Goldfish Buoyancy Problems - Resolved
12 years ago
I recently changed my goldfish food to a new type and now one of my poor goldfish isnt swimming right. I would assume he was dieing but he still seems to have a healthy appetite and is active aside form the fact that he is having problems swimming properly.
I read online that goldfish commonly have Buoyancy problems, and many different things could be the cause, including food, so I am assuming that is what happened.. Even though the five other goldfish he shares a tank with are doing just fine... So now I gotta go get their old food again so no other fish suffer from this..
Does anybody know a way to help my little fishy out? I know there have been others to resolve their problems by making a floatie for their fish, but should he be moved to a separate tank for now? Any advice would be helpful if others have had this problem... Online it really only states causes and not a lot of fixes..
I read online that goldfish commonly have Buoyancy problems, and many different things could be the cause, including food, so I am assuming that is what happened.. Even though the five other goldfish he shares a tank with are doing just fine... So now I gotta go get their old food again so no other fish suffer from this..
Does anybody know a way to help my little fishy out? I know there have been others to resolve their problems by making a floatie for their fish, but should he be moved to a separate tank for now? Any advice would be helpful if others have had this problem... Online it really only states causes and not a lot of fixes..
FA+

Is it swimming with a limp? Or is it swimming sideways like a crab.
Maybe instead of going forwards, it keeps stumbling over and all the other fish in the street turn their heads to look at it
and they go oh my god, and simultaneously gasp, waiting to check if he's okay before moving on. Suffice to say they'd probably forget all about it, three seconds later.
Anyways, the food causing a change in the fish's behaviour is pretty unlikely.
You can tell if this is the case by starving your fish for like, 2 or 3 days, changing it back to its old food won't help you find the root of the problem. So i'd lay off that until you find out.
If it's not the food then it might be disease or infection. At which point i have no idea what to suggest.
And if i remember right from my fish owning days, a sudden change in temperature can also cause it disorientation problems. So if its suddenly become really coldddd, or you moved the tank from a warm place right next to a frosty window... things like that really.
Goldfish aren't exactly complex animals, finding out the issue should be a simple enough task if you just try to think about all the causes it might be.
Good luck with your fisho.
What's its name?!
The temperature in the tank remains the same at all times due to a heater we have in the tank that helps keep it warm during the colder times of the year. The only real thing that has changed is that they were switched to a different food type three days ago.
I dont tend to name my fish. In fact these poor guys were rescue fish who were used for decoration at a party... Cause you know.. fish that cost less then a buck a piece are for putting in tiny bowls with no air and should be thrown away right after you are done suffocating them in a tiny space.
I'm almost brought to tears every time i have to deal with a spider, but they are one of my biggest most utter fears.
I apologise lots and lots of times, and i always say "Why do you have to be here, in my space, if you weren't here, i wouldn't have to do anything"
so i do understand your feelings for those goldfishies to an extent.
As i said, just starve them of food for like, 2 days, if nothing changes, then it'll definately be an infection or disease, which would be time to go to a vetenarian.
It could be from overfeeding or a derp with the swim bladder, but it usually subsides. If the problem persists with dietary change or starvation, I'd say treat him in a separate tank with some melafix since that's typically the "FIX MY FISHY'S WEIRD SICKNESS" remedy of choice.
What's your tank size? What kinds of fish and what sizes are they? Gravel or sand? How often do you clean, and what percentage of a water change do you do? What pH do you keep the tank at?
The only recent change was the food. I used normal goldfish flakes and treated them to some freeze dried blood worms once a week. I changed their flake food to a different type of flake food over the last three days, so I assume that was the problem. He was showing the problem before his feeding, and the only reason I knew he wasnt dieing was because he had a good appetite in the morning. He was able to make it to the top of the tank, well.. though awkward.. Within about 8 hours or so he is swimming proper again, so in the morning we are going right back to the old flakes.
So, yeah just flakes. I'd try giving them some more variation in their diet, personally. A varied diet will keep them well nutritionally and their little innards working a little better. Most fish LOVE zucchini and cucumber, and some like carrots as well. Lots of fish flakes are made with vegetable, but as it is with humans, processed food is never as good as the real deal. :D Also why I prefer frozen bloodworms over the freeze-dried. Also fish go INSANE over them and it's adorbs.
Glad that he got better and whatnots. It's always... super awkward to deal with a derpy fish.