What Became Of The 'free Fish'

[OohFeeshy]

Hmm, if you can get some sort of liddy thing, and plants that stick out of the water, try reptile shops for things like fruit flies, crickets etc. so that they should, in theory, live oput of the water until they fall it. Fruit flies would be better I'd say. Or order a mail order culture.

EDIT- Aho, found the link I was after. This is how long live food live in tank water, this is for fry foods though.

Adult brine shrimp: 50 percent dead at 48 hours - used healthy shrimp freshly fed spirulina.

Baby brine shrimp: 50 percent dead at 20 hours - however, the babies had hatched 12 hours before they were introduced to the tank. Collecting them immediately after hatching might help them to live longer.

Microworms: 50 percent dead at 52 hours.

Vinegar eels: 50 percent dead at 24 hours

It seems adult brine shrimp fare OK, try getting Sea Monkey eggs as these are easily raised to adults (ime)

 

[LucyHurst]

That black fringing on the fins is ammonia burn, looks like they were in a VERY overstocked pond or they had been in that tank for a long time. the black shows the burns are healing though so they must have been burnt a while before you got them

 

[OrkyBetta]

eek, that sounds painful! I don't know the first thing about goldfish, but I do know that they are in a tank that is over-filtered by about 24 gallons. Maybe the shock of moving into such a clean environment is why they are acting the way they are? And yes, they were heavily over stocked. Will that black ever go away, then?

 

[xautomaticflowersx]

I'm not sure as I agree that the black fringing is due to ammonia burns. Ammonia burning is characterised by the fins being frayed or burnt back so that they look ragged. The fins on these goldfish look healthy, are intact and well formed. Plenty of goldfish naturally have black markings.

 

[black angel]

The black is the baby colouring going and will eventually turn gold.
I think the problem may be that they are on the floor. Every time you walk in the room the vibrations will be going through the tank and if you put yourself in their shoes *or fins* you are a big ogre looking and peering in at them from a great height. Any chance of you putting them on a table thats about waist high so they dont feel so threatened? Maybe covering the back of them will help them feel more secure and adding something they can swim under might help as well.
Goldies can go a couple of weeks without eating so just be patient. As they came from a pond maybe adding some elodea might get them to eat and offer more cover as well.
What have you called them? They look like a Bill and Ben to me lol.

 

[LucyHurst]

i doubt it is over filtered goldfish filtration needs to be 10 times the gallonage of the tank, so if its a ten gal you need filtration of 100gph.. what would that make yours? you can never have too much filtration when it comes to goldfish!
I'm 90% sure the black is ammonia burn and will go very fast, within about 2 weeks to a month.
baby goldfish are bronze not black so i dont see how it can be baby colour. Ammonia burns tend to affect the egdes of fins and the mouth and gills first, and thats what it looks like from those pictures, especially taking into account the way they must have been stocked and treated.

 

[black angel]

Lucy, its really common for young goldfish to be black and gold, trust me

 

[OrkyBetta]

The black is the baby colouring going and will eventually turn gold.
I think the problem may be that they are on the floor. Every time you walk in the room the vibrations will be going through the tank and if you put yourself in their shoes *or fins* you are a big ogre looking and peering in at them from a great height. Any chance of you putting them on a table thats about waist high so they dont feel so threatened? Maybe covering the back of them will help them feel more secure and adding something they can swim under might help as well.
Goldies can go a couple of weeks without eating so just be patient. As they came from a pond maybe adding some elodea might get them to eat and offer more cover as well.
What have you called them? They look like a Bill and Ben to me lol.

Well, it is like a 5 or 6 gallon tank, and it is not their permanent home. I have no money to buy them a proper setup, but lucky for me, the holidays are upon us, and I will be able to buy them a set up. For now, it is filtered for 30-40 gallons.

Thanks for the advice, I am sure I can find *something* to put them on today.

 

[LucyHurst]

Lucy, its really common for young goldfish to be black and gold, trust me

weeeell we'll find out, see how fast it clears

 

[black angel]

It will go away because its changing to gold not because its burnt I think were going to have to agree to disagree on this one.

 

[peediepixie]

Sorry to add fuel to the fire but when I got my fantails, they were new into the fish shop and so had just been shipped, one had black marks exactly like those (but not as big) which disappeared within 2 weeks and his fins are now beautifully white. I always thought it was ammonia burn...

 

[MsInchworm]

Hi OrkyBetta

Have your goldies started eating yet?

The suggestion that you get live blackworms is a good one. You should be able to get them or tubifex worms at a good, independent lfs. Just be sure to clean them well. You must stir them gently while rinsing them under running water to separate them to clean them thoroughly. It might take several rinses when you first get them, but keep doing it until the water runs clear. Then give them a rinse every day. To store them, keep them in a loosely covered container, with water to just cover them, in the refrigerator. Your bettas will love them too. If that doesn't tempt the goldfish, they are sick for sure. Also, don't worry if some escape into the gravel. Unlike frozen food, they will live there until the fish find them.

Goldfish often have black markings when they are small. I used to take my time picking out pretty ones and be so disappointed when the color disappeared.

BTW, if the pond was fairly still, and this tank is very agitated by the filter, it could contribute to their nervousness. They don't need over filtration, just enough to do the job for the size they are right now. The rest can wait until later.

 

[OrkyBetta]

Thanks so much. I am definitely going to go look for live food soon. It is hard for me to tell if they are eating or not, I am popping in a few flakes every day or so just to check, but once they get tossed to the bottom, who knows if they find them. The fish have made no efforts to come to the surface at all.

 

[LucyHurst]

It will go away because its changing to gold not because its burnt I think were going to have to agree to disagree on this one.

okies

 

[OrkyBetta]

Just an update. The black is gone from their bodies, and fading from their fins. Today I popped in a few flakes like I always do, and the little buggers popped right up to the top and ate like it was a regular occurance.


Case closed?