goldfish help?

Question

why are my goldfish sitting on the bottom of my tank i have given them blood worms ,medicated fish food ,put salt in there my water is testing fine they dont look sick been doing this for four days so now they have ick i am treating for why are they stressed out whats going on really worried hope my fish dont die 2 or 3 do this at the same time my hearther saids 76 which my fish are use to after three years of having it in there tank but one has sat by a rock for 5 days only comes out to eat they never done this before

none of the fish stores no why there doing this and what can i do i only use medicine like a anibotic if they look sick ibut i dont see any signs just the ick but my fish is still sitting under the rock and hes no moving much

i have a 60 galloom i have good filiteration i hsve a whispering one for 60 also had the same rocks and stuff in there tankfor 3 years i have 7fishthey have been fine after all this time till nw

Answer 1

First off do a water change and leave the salt out Salt should never be added to goldfish. This causes them to bloat and retain water making them lethargic. Secondly turn off the heater. 76 is too warm for goldfish to live in on a constant basis. Treat ich with proper meds not salt and high temps.

Goldfish need lots of dissolved oxygen. This can only enter the tank via water movement against air, ie waves, waterfalls, filters outflow, fountains etc. Airstones do nothing for this exchange. Your goldfish are lethargic because of the water conditions. They can "survive" in the conditions however it is not healthy for them. Try dropping your water level about 1/2 inch, turn off your heater (or back it off slowly until it is off) This should help your fish.

Also Goldfish need a balanced diet. When choosing a fish food choose one with high protein (48% or better) and low fat (5% or less)

You can supplement their diet with things like Lettuce, mustard greens, turnip greens, collard greens, spinach, peas, endive, seaweed, cukes, kale, chard, broccoli, lima beans, green beans, etc. and feed aquatic plants (e.g. duckweed, azolla, salvenia, etc) or hair algae daily.

For their Carotenoids which are a family of pigments the fish can't make themselves and are obtained as part of the diet. These pigments result in red, yellow and orange colors. Fish have cells called chromataphores. Those cells convert lutein and carotenes into astaxanthin which is the red pigment.
sources include, brine shrimp, krill, spirulina, marigold flowers, paprika, sweet red peppers, yams, carrots, pumpkin

Watermellons and oranges are also good as well as proteins like chicken (chicken livers) beef (livers and parts) and pork as well as worms and bugs.

Answer 2

The fish are probably stressed from the ich and are conserving energy. You can treat ich with salt, but you should also raise the water temperature during the treatment to around 86-90o (adjust it a few degrees each hour, and make sure you maintain good aeration). When the parasites are on the fish, they aren't affected by the treatment - they're enclosed in a cyst. By raising the temperature, you speed up their life cycle so they drop off into the water where they can be killed by the treatment you use. If you use salt as your treatment, be sure you have enough in the tank - at least a teaspoon per gallon of water and you can go as high as a tablespoon per gallon. Mix the salt in water in a separate container so it dissolves before you add it to the tank. You can add the salt in 3-4 doses as you're adjusting the temperature.

If you choose a medication, pick something that has both malachite green and formalin - this is the most effective for curing ich. Be careful when using, though, because both of these medications are carcinogens. You'll also need to remove any carbon from your filter if you use this for treating. Raising the temperature here will help as well.

Before treating do a good water change to clean the gravel - if there is a lot of gunk, it may reduce the effectiveness of malachite green. You'll need to treat for 10-14 days using either method (not 3, like it says in some directions), or at least 3 days after you see spots on the fish. If you stop treatment too early, you may not kill all of the parasites, and the fish can reinfected.

I'll post an article below on ich if you'd like to read more.

You don't want to use an antibiotic for ich - this is caused by a parasite, so an antibiotic won't have any effect, except on bacteria. It will kill bacteria in the tank, including the ones that remove the toxic ammonia and nitrite by converting these into nitrate. High ammonia and nitrite will also cause your fish to stay at the bottom of the tank, so this would be another reason to do a water change.

See this website for other possible explanations: http://www.goldfishconnection.com/articles/details.php?articleId=145&parentId=12

Answer 3

First of all what size is your tank? How many fish do you have? Do you have proper filtration? Usually fish stay at the bottom of the tank when there is a problem with filtration, try changing your filter media, also does it seem that they are gasping rapidly? If they are gasping it's most likely your filter. Also goldfish usually don't require any heat, unless you live in extremely cold environment, which could also be causing them to dwell at the bottom. Hope this helps, good luck!

Answer 4

It could be a few things, I need more information.

Can they swim to the top if disturbed?
Are they gasping for air?
Are their belly's swollen?
Are ALL of them on the bottom?
What is in the tank with them? (decorations, gravel, etc)
What is the regular maintainance?
How old are they?
What size tank is it?
What kind of filtration?
How long have you had them?
Do you treat your water?
What are the parameters? (GH, kH, pH, and ammonia cycle)

It is likely a parasite, and not that hard to treat, but with the information you gave, it would be like going to a doctor and saying "I have a cough, what is wrong with me", there is more than one answer because the information is vague.

Answer 5

I would increase the aeration and filtration for a start. Have you put too much salt in there, try changeing their fish foods, do a daily half-water change.

Answer 6

I think you goldfish are ready to move on to a different stage of life..i mean die. I would flush them if they are that bad. If you could treat them , then great. Good Luck.