Hello folks!
So I’ve noticed a few issues witching the past couple weeks with one of my fancy goldfish, and I’m not sure if he’s sick. For context, I have a 35 gallon tank, and have two fancy goldfish. I’m also a fairly newer goldfish owner, having owned them for about a year. But don’t worry, before I got them I did extensive research about how to responsibly care for them, as well as how to properly cycle the tank before getting them. With that being said, here are a few things that are plaguing my poor Achillies:
First, I noticed a week ago my poor guy had experiencing some pretty bad floating, which also made it hard for him to control his swimming. After further research, he could be having swim bladder issues, which makes a lot of sense. I tried fasting him for a day to make sure he wasn’t constipated. But to no avail, that didn’t seem to help.
A few days ago, I then noticed that he started to just sit at the bottom of the tank with no movement. Almost like he was very lethargic, or like he was being weighed down. This was very strange and concerning, since this is the exact opposite of what was happening before with him floating. I really have no idea why this is happening or what changed.
Today I noticed this weird discoloration on his back fin, pictured above. Because of this and his other symptoms, I’m worried he’s very sick, possibly with a bacterial infection. Im not well versed in this discoloration, so I really have no idea what it could be. I can only make a guess.
I made sure to check my parameters with my API freshwater test kit, and everything looks good: 0ppm ammonia, 0ppm nitrite, and about 30ppm nitrate. I also purchased a tank heater to try to bump up the temp from 69F to 74F, as I feel like a warmer environment might help with speeding up his metabolism, just in case his floating/sinking issues are coming from him being constipated. I am also hoping that the warmer environment helps boost his immune response. Additionally, I’m also planning on fasting him for two days, then feeding him soft de-shelled peas as a laxative treatment.
Again, everything that I’m doing to try to help is coming from my research, and I’m not well versed in these ailments he is experiencing. I’m afraid he’s just getting sicker, and I want to help him greatly. Any and all advice is really appreciated, thank you!