Fish seems to be dying....?

Question

I have feeder goldfish for over two years. One is slightly larger than the other and seems to have always had a few health problems, but usually bounces back with time. This time he really looks bad, and seems to be suffering. He is twisting and twirling around in the tank and has been face down, tail up in the gravel since last night. He is still using his gills, but it looks like the end. Is there something I can or should do to ease his passing?

Answer 1

The most humane way to euthanize Goldfish - or any other pet fish - is to use Oil of Clove. It's usually available at any Health Food/Vitamin Store. Just ask as sometimes they keep it behind the counter. I paid $5.99 for my last bottle.

Clove oil, when added to water anesthesizes the fish and puts them to sleep. Here are the directions -

1. Put your sick/dying fish in a 1 gallon bucket/pail or jar filled with clean dechlorinated water - usually water from their tank and/or pond.

2. Take a small jar (with a lid) and fill halfway with water.

3. Add to this small jar, about 15 drops of the Clove Oil.

4. Put the lid on the small jar and shake vigorously. You want the oil to mix with the water as much as possible. This is what you call emulsifying the oil.

5. Once the clove oil is mixed extremely well - open the small jar and pour the water/oil mixture into the the bucket/pail with the fish.

6. Gently stir so the oil/water mixture is completely mixed with the water - but don't scare the fish.

7. The fish will slowly fall asleep and gill activity will cease.

8. After about 15 minutes - go check on your fish - watch it for at least 5 minutes to make sure the gill movements are completely still - that the fish has in fact died.

This procedure is recommended by Vets and Humane Societies.

In fact some Vets use this method to do surgery on expensive fish such as Koi - of course they use less drops - and when these anesthesized fish are placed back in fresh water (no clove oil), they usually recover from their slumber quickly.


People say to Kill their fish by other means - but all those other ways bring needless pain and fear to those tiny fishey lives -

1. Freezing - slow freezing causes ice crystals to form in their bodies - they are extremely painful to the fish - especially if it was happening in the dark of a freezer. Would you want to go through that?

2. Putting them into rubbing alcohol - yes it kills them instantly - but the alcohol burns their gills so much - it's liks someone pouring rubbing alcohol down your nose and throat - burns all the way down - needless pain for these little critters of God.

3. Cutting their heads off - Don't you all remember the French Guillotine? They banned it for its inhumanity for a reason.

4. Squashing them. How would you like to be squashed.

5. Being Flushed. Does flushing really kill them immediatly? Maybe yes, maybe no. It does put them in a terrible environment in the deepest dark. Just think how you would like to be flushed down a toilet - suddenly plunged into ice cold water - whirled and sucked downward into darkness - not knowing where you were gonna end up - then plunging into acidic water - a sewage system filled with who knows what - rats - excrement - you can't breathe - you can't see - the last few minutes of your life are utter agony, utter turmoil. You don't know what you did wrong - you honored your God for years with loyalty and this is how they reward you as you slowly suffocate to death in the innards of some city's sewer system.

Shame on those who flush live fish down toilets. Shame on you!

Do the Humane thing - Use Clove Oil to treat your fishy friends to a Humane Death.

Ken

Answer 2

Change water and order good antibiotic food.
www.goldfishconnection.com
Remove holy rock if you have it in the aquarium. Twirling can be toxins in the water too.
Common goldfish are extremely hardy fish. I would change out all of the water if you can.
The fish you have most likely have outgrown your water changing schedule. You are going to have to change more water more often.
Check you nitrates if they are above 20 ppm then its time to change the water.
Clean water equals healthy fish. 9 times out of 10 fish get sick because the water quality is not ideal.
There is a chance that the city water chemicals are taking a toll on your fish. That happens where I live, fish simply can't survive in city tap water even with all the water conditioners in the world. Many cities put in all kinds of stuff in the summer to keep algae and mosquito larvae at bay. My solution was just to buy reverse osmosis water and buff it up for the fish. Not the easiest way but here its the only way you can keep fish alive.

Answer 3

One of the things about feeders is that they are not bred particularly well for obvious reasons. I raised feeders to 8 inch babies, so I'm not knocking them, but this fact remains. As MM said, it may be genetic if it's been dealing with this all of its life. Do you test your water? Aside from anything genetic, this sounds like behavior resulting from poor water quality. Regarding what may happen to this fish, you also need to make sure that you provide healthy water for the rest of your fish. If you don't test your water or if your tank is too small, this will affect the health of your fish. Also, Ken is right. If you choose to euthanize, the most humane method is clove oil, but I have to make one correction. Mix the clove oil into the water before putting in the fish. Then put the fish in the water after the clove oil has been thoroughly mixed in. And one other correction, actually, cutting off the head is immediate and painless and the guillotine, while cruel looking, is actually a very humane way to die. They stopped using it because of its gruesomeness that the public had to witness. The problem is that we fishkeepers aren't using a guillotine and are relying on the iron will and steadfastness of our hands and as most of us are too squeamish, myself included, to quickly and accurately cut off the head with only a mildly sharp kitchen knife, we botch the job and do then cause pain. Cutting off the head is a good option if you have a very sharp knife, do not hesitate with your actions and are swift and accurate. Good luck with everything!

Answer 4

Running it for 48 hours isn't enough. Not nearly enough. A tank that size needs to be cycled, and just simply running the filter doesn't do that. You need to do some research online about how to cycle a tank. Most pet store employees know nothing, they're just there because they can sell the stuff. It's best to do your own research, especially when it comes to fish. It could be that the fish were already sick when you bought them. But most likely, it's due to suddenly throwing them all into an uncycled tank.

Answer 5

Hi Margarita, Before you do anything drastic make sure your water parameters are spot-on & keep up with regular partial water changes as this may simply be the result of poor water conditions, especially as you mention he has had lapses before. Good luck-I hope he makes it.

Answer 6

It sounds like your fish has a swim bladder disorder. Several things can causse this from poor diet to bacterial infections to genetic problems. If this has come and gone over time, it's most likely a genetic problem and there is no cure for that.

MM

Answer 7

sounds asif hes got swim bladder disorder mine had it but he kept sinkin but some times float awwww poor fish hope mine dont get it cost me ova £200 for em all even my lobster

Answer 8

go ahead and flush him. that's the way my goldfish Shiny died. she was 3 years old