, the green pea treatment isn't going to work well and very rarely does in fact.

Swimm bladder infections are treatable, but they are difficult to treat and respond only if caught rather early. Once it progresses to this point there is no real way to treat it in time to save the fish.

I'm sorry to say it, but it's time to humanely put your fish out or it's misery.

Answer 2

new tanks are very diffiicult. the longer it is set up the easier it becomes.. so don't give up hope. it is common to have problems. you want to be sure you are not adding too many fish at once and not overcrowding the tank. there is beneficial bacteria that breaks down the ammonia (fish waste) and with new tanks the amount of this bacteria is not enough to keep up. so water quality is hard to keep. also, dalmation mollies can be rather sensitive. i worked at a pet store many years and we lost them all the time. you can try to put some quick cure in there and do another water change. but chances are those fish are too far gone. just do 10% water changes once a week. only treat the amount of water you are replacing with the water conditioner not the entire tank. add some cycle if you'd like. and don't add any fish for a little while. only 1 fish a week is really the best way to do it. rinse your filter media occasionnally with the water you remove from your tank. (not tap water! this will kill that bacteria you want).

Answer 3

It sounds like swim bladder disease, usually caused by an impaction. Do you feed large pellets or flakes? Its not uncommon in goldfish. Some say try the frozen pea thingy.. but alot of fish wont try it. Even if you get it to eat one, it only prolongs things. Some studies showed raising tank tempature to 76 if its a cold water tank, adding salt, and withholding food for 3 or 4 days. (most fish can go longer and be fine).
Or.... aspiration of the swim bladder... sticking a needle in the swim bladder and suck out some of the air. Not something to be entered into lightly, and I dont reccomend it... but does work. This is not a cure, but a successful treatment. The head veterinarian at the Baltimore Aquarium prefers this method and has written about it.
You may want to presoak your food if your giving something other then flakes, so its at least broken down before the fish tries to swallow it. Good luck

Answer 4

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It's swim bladder. There is no cure. The frozen pea idea works for a little while, but really the fish is still suffering. By the sound of it your fish is too far gone to be saved. I'm sorry. When the time does come, instead of flushing it, you could buy a nice potted plant and bury it in it. That way you have a nice living memorial for your little friend.

Here is a site with some things you could try.http://www.netpets.org/fish/reference/freshref/swimbldr.html






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Answer 5

I think it may be dropsy. Check out this web site, it lists many diseases. It may help you diagnose.

You don't say what size tank you have your fish in. If it is less than 10 gallons, it may be too small of a tank. Try a partial water change (about 50%) and see if that helps at all.

Good Luck

Answer 6

No need to euthanize for something like swim bladder disease. Fish can go their whole lives with it, it doesn't affect their general health. However, bloating can be a sign of fluids inside the fish or of dropsy, so fast the fish for a few days to make sure its only bloating (it shouldn't stay bloated for days on end).

Answer 7

Swim Bladder.

Feed it a frozen pea thawed with the skin taken off. This will remove any excess gas from your goldy. Only feed it one of these every other day till it is normal.

Also, make sure you do not over feed. A goldfish will eat until it explodes

Answer 8

fish needs air get something to put more air (bubbles in the tank) also change the water and refill form faucet sprayer (sprayer will create more bubbles)
just in case to m ake sure he doesn't get worse:
get PimaFix (fungal and bacteria infections for salt and freshwater fish) go to petsmart
trust me it works

Answer 9

its probably swim bladder -- if he is good and fat fast him for 3 days.

if he still isn't better feed him green peas cooked and chopped up and give him epsom salt baths for a couple of days. just google goldfish epsom salt and you will get instructions on how to.

if he still isn't better get some maracyn and maracyn2 and use them together.


if he is in with other goldfish you might want to take him out because they will pick on him.

Answer 10

I probally is bloated and all of the air is causing it to float!