Help?

[aurora]

Hi everyone. First time here. I have a tank with 3 fancy (comets,I think) goldfish. The tank is 48 inches /18 inches/12 inches. The fish are all around 10 years old. One of them has recently started acting weird. He is the biggest one, at eight or nine inches long and to see him in the state he's in is quite distressing. He seems unable to keep himself upright, turning over and over (like a dolphin doing tricks). Then, next thing he will be off, tries very hard to swim around normally, but after maybe 10 seconds or so he's back to spinning around and floating up towards the surface. When he gets there, he darts back down, only for the whole process to start over. Please help. I don't know if he's dying, and would rather save him the agony and try some humane way of letting him die quicker. He tries to feed when I put food in, but after managing a couple of flakes he stops.
All advise welcome.
Thanks so much.

 

[rommel39]

Sounds like Swim Bladder Disease. If you can isolate him, then do that, keep the water clean and don't feed for a few days.

 

[aurora]

Thanks so much for your reply. I can't isolate him. No where else to put him. He is just floating bent over and limp right now at the surface. I have put the light out. he tends to go more lifeless when tank light is out. :-(
aurora.

 

[rommel39]

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/disease.html

Check out the above link, it should answer your question. If not, let the tank know!!!

 

[rommel39]

I just realized that you are from Glasgow, Scotland. My girlfriend's mom is from Glasgow!!! How cool

 

[Charlius]

Yea, my little fantail was doing that. I thought it was b/c I wasn't pre-soaking the floating pellets I fed him. So then I pre-soaked them for a long time, then put them in. He still floated to the surface, upside down as well!! Really hard to watch for me.

So then I suspected, maybe it was the food altogether that was doing that. So then I just used flake food introducing the flake underwater so that there'd be NO chance of surface gulping. He ate the flakes and is swimming fine now! *Shew*

 

[aurora]

Thanks for your advice Rommel.....
and yep! Its a small world as they say! Where abouts in Glasgow is she from and how did you meet and get a girlfriend from all the way where ever you are? You are in America somewhere? I know, I am nosey *BOUNCINGS
And thank you Charlius.

 

[thelovelydove]

Hey, this is rommel39's gf. My mother grew up around the corner from Anniesland Cross. She ended up in Canada (where I was born) and then we both came to the States, where, many, many years later, rommel39 and I met in Virginia.

I hope your fish is doing better. I had a tetra die of swim bladder disease last week. I hadn't thought of introducing flake food underwater. Maybe I should try that out.

 

[aurora]

Hi Rommels39's gf!
Ask your Mum if she knows a wee place called Cardowan in Stepps. Thats where I live. It's just outside Glasgow,(10 mins by car). She had the right idea going to Canada! This place is depressing! Well, the weather is anyway. I suppose its home....
On the fish front, he is still the same. Hanging in there but in a bad way. I don't know if maybe he has reached the end of his life-span, being 10 years old. I just don't know, but I won't be euthanising him. When he goes he goes. I just couldn't kill him
bye for now x