Sick Black Moor

[Mateo42]

I am wondering if there is anything I can do for my Black Moor goldfish. He is 2 years old and lives alone in a 36 gallon tank. He has been lying at the bottom of the tank on his side for days. If I disturb him he will swim in a circle on his side.

I have been doing 30% water changes daily and checking water with the API freshwater master test kit.
pH-7.8
Amonia-0
Nitrites-0
Nitrates- 40

I didn't feed him for 3 days and on the 4th day I hand fed him two pieces of shelled pea. He wouldn't eat today when I tried.

Is there anything else I can do to help him?
Thanks!

 

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

Can you post a picture and a short 20 second video of the fish swimming funny?

I'm guessing there is an internal issue, possibly the swim bladder has ruptured and the fish is bent over in pain.

If the fish isn't eating and can't swim properly, the best thing to do is euthanize it.

 

[Jessie J.]

I agree. Euthenization might be the best thing for him.

 

[Mateo42]

Thank you for replying. I am a relatively new fish owner. He is one of my first. How do you euthanize a fish? I’m going to try to add a picture and video. I’m heartbroken. He did eat peas today that I fed by hand

 

[Mateo42]

I can’t seem to upload the video

 

[Ash Paws]

It really sounds like swim bladder disorder to me.
You should raise the temperature in the water because colder water can slow down the digestive process.
Also peas do help really well

Thank you for replying. I am a relatively new fish owner. He is one of my first. How do you euthanize a fish? I’m going to try to add a picture and video. I’m heartbroken. He did eat peas today that I fed by hand

That's great that he ate! As long as he is still eating there is hope!

I don't think you will have to euthanize this fish, he might just have swim bladder disorder, goldfish are very prone to it. However for future reference a good way to euthanize fish is using clove oil. Make sure to do your research on this!

 

[Mateo42]

Thanks for the encouragement. I will try turning up the temp. Any recommendation on a good temp?

 

[Colin_T]

I normally put videos on YouTube and then post a link on here. We can go to YouTube to see the video.

Ideal temperature for fancy goldfish (blackmoors, orandas, pearlscales) is 18-28C (24C or 75F is my preferred choice).

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The fish in the picture has a milky white area over its eyes and part of its tail. This is normally caused by excess mucous produced by the fish in response to something in the water that is irritating it.

Do you use "Fish Only" buckets for water changes or do you use any bucket from around the house?
Do not smoke, paint, use bug spray, hair spray, perfume, air fresheners or use any aerosols in the room with the tank.
Make sure you don't have any moisturising cream, grease, oil, perfume, soap residue or residue from anti-bacterial hand washes, or anything else on your hands and arms when working in the tank.
Make sure you dechlorinate any new water before it goes into the tank.

Try increasing aeration/ surface turbulence but not too much. you don't want the fish being blown around the tank.

Maybe add some Activate carbon or Highly Activate carbon to the filter (replace each week) and see if that helps. Rinse carbon before use to remove any fine black dust in it.

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What do you normally feed the fish?
You can try raw/ cooked prawn. Remove the head, shell and gut (thin black tube in body) and throw that away. Use a pair of scissors to cut the remaining prawn into small bits and offer 1 piece at a time.

Live aquatic plants should be available to goldfish. Duckweed is a small floating plant that is readily eaten and is suitable for them. If no live plants are available then you can use dark green leafy vegetables (spinach, silverbeet, broccoli, etc), and mushed up peas, pumpkin, zucchini, etc.
Make sure they are free of chemicals and rinse well before feeding.

You can feed them raw or partly cook them to soften them up.

Offer a few bits at a time and remove any uneaten food.

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Perhaps try doing a bigger water change each day (50%) and see if it helps. If there is a chemical in the water the bigger water change might help dilute it, and carbon should help too if that is the issue.

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The fish isn't bent over like I thought and that is a good sign. And if it is still eating that is a plus too. If the fish stops eating, then euthanize.

The quickest method is a blow to the head but that is not easy to do to a pet and can be messy.

Clove Oil as mentioned is relatively easy once you have the clove oil.
You put the fish into a small container of tank water and add 1 drop of clove oil and stir it up. Wait a minute and add another drop. Continue to add 1 drop at a time and stir it up until the fish stops breathing. The fish is not dead at this point but is unconscious. Now you put the container of water (with fish in it) into the freezer and let it freeze. The fish will be asleep while this happens.

But before you kill the fish, try the things above and it might get better.

 

[Mateo42]

Colin T
Thank you for the thorough response. I will go through step by step and employ each of your suggestions if I am not doing so already. I do use fish only buckets to change his water and rinse my arm well with water before I put it in the tank. I was feeding him mostly goldfish sinking pellets, and peas on occasion, but since he's been sick only a couple of peas each day. I'll start with a larger water change today and go from there.
Thanks again,
It is great to have guidance from someone with experience.

 

[FishGuest5123]

I use clove oil to euthanize sick fish. I just add three drops to a little water, shake it or stir it well. Put the fish in a small bowl of tank water and add the clove solution. They’ll be out in a matter of seconds and dead almost immediately thereafter. Watch for gill movement to be sure. You can also add a little vodka at this point but I have found there’s no need for it. You can then discard the fish in trash or bury it. I would hold off though until the fish has a fair chance. Peas and fasting may help. If not you may try an antibiotic like Kanamycin in case it’s a bacterial infection. Hold off on that until you see if temp change and fasting/ peas do the trick. Good luck!

 

[Mateo42]

Update:
So he’s still alive. He continues to lay on his side at the bottom. I turned up the temp in the tank, increased the air on the bubble stone, and did a larger (50%) water change. Since then, I’ve been doing smaller daily water changes (de-chlorinated) and feeding him peas by hand once a day. He wiggles around when I come into the room and eats enthusiastically. He swims in a small circle on his side whenever I feed him, and the last 2 days very briefly got himself upright while swimming around.

Am I torturing this poor guy? Or is it possible he’s getting better slowly?

Thanks again for your input and advice!!

 

[Colin_T]

I’ve been doing smaller daily water changes (chlorinated) and feeding him peas by hand once a day.

Is that correct, are you using chlorinated or dechlorinated water?
Any new water should be free of chlorine/ chloramine (dechlorinated) before it is added to the tank.

If you don't have a water conditioner/ dechlorinator, then fill up a bucket with water and aerate it for 24 hours before using it. If you don't have an air pump then put the bucket of water out in the sun for a couple of days before using it.

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In addition to the peas, you can try frozen (but defrosted) prawn/ shrimp that is either raw or cooked. Offer a bit at a time and let the fish eat a reasonable amount.

As long as the fish keeps eating and tries to right itself every now and then, there is a chance it will recover.

 

[Mateo42]

Is that correct, are you using chlorinated or dechlorinated water?
Any new water should be free of chlorine/ chloramine (dechlorinated) before it is added to the tank.

If you don't have a water conditioner/ dechlorinator, then fill up a bucket with water and aerate it for 24 hours before using it. If you don't have an air pump then put the bucket of water out in the sun for a couple of days before using it.

----------------------
In addition to the peas, you can try frozen (but defrosted) prawn/ shrimp that is either raw or cooked. Offer a bit at a time and let the fish eat a reasonable amount.

As long as the fish keeps eating and tries to right itself every now and then, there is a chance it will recover.

Is that correct, are you using chlorinated or dechlorinated water?
Any new water should be free of chlorine/ chloramine (dechlorinated) before it is added to the tank.

If you don't have a water conditioner/ dechlorinator, then fill up a bucket with water and aerate it for 24 hours before using it. If you don't have an air pump then put the bucket of water out in the sun for a couple of days before using it.

----------------------
In addition to the peas, you can try frozen (but defrosted) prawn/ shrimp that is either raw or cooked. Offer a bit at a time and let the fish eat a reasonable amount.

As long as the fish keeps eating and tries to right itself every now and then, there is a chance it will recover.

 

[Mateo42]

Oops! I meant de-chlorinated water!! I will try the prawns today! You had mentioned that earlier but I have been focused on the other things. Thanks!

 

[Colin_T]

Oops! I meant de-chlorinated water!!

it's all good, I figured it was a typo but checked just in case