Gold fish pregnant or signs of swim bladder?

[Deeznuts]

I am familiar with the swim bladder disease in goldfish and I have observed a fish's scales pointing outward.

The goldfish is eating like normal and swimming fine. I have observed what I believe are new colour black spots on the back of its tail. I have just observed it bouncing sideways of the bottom of the pond. I've never seen any of the other fish do this.

I have an isolation pond if I need to treat it.

If I'm not mistaken. His it's anal section seems to have a white coating across it but I can't get a good photo.

Any ideas?

See photos:

 

[Colin_T]

Swim bladder problems cause the fish to float up when they stop swimming. However, this can also be caused by air trapped in the fish's digestive tract. If you think the fish has a swim bladder problem, stop feeding dry food for one week and feed the fish frozen or live foods during that time.

If the problem rectifies itself when the fish gets frozen or live food and no dry food, then the problem is air in the intestine.

If it doesn't get better on frozen and live food, then it has a swim bladder problem.

The other type of swim bladder problem causes fish to sink when they stop swimming. There's no cure fro swim bladder problems and affected fish should be euthanised.

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If scales stick out from the side of the fish it has dropsy, which is caused by fluid building up in the abdominal cavity. This can be caused by internal bacterial infections or organ failure. There's not normally any cure for fish with dropsy.

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How quickly did the fish get fat?
If it got fat over a month or so, then it's probably a female with eggs. The fact it's eating normally and swimming around with others would suggest this too.

If it got fat over a couple of days, that's a different story and normally indicates and internal infection. However, since the fish is eating, it is unlikely to have an internal infection.

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I can't offer any info on the white butt because I can't see it. If you manage to get a clear picture showing the issue, then post it and we will have more to go on.

 

[emeraldking]

To me, she looks like she's full with eggs. This is how they looked at my place when they were carrying eggs.
The black spots could be nothing. Be aware of it that goldfish can color up differently than expected. But it could also be a sign of melanoma that is developing. In that case, you should give it time and see whether those spots will also develop humps. If that happens, it's definitely melanoma. But again, I would give it some time first.

 

[Deeznuts]

Swim bladder problems cause the fish to float up when they stop swimming. However, this can also be caused by air trapped in the fish's digestive tract. If you think the fish has a swim bladder problem, stop feeding dry food for one week and feed the fish frozen or live foods during that time.

If the problem rectifies itself when the fish gets frozen or live food and no dry food, then the problem is air in the intestine.

If it doesn't get better on frozen and live food, then it has a swim bladder problem.

The other type of swim bladder problem causes fish to sink when they stop swimming. There's no cure fro swim bladder problems and affected fish should be euthanised.

--------------------

If scales stick out from the side of the fish it has dropsy, which is caused by fluid building up in the abdominal cavity. This can be caused by internal bacterial infections or organ failure. There's not normally any cure for fish with dropsy.

--------------------

How quickly did the fish get fat?
If it got fat over a month or so, then it's probably a female with eggs. The fact it's eating normally and swimming around with others would suggest this too.

If it got fat over a couple of days, that's a different story and normally indicates and internal infection. However, since the fish is eating, it is unlikely to have an internal infection.

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I can't offer any info on the white butt because I can't see it. If you manage to get a clear picture showing the issue, then post it and we will have more to go on.

It didn’t get huge very quickly. Seems to have gradually put on size. I visit my parents once a month and I hadn’t noticed until this week.

Ah’ dropsy was the one I was thinking of with the protruding gills.

If the gold fish is pregnant, do you know why it would be slapping itself on the bottom of the pond? To release eggs?

By frozen food? You mean blood worm etc? It’s hard to find live food in the uk. I know America has so many options for fish. U.K. kinda sucks lol

 

[Deeznuts]

To me, she looks like she's full with eggs. This is how they looked at my place when they were carrying eggs.
The black spots could be nothing. Be zware of it that goldfish can color up differently than expected. But it could also be a sign of melanoma that is developing. In that case, you should give it time and see whether those spots will also develop humps. If that happens, it's definitely melanoma. But again, I would give it some time first.

Okay, cool. In regards to stomach, I shouldn’t be too concerned but I’ll definitely keep an eye on the spots and keep you updated.

Thanks

 

[Sparx]

By frozen food? You mean blood worm etc? It’s hard to find live food in the uk. I know America has so many options for fish. U.K. kinda sucks lol

Do you have a Maidenhead Aquatics anywhere near you? I know they’ve got them up and down the country. That’s where I get my live food from

 

[Deeznuts]

Do you have a Maidenhead Aquatics anywhere near you? I know they’ve got them up and down the country. That’s where I get my live food from

Yes I do! One is five minutes away from me. It resides inside Nottcutts garden centre. I’ve never seen live food there. Not even crickets and I see them everywhere for reptiles. Now that I think about it. I don’t think they even sell frozen blood worm.

Okay, which Maidenhead aquatics do you go to? Looks like I’m going to have to go to another lol

 

[Colin_T]

It didn’t get huge very quickly. Seems to have gradually put on size. I visit my parents once a month and I hadn’t noticed until this week.

Ah’ dropsy was the one I was thinking of with the protruding gills.

If the gold fish is pregnant, do you know why it would be slapping itself on the bottom of the pond? To release eggs?

By frozen food? You mean blood worm etc? It’s hard to find live food in the uk. I know America has so many options for fish. U.K. kinda sucks lol

Not sure why the fish would be slapping itself on the bottom. A video showing this behaviour would probably provide the info we need to explain it.

Normally the males will chase the females and nudge them around the belly and butt area to encourage them to breed. Then the fish scattered the eggs and sperm among the plants. This is repeated until the females have expelled all their eggs.

Male goldfish are slimmer than females and during the breeding season that develop small white dots on the edge of their pectoral (side) fins and on the side of their gill covers. The females get fat and don't have the dots.

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Frozen foods can include brineshrimp, daphnia, bloodworms, prawn, fish, squid, or anything else that is frozen and sold as fish food. You can buy frozen prawn, fish and squid from fishing stores or the seafood section/ freezer at supermarkets.

Live foods can include small insects (flies, moths, mosquitoes, ants, aphids, etc) and insect larvae. Avoid insects that are known to be poisonous and don't use insects if they have been sprayed by anything. Small earthworms can also be used as fish food.

 

[Deeznuts]

Not sure why the fish would be slapping itself on the bottom. A video showing this behaviour would probably provide the info we need to explain it.

Normally the males will chase the females and nudge them around the belly and butt area to encourage them to breed. Then the fish scattered the eggs and sperm among the plants. This is repeated until the females have expelled all their eggs.

Male goldfish are slimmer than females and during the breeding season that develop small white dots on the edge of their pectoral (side) fins and on the side of their gill covers. The females get fat and don't have the dots.

--------------------

Frozen foods can include brineshrimp, daphnia, bloodworms, prawn, fish, squid, or anything else that is frozen and sold as fish food. You can buy frozen prawn, fish and squid from fishing stores or the seafood section/ freezer at supermarkets.

Live foods can include small insects (flies, moths, mosquitoes, ants, aphids, etc) and insect larvae. Avoid insects that are known to be poisonous and don't use insects if they have been sprayed by anything. Small earthworms can also be used as fish food.

I have advised my parents to try and get a video of the slapping behaviour, the pond is pretty deep, so Im not certain my parents poop phones will be able to capture this but I have encouraged them to try due to me being back at home now.

I do have frozen blood worm and daphnia etc but I tend to let it defrost a little with some pond water before dropping in the pond but they're so small, they basically dissapear instantly lol.

All of the fish love earth worms and I occasionally find some when working in the garden and toss them a few. I have got some from a fish tackle shop but I then questioned whether they'd be suitable for home koi because I don't know whether they've come from etc. Mmm, I wonder if they'd eat meal worms? Or crickets. You can buy live insects of such from the shop up the road that's sold for reptiles. I know that's going to be safe.

Its not always easy to get the desired goldfish to eat due to the Hi-Utsi and Ghost absolutely devouring everything that enters the pond. Any insects that lands on the water by error they're instantly on top of it. I've not seen any of the others try eat insects though.

I have considered prawns from supermarkets but in my mind, I assume they don't take as much care with human food as they would with fish food in which they gamma treat it etc. I know I question a lot of things but when it comes to my animals I think it's just natural to do so.

Sometimes I think companies spend more time and care making animal food than human food lol

 

[Colin_T]

No crickets for fish because they often have sharp spines on their legs and can damage the fish's stomach.

No mealworms unless they have just molted and are soft and squishy. Adult mealworms that haven't molted are too hard for fish to eat and will rot on the bottom of the tank/ pond.

Human foods are better quality than fish foods. They irradiate (gamma treat) fish food to kill bacteria on it. A lot of frozen fish foods like bloodworm are gathered from less than clean water sources in tropical Asia and they use radiation to sterilise the food and make it safer for the fish. If you culture your own fish foods, you can avoid the harmful stuff often associated with imported frozen foods. Daphnia is easy to grow at home and so are bloodworms (Chironomid midge larvae). The link below has more info on culturing fish foods at home.

Earthworms are highly sensitive to chemicals and if the worms are alive and well, they will be safe to use. If they have been exposed to anything harmful or toxic, they die pretty quickly.

Back to Basics when Breeding Fish

STARTING OUT Make sure you have a pair, (1 male + 1 female). There is nothing worse than spending your hard-earned dollars buying a couple of fish to try and breed and ending up with a pair of fish of the same sex. Let's face it, to reproduce fish you need a male and a female. Two males won't do...

www.fishforums.net

 

[Deeznuts]

No crickets for fish because they often have sharp spines on their legs and can damage the fish's stomach.

No mealworms unless they have just molted and are soft and squishy. Adult mealworms that haven't molted are too hard for fish to eat and will rot on the bottom of the tank/ pond.

Human foods are better quality than fish foods. They irradiate (gamma treat) fish food to kill bacteria on it. A lot of frozen fish foods like bloodworm are gathered from less than clean water sources in tropical Asia and they use radiation to sterilise the food and make it safer for the fish. If you culture your own fish foods, you can avoid the harmful stuff often associated with imported frozen foods. Daphnia is easy to grow at home and so are bloodworms (Chironomid midge larvae). The link below has more info on culturing fish foods at home.

Earthworms are highly sensitive to chemicals and if the worms are alive and well, they will be safe to use. If they have been exposed to anything harmful or toxic, they die pretty quickly.

Back to Basics when Breeding Fish

STARTING OUT Make sure you have a pair, (1 male + 1 female). There is nothing worse than spending your hard-earned dollars buying a couple of fish to try and breed and ending up with a pair of fish of the same sex. Let's face it, to reproduce fish you need a male and a female. Two males won't do...

www.fishforums.net

This link is amazing that’s you have provided. I will definitely have to read into it and look to producing my own brineshrimp. I didn’t see anything about blood worm?

In my outdoor marginal garden pond, there are what appear to be small mosquito larvae. Could I transfer some of these for the pond fish and perhaps the tropical tank, too? Are these what become blood worm? Also, when I recently cleaned the pond filter, there was loads of what appeared to be tiny worms. Any idea what these may have been? They weren’t red. Just a standard blackish browny colour I suppose.

I suppose I could pick up some works from the bait shop then and transfer any live ones to a big tub with soil and look to producing my own. I assume they’ll just need fruits and stuff to eat.

This kind of stuff gets me excited

 

[Colin_T]

This link is amazing that’s you have provided. I will definitely have to read into it and look to producing my own brineshrimp. I didn’t see anything about blood worm?

I used to get Bloodworms appearing in plastic storage containers I had outside under trees. There were leaves and a layer of mulm (broken down leaf litter) on the bottom and the bloodworms would appear in them. They make a mud cocoon on the bottom that is about 10mm long and they live in that and wait for food to go past and grab it.

In my outdoor marginal garden pond, there are what appear to be small mosquito larvae. Could I transfer some of these for the pond fish and perhaps the tropical tank, too? Are these what become blood worm? Also, when I recently cleaned the pond filter, there was loads of what appeared to be tiny worms. Any idea what these may have been? They weren’t red. Just a standard blackish browny colour I suppose.

Mozzie larvae make great fish food and are one of the best foods for most fish. Get a fine mesh fish net and scoop the mozzie larvae out and add them to your tanks or ponds that have fish in. If you have lots of mozzie larvae, put them in ice cube trays and freeze them into blocks to use when there are no more mozzie larvae outside. Just make sure you label the iceblocks so nobody puts on in a drink. I kept mine in an icecream container with a lid on and put a label on saying "BUGS. NOT ICECREAM"

No idea about the tiny worms. If they were thin and about 1-2 inches long, they were probably black or Tubifex worms and are an aquatic worm that fish eat. A picture might give us more idea.

I suppose I could pick up some works from the bait shop then and transfer any live ones to a big tub with soil and look to producing my own. I assume they’ll just need fruits and stuff to eat.

This kind of stuff gets me excited

You can buy earthworm farms from most hardware stores. You put some potting mix in the worm farm and add some live worms. Add a lot of worms if you need them to feed the fish soon because they take a few months to get going. Adding more than recommended will give the worm farm a boost and you can harvest them sooner. Then feed them your food scraps. Don't add citrus or onions to the worm farm but most other food scraps are fine. You can also add a bit of newspaper occasionally and egg shells.

When you feed earthworms to fish, try to use small worms and don't cut them up. They are gross and slimy when cut and it looks gross and feels worse than gross. So just feed the small worms to the fish and leave the big ones to eat the food scraps and breed.

You get different types of earthworms too including tigers, reds and blues as the most common for worm farms, but there are other smaller species available but you have to look around for them.

 

[Ichthys]

You get different types of earthworms too including tigers, reds and blues as the most common for worm farms, but there are other smaller species available but you have to look around for them.

You really need one of these compost-worm species for a worm farm, because they eat dead and decaying plant matter (ie kitchen scraps). The true earthworms tend to just eat soil.

 

[Sparx]

Okay, which Maidenhead aquatics do you go to? Looks like I’m going to have to go to another lol

I go to the one in Dartford, I’ve also been to the one in Polhill not far from Orpington. Both reside in garden centres, that seems to be their thing lol.
I did go to mine yesterday but they didn’t have any live food! Said they had a problem with the supplier.. but they had lots of frozen bloodworm in the freezer.

 

[Deeznuts]

I used to get Bloodworms appearing in plastic storage containers I had outside under trees. There were leaves and a layer of mulm (broken down leaf litter) on the bottom and the bloodworms would appear in them. They make a mud cocoon on the bottom that is about 10mm long and they live in that and wait for food to go past and grab it.



Mozzie larvae make great fish food and are one of the best foods for most fish. Get a fine mesh fish net and scoop the mozzie larvae out and add them to your tanks or ponds that have fish in. If you have lots of mozzie larvae, put them in ice cube trays and freeze them into blocks to use when there are no more mozzie larvae outside. Just make sure you label the iceblocks so nobody puts on in a drink. I kept mine in an icecream container with a lid on and put a label on saying "BUGS. NOT ICECREAM"

No idea about the tiny worms. If they were thin and about 1-2 inches long, they were probably black or Tubifex worms and are an aquatic worm that fish eat. A picture might give us more idea.



You can buy earthworm farms from most hardware stores. You put some potting mix in the worm farm and add some live worms. Add a lot of worms if you need them to feed the fish soon because they take a few months to get going. Adding more than recommended will give the worm farm a boost and you can harvest them sooner. Then feed them your food scraps. Don't add citrus or onions to the worm farm but most other food scraps are fine. You can also add a bit of newspaper occasionally and egg shells.

When you feed earthworms to fish, try to use small worms and don't cut them up. They are gross and slimy when cut and it looks gross and feels worse than gross. So just feed the small worms to the fish and leave the big ones to eat the food scraps and breed.

You get different types of earthworms too including tigers, reds and blues as the most common for worm farms, but there are other smaller species available but you have to look around for them.

Great, I’m going to collect as much mozzie larvae as possible. I’ve given my parents a heads up to do the same.

When I clean the filter next, I’ll get some photos and upload probably under a new discussion.

So, as noted by the person below. Is there a specific worm i should be using?
I also read that earth worms like to try and dig through the bottom of whatever they’re in.

I have looked at various worm farms that can be made at home. Unfortunately, I don’t have a home depot or anything useful like that in the uk. I’m going to probably use two transparent containers to create one, so I can see them hard at work lol. I’m just not sure what purpose the tap serves