Very Ill Goldfish- Suspected Swimbladder Infection! Help!

[Carp4U]

My fantail goldfish has always been a bit big and bloated, although i'm not sure if thats just how fantails are. I have two in there. I noticed that when they stop moving they tend to start to float upwards a bit. So i added a dose of swimbladder treatment. After a few days. Teddy, the biggest one, was resting on the bottom a lot but seemed okay. Then after a while he was losing his balance in the water and ended up sinking and resting on the bottom on his side. So i added another dose of swimbladder treatment. Then he started getting worse and is currently headfirst down against the gravel and on his back. He is still alive. He doesn't try to swim much. I gently scooped him in my hand and tried to help him to swim but he didn't even move his fins, just rolled over again and rested on the bottom. The situation started on friday and is still happening now on Sunday.

Tank size:
9 gallons I know a bit small. They were going into my pond in spring. There is a light, live plants, aerator and filter in there.

Last water change:
Thursday

Water Stats:

Nitrate less than 40
Nitrite 0


Can anyone diagnose his illness? I think his symptoms show a swimbladder infection. Is there anything i can do to help him? Keep adding treatment?

Anyone who can advise me on how to help him? Thanks

 

[Davo86]

My fantail goldfish has always been a bit big and bloated, although i'm not sure if thats just how fantails are. I have two in there. I noticed that when they stop moving they tend to start to float upwards a bit. So i added a dose of swimbladder treatment. After a few days. Teddy, the biggest one, was resting on the bottom a lot but seemed okay. Then after a while he was losing his balance in the water and ended up sinking and resting on the bottom on his side. So i added another dose of swimbladder treatment. Then he started getting worse and is currently headfirst down against the gravel and on his back. He is still alive. He doesn't try to swim much. I gently scooped him in my hand and tried to help him to swim but he didn't even move his fins, just rolled over again and rested on the bottom. The situation started on friday and is still happening now on Sunday.

Tank size:
9 gallons I know a bit small. They were going into my pond in spring. There is a light, live plants, aerator and filter in there.

Last water change:
Thursday

Water Stats:

Nitrate less than 40
Nitrite 0


Can anyone diagnose his illness? I think his symptoms show a swimbladder infection. Is there anything i can do to help him? Keep adding treatment?

Anyone who can advise me on how to help him? Thanks

what are you feeding?
how often?
do you have a result for ammonia?

firstly a 50% water change is needed to drop the nitrate level down to below 20

Then if your simply feeding flake food, then you need to switch to a sinking pellet food and supplement this with Daphnia and deshelled peas (both help with fish digestion)
flake food shouldn't be fed to fantails as it causes havoc with their weakened swim bladders

 

[WILDER]

Your tanks overstocked.
The first goldifsh alone need twenty gallons then then gallons for every other one added.
Also they need double the filter size to the tank as they are massive waste producers.
There no cure for swim bladder in meds unless its bacterial.
Swim bladder is caused by bad water quality, bad diet of to many dried foods, injury, deformed swim bladder, bacterial, internal parasites.

Once fish start to roll over and lay on there subrate on there back they usually don't make it.
Fish will become ill in bad water quality.
Always soak there food in tank water before you feed.
Need a more balanced diet of frozen foods and veg.
Daphnia good at digesting a fish food.