Desperately worried about my common goldfish

Hi everyone, I’m desperate to know what is wrong with my boy, I’ve tested his aquarium and all the parameters are normal. All of today he has been so lethargic and is lying on the sand a lot and when I’ve been at work I’ve been watching him on webcam and he’s hardly moved most of the day. When I came home he was having a poop (see picture attached) and I think he looks a bit bloated. He has still eaten so I have given him deshelled peas hoping he will be better tomorrow, can someone please advise what might be wrong with him. I’m so upset incase he dies.

Tank
What is the water volume of the tank? 29g
How long has the tank been running? 3 months
Does it have a filter? Fluval U3
Does it have a heater? No
What is the water temperature? Between 66-68f
What is the entire stocking of this tank? (Please list all fish and inverts.) 1 common goldfish

Maintenance
How often do you change the water? Once every 2 weeks
How much of the water do you change? 60%
What do you use to treat your water? Aqua safe water conditioner
Do you vacuum the substrate or just the water? Vacuum and water

*Parameters - Very Important
Did you cycle your tank before adding fish? No
What do you use to test the water? Master test kit
What are your parameters? We need to know the exact numbers, not just “fine” or “safe”.
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 10
pH: 7.2

Feeding
How often do you feed your fish? Twice per day
How much do you feed your fish? See picture
What brand of food do you feed your fish? Tetra
Do you feed frozen? No
Do you feed freeze-dried foods? No

Illness & Symptoms
How long have you had this fish? 10 months inherited from boss who has had him 3 yrs
How long ago did you first notice these symptoms? Today
In a few words, can you explain the symptoms? Lying on the bottom of tank, very lethargic lots of poops some very stringy, he is the only fish in the tank so unsure how he would catch any diseases. He does come to the top of the the tank if he thinks he’s being fed, I have given him 1 and a half deshelled peas.
Have you started any treatment for the illness? No
Was your fish physically ill or injured upon purchase? No
How has its behavior and appearance changed, if at all? Very tired, difficulty in lifting himself off the sand.

Explain your emergency situation in detail.
(Please give a clear explanation of what is going on, include details from the beginning of the illness leading up to now) if I turn the light off he moves, then lies on the bottom, if I turn the light on he moves then lies on the bottom, so very worried.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

Sounds like a water quality issue, but your readings are very odd. Commons have a very high bioload and if you're only changing the water once every 2 weeks then you should have a lot more nitrates. Definitely upgrade his tank if you can, commons can get up a foot in length and require minimum 75 gallons imo.

I would suggest drastically increasing his water changes to at least 50% twice per week to see if that helps. Goldfish thrive on clean water and living in dirty water eventually takes a toll on the fish's health even if they have seemed "fine" for a while.

 

Thank you for your reply

 

What is the water volume of the tank? 29g

Here's the problem.

1 common goldfish

This doesn't help.

Did you cycle your tank before adding fish? No

Oh no, that's really bad news.

Honestly, common goldfish are pond fish. They are very messy, social and get up to 16 inches in length when given adequate growing room. They were bred to live in ponds, that's where they are best at.

I don't believe for a second that you have no ammonia, nitrite and only 10ppm nitrate. You've either done the test incorrectly or it's a bad test.

 

Thank you for your reply, I find this all a bit strange, i don’t understand what you mean by “this doesn’t help” he is a common goldfish! And the tests must be wrong every time I do them as the readings rarely change. Surely if the ammonia was high, the nitrites and nitrates very high he would not have survived all this time? I appreciate goldfish can grow to a large size, however my boss had him for 3 years in a very small tank and although it was small he was doing well, I’ve had 2 tanks first one being 12g then upgraded to 29g in November. The longest living goldfish were 2 of them from a fairground and lived 43 years in a tank smaller than mine so I’m unsure as to why just today my boy has been poorly after all this time. I feel he has quite a lot of space for himself. Also you can cycle a tank with fish so not sure why it’s really bad news.

 

Hold up. Not feeling the vibes here.

Don’t panic, keep an eye on your fish over the next couple days. When in doubt, water out. So do a water change. I do agree with others that weekly water changes for gold fish are a must.

Don’t panic about not having a freaking pond for this fish. You’ve inherited it from your boss and have been taking care of it and obviously care about its health and well-being. It will not grow to 12” to 16” overnight. I dare my goldfish to perform such a feat, but as of yet no surprise behemoths in the morning.

Let’s just try to address issue at hand. Your fish seemed off today and has stringy poop. This happens it is not necessarily a sign of disaster. So again, for piece of mind do a 50% water change and monitor your fish.

Not familiar with the food you have for them. I really like the new life spectrum pellets for goldfish. They sink and are small so they can forage around a bit during feeding times. Check it out it might be something to try.

 

Hi, thank you. I have just done 50% water change on Monday, I will try the sinking pellets, as you know I have sand substrate so have always been wary of sinking pellets incase he ingests too much sand and not sure I can get the ones you suggest in the uk but I’ll have a look. Thank you again

Hold up. Not feeling the vibes here.

Don’t panic, keep an eye on your fish over the next couple days. When in doubt, water out. So do a water change. I do agree with others that weekly water changes for gold fish are a must.

Don’t panic about not having a freaking pond for this fish. You’ve inherited it from your boss and have been taking care of it and obviously care about its health and well-being. It will not grow to 12” to 16” overnight. I dare my goldfish to perform such a feat, but as of yet no surprise behemoths in the morning.

Let’s just try to address issue at hand. Your fish seemed off today and has stringy poop. This happens it is not necessarily a sign of disaster. So again, for piece of mind do a 50% water change and monitor your fish.

Not familiar with the food you have for them. I really like the new life spectrum pellets for goldfish. They sink and are small so they can forage around a bit during feeding times. Check it out it might be something to try.

I can get the pellets I’ll give them a try. Thanks

 

Hi, thank you. I have just done 50% water change on Monday, I will try the sinking pellets, as you know I have sand substrate so have always been wary of sinking pellets incase he ingests too much sand and not sure I can get the ones you suggest in the uk but I’ll have a look. Thank you again

I can get the pellets I’ll give them a try. Thanks

They just suck it up and spit back out. The sand. The sinking pellets are good because then less tendency to suck air at the surface. I have sand substrate too. They actually bully/shoulder each out of the way trying to get to them first.

Just post an update when you can over the weekend. Best of luck!
FWIW: my first goldfish was a rescue, came in a sad little one gallon bowl and was left over the summer by an elementary school teacher. She (fish friend) got an upgrade to a 3 gallon punch bowl, then a 10 gallon plus friend, now they live in a 20 long and will be in a 40 gallon soon. I feared that one gallon would stunt her growth. Nope. Not in the least. But I have kept tank size to something I can physically and financially manage: upgrading accordingly. It sounds like you’ve been doing the same. So like I said before don’t panic.

 

Thank you for your reply, I find this all a bit strange, i don’t understand what you mean by “this doesn’t help” he is a common goldfish

It doesn't help, because you only have one goldfish and they are social fish, so that's contributing to the stress it is facing.

And the tests must be wrong every time I do them as the readings rarely change. Surely if the ammonia was high, the nitrites and nitrates very high he would not have survived all this time?

You would be surprised, common goldfish are fairly hardy fellows and can tolerate less-than-ideal conditions for some time, especially if it gradually comes on as opposed to a spike. They don't necessarily have to be stupid high, they could be at 0.25ppm or even lower, which isn't immediately life threatening but is still poisonous over time. If you very recently did a water change, that would probably explain the results.

I appreciate goldfish can grow to a large size, however my boss had him for 3 years in a very small tank and although it was small he was doing well

No, he wasn't doing well. He was barely surviving. Goldfish can live as long or even longer than cats, so 3 years in respect to their natural lifetime isn't huge. They can't grow to a large size, they do grow to a large size. It's non-negotiable. And it doesn't take them half of their lifespan to achieve this size either; when given the right conditions goldfish can grow incredibly quickly. They can reach adult length, as in, a foot long or more, in as little as 2 years when they are kept in a pond where they should be.

The longest living goldfish were 2 of them from a fairground and lived 43 years in a tank smaller than mine

I'm sorry and I don't mean this personally, but I don't believe this at all. It's possible for goldfish to live this long, but only when they are kept in suitable habitats. It is physiologically impossible for a stunted goldfish to live for twice it's normal life expectancy. It's organs will have crushed themselves from the inside long before that point. A few years? Sure. A decade, far fetched but it's possible for the hardiest, genetically slowest growing goldfish, 43 years? Just not possible. Those goldfish kept dying and getting replaced by someone without whoever kept them, who I assume was a child at the time, knowing.

I feel he has quite a lot of space for himself.

Well, he doesn't. Commons living in 70 gallons have just enough space for themselves. 29 gallons is a prison.

Also you can cycle a tank with fish so not sure why it’s really bad news.

If you used a bacteria seeding product like SafeStart, or cycled filter media, sure. If you put your fish in an uncycled tank with no bacteria or pre-cycled media, you subjected your fish to unnecessary harm.

Let's not get this twisted, you came to this forum to ask people more experienced in this hobby than you about your fish.

I know my tone may sound harsh, and I don't mean to come off this way, this is nothing personal and I don't mean to insult, guilt or offend the person behind this account, but I get tired of people thinking they can keep common goldfish in tanks, especially small-moderate sized ones. They are very messy fish, they grow very quickly when kept in the right conditions, their full adult size is 10 inches at the bare minimum, normally a foot or more, and to top it all off, they are social and prefer living in groups. It is not okay to keep common goldfish that are bigger than fry of any size in tanks, especially small ones. If you have a 125 gallon supertank, sure, you can keep two or three of them in that, but why bother? Why spend all that money on that tank when a pond is far cheaper and you get to keep way more fish in it? Keep your common goldfish in ponds people.

 

i only keep comet goldfish (the 2 in my avatar are 12 inches long), in my personal experience, mature commons/comets need atleast 20g per goldfish. a 29g is fine for one common, if yours is the standard 29g which is 30 inches long. although as others have mentioned they are social and should have a companion.

i do suggest weekly water changes. old tank syndrome doesn't necessarily mean high nitrates, there are a lot of other wastes that we don't test for, like phosphate, accumulation of heavy metals, dissolved organic compounds, etc. these wastes/toxins can cause stress, stress can lead to sickness that a healthy/stress-free fish's immune system can easily fight off. clean water prevents many illnesses and promotes healing.

the stringy poo might be parasites.

need some clarification, you said tank's been running 3 months, but wasn't cycled. Did you get the entire setup from your boss, or was the tank/filter brand new and you only got the goldfish from your boss?

 

i only keep comet goldfish (the 2 in my avatar are 12 inches long), in my personal experience, mature commons/comets need 20g per goldfish. a 29g is fine for one common, if yours is the standard 29g which is 30 inches long. although as others have mentioned they are social and should have a companion.

i do suggest weekly water changes. old tank syndrome doesn't necessarily mean high nitrates, there are a lot of other wastes that we don't test for, like phosphate, accumulation of heavy metals, dissolved organic compounds, etc. these wastes/toxins can cause stress, stress can lead to sickness that a healthy/stress-free fish's immune system can easily fight off. clean water prevents many illnesses and promotes healing.

the stringy poo might be parasites.

need some clarification, you said tank's been running 3 months, but wasn't cycled. Did you get the entire setup from your boss, or was the tank/filter brand new and you only got the goldfish from your boss?

I completely disagree. A 29g is never okay for goldfish, because goldfish should never be solitary.

I'm not going to comment on anyone's experience, as that isn't my place. Personally, I think 60g for two comets (I assume they're in a 60g) is still way too small. Fish deserve to have a large, expansive environment to explore. I don't believe two 12 inch long, several inch wide fish could truly have that in a 60g. However, I'm not here to get into arguments with people, I'm not going to tell you that you are mistreating your fish or anything of the sort.

 

Your tank is not too small, and not causing any problem. Some people don't understand or even know about GIH or how they work. ALL of the worlds oldest goldfish were kept in small tanks, much smaller than yours and did not outgrow them.

While your water parameters are fine, the water should be clearer. What filter are you using and have you messed with it?

I'd not feed him for a day or two and see how it goes. What was the previous owner feeding?

 

Your tank is not too small, and not causing any problem. Some people don't understand or even know about GIH or how they work. ALL of the worlds oldest goldfish were kept in small tanks, much smaller than yours and did not outgrow them.

While your water parameters are fine, the water should be clearer. What filter are you using and have you messed with it?

I'd not feed him for a day or two and see how it goes. What was the previous owner feeding?

Thank you, it is a Fluval U3 it has just been cleaned, however I have just taken the biomax out of the plastic bag I did rinse it all in a bucket of tank water before putting it back in. The previous owner fed him maybe a couple of flakes per day.

i only keep comet goldfish (the 2 in my avatar are 12 inches long), in my personal experience, mature commons/comets need atleast 20g per goldfish. a 29g is fine for one common, if yours is the standard 29g which is 30 inches long. although as others have mentioned they are social and should have a companion.

i do suggest weekly water changes. old tank syndrome doesn't necessarily mean high nitrates, there are a lot of other wastes that we don't test for, like phosphate, accumulation of heavy metals, dissolved organic compounds, etc. these wastes/toxins can cause stress, stress can lead to sickness that a healthy/stress-free fish's immune system can easily fight off. clean water prevents many illnesses and promotes healing.

the stringy poo might be parasites.

need some clarification, you said tank's been running 3 months, but wasn't cycled. Did you get the entire setup from your boss, or was the tank/filter brand new and you only got the goldfish from your boss?

Thanks, how do I get rid of parasites? No I previously had a smaller tank and filter until I upgraded to the 29g and new fluval U3 filter in November. I put the bacteria start up in, it was running 2 weeks before I put my fish in.

They just suck it up and spit back out. The sand. The sinking pellets are good because then less tendency to suck air at the surface. I have sand substrate too. They actually bully/shoulder each out of the way trying to get to them first.

Just post an update when you can over the weekend. Best of luck!
FWIW: my first goldfish was a rescue, came in a sad little one gallon bowl and was left over the summer by an elementary school teacher. She (fish friend) got an upgrade to a 3 gallon punch bowl, then a 10 gallon plus friend, now they live in a 20 long and will be in a 40 gallon soon. I feared that one gallon would stunt her growth. Nope. Not in the least. But I have kept tank size to something I can physically and financially manage: upgrading accordingly. It sounds like you’ve been doing the same. So like I said before don’t panic.

Hi, my boy is back to his normal self this morning I’m pleased to say . Thank you for your advice.

Hold up. Not feeling the vibes here.

Don’t panic, keep an eye on your fish over the next couple days. When in doubt, water out. So do a water change. I do agree with others that weekly water changes for gold fish are a must.

Don’t panic about not having a freaking pond for this fish. You’ve inherited it from your boss and have been taking care of it and obviously care about its health and well-being. It will not grow to 12” to 16” overnight. I dare my goldfish to perform such a feat, but as of yet no surprise behemoths in the morning.

Let’s just try to address issue at hand. Your fish seemed off today and has stringy poop. This happens it is not necessarily a sign of disaster. So again, for piece of mind do a 50% water change and monitor your fish.

Not familiar with the food you have for them. I really like the new life spectrum pellets for goldfish. They sink and are small so they can forage around a bit during feeding times. Check it out it might be something to try.

Can I just ask how many of these pellets would you give to 1 common goldfish I’m scared I’m over feeding him and that’s why he’s not been well ? Thank you in advance.

I completely disagree. A 29g is never okay for goldfish, because goldfish should never be solitary.

I'm not going to comment on anyone's experience, as that isn't my place. Personally, I think 60g for two comets (I assume they're in a 60g) is still way too small. Fish deserve to have a large, expansive environment to explore. I don't believe two 12 inch long, several inch wide fish could truly have that in a 60g. However, I'm not here to get into arguments with people, I'm not going to tell you that you are mistreating your fish or anything of the sort.

I would love to have a friend for him, however he has always been alone and I would be terrified that if I put another fish with him that he will end up with a disease and die, this would break my heart.

 

ALL of the worlds oldest goldfish were kept in small tanks, much smaller than yours and did not outgrow them.

No they weren't. They were all from large ponds. I have no idea where you get this from.

Goldfish don't outgrow small tanks because it stunts them. Arguing that it's ok to keep goldfish in small tanks because they will be stunted and won't outgrow them is like saying it's ok to keep a child in a small cage because it will stunt them and they won't outgrow them. Do you not see the ethical problem in this statement?

I'm honestly disappointed to see people on such an esteemed forum as this arguing for such nonsense. I was under the impression that people here knew better than this.

Loulou1 I'm glad to hear your guy is back to normal nonetheless. While he might be doing okay now, please try and take my advice on board. Try to find a pond for him to join, he will be much happier and live a much longer and healthier life there. Despite what some individuals are saying here, goldfish do not do well in the long term when kept in a medium size tank like yours with no companionship. He may appear to be surviving fine, but long term he's not thriving. I think you do have his best intentions at heart as you seem to want to protect him from catching a disease, and you've come here looking for help in the first place, so I hope eventually you find it in yourself to do what's best for him. Which one would you rather for him: Living perhaps 10 years at most in a tank which is in all due respect a cage for him, never reaching adult size, with no friends, or living at least 20 years, possibly significantly more in a fish mansion, growing to a foot long or more, with lots of friends? Please consider what I'm saying going forward.

 

Thank you, it is a Fluval U3 it has just been cleaned, however I have just taken the biomax out of the plastic bag I did rinse it all in a bucket of tank water before putting it back in. The previous owner fed him maybe a couple of flakes per day.

Your tank and filter are still new. I'd advise not cleaning your filter in any manner until the flow is restricted. (with one carefully fed fish this will take a long time!) This preserves your beneficial bacteria. Since yours is a submerged filter, also make sure the output is adjusted to agitate the surface as much as possible. Fish need plenty of oxygen for good health. I'd consider adding an airstone to your setup.

It should be easy to keep great water conditions in a 29 gallon tank, with 2 small/medium fish. Once your tank settles in and your new buddy is doing fine I wouldn't hesitate to add a friend.

"I have no idea where you get this from." (oldest goldfishes) It's from the internet,

 

Take a breath everyone.Let's not make this personal or badger the OP
Give your advice, in the end, it's up the OP to decide which route to take.

 

Your tank and filter are still new. I'd advise not cleaning your filter in any manner until the flow is restricted. (with one carefully fed fish this will take a long time!) This preserves your beneficial bacteria. Since yours is a submerged filter, also make sure the output is adjusted to agitate the surface as much as possible. Fish need plenty of oxygen for good health. I'd consider adding an airstone to your setup.

It should be easy to keep great water conditions in a 29 gallon tank, with 2 small/medium fish. Once your tank settles in and your new buddy is doing fine I wouldn't hesitate to add a friend.

"I have no idea where you get this from." (oldest goldfishes) It's from the internet,

Hi I have 2 air stones and the filter does get very dirty and stops so I do have to clean it, I would hate for him to catch something from a new fish.

 

Hi I have 2 air stones and the filter does get very dirty and stops so I do have to clean it, I would hate for him to catch something from a new fish.

If you are feeding the proper amount and your filter is still clogging up quickly you may need a larger filter. Or change the type of media in it. Filtered and fed properly your water should be crystal clear... not cloudy. Many people here run a much higher bioload on their tanks than you have here and do fine with it.

 

To your question about feeding the pellets: whatever fits between your thumb and finger (pinch) should be fine. You can introduce the new food by offering existing food in am and new food in pm, then gradually replace old feedings with new. The pellets I recommended are tiny but this is a good thing: gives them something to forage for and are easily digestible. This was the only one they (my fish) took to immediately and I was relieved because I was weaning them off of flakes. Hope your fish enjoys them too!

In tank filters like U3 get dirty quickly. So clean it as needed. Sounds like you have a good feel for that already. Just clean any one filter at a time since cleaning all filters in one go can throw cycle off a bit. If you switch to weekly water changes then you can rotate which filter gets cleaned each week or every other week etc. You’ll find a rhythm to that which works for you.

Glad to hear your fish is back to its normal self.

 

the Fluval U3 was my first filter. it is very effective and does need to be cleaned weekly. the setting i used was the top nozzle. and it was at the water surface level creating a lot of surface agitation. when you do your weekly water changes, take a bucket of the old tank water and rinse out the two foam pads on the sides, and pull the center cage out and rinse the biomax ceramic media. i threw away the carbon pads after a few weeks. the motor housing and impeller needs to be taken apart and cleaned atleast once per year.

my comets get about a "pinch" each (if measuring with a measuring spoon), morning and evening. i used sinking pellets that have Spirulina, such as Omega One Kelp Veggie pellets. But they recently changed from 8oz can to 6.5oz can. So now I'm trying out KensFish Ultra Spirulina Sticks. He used to be a member here several years ago.

did your comet have stringy poo before? sometimes you'll want to fast they for 2-3 days. feed some peas, then go back to pellets and see what happens.

I quarantine new fish and treat them with PraziPro for two weeks then watch them for an additional two weeks, haven't had any issues.

 

To your question about feeding the pellets: whatever fits between your thumb and finger (pinch) should be fine. You can introduce the new food by offering existing food in am and new food in pm, then gradually replace old feedings with new. The pellets I recommended are tiny but this is a good thing: gives them something to forage for and are easily digestible. This was the only one they (my fish) took to immediately and I was relieved because I was weaning them off of flakes. Hope your fish enjoys them too!

In tank filters like U3 get dirty quickly. So clean it as needed. Sounds like you have a good feel for that already. Just clean any one filter at a time since cleaning all filters in one go can throw cycle off a bit. If you switch to weekly water changes then you can rotate which filter gets cleaned each week or every other week etc. You’ll find a rhythm to that which works for you.

Glad to hear your fish is back to its normal self.

Thank you for all your help and advice.

the Fluval U3 was my first filter. it is very effective and does need to be cleaned weekly. the setting i used was the top nozzle. and it was at the water surface level creating a lot of surface agitation. when you do your weekly water changes, take a bucket of the old tank water and rinse out the two foam pads on the sides, and pull the center cage out and rinse the biomax ceramic media. i threw away the carbon pads after a few weeks. the motor housing and impeller needs to be taken apart and cleaned atleast once per year.

my comets get about a "pinch" each (if measuring with a measuring spoon), morning and evening. i used sinking pellets that have Spirulina, such as Omega One Kelp Veggie pellets. But they recently changed from 8oz can to 6.5oz can. So now I'm trying out KensFish Ultra Spirulina Sticks. He used to be a member here several years ago.

did your comet have stringy poo before? sometimes you'll want to fast they for 2-3 days. feed some peas, then go back to pellets and see what happens.

I quarantine new fish and treat them with PraziPro for two weeks then watch them for an additional two weeks, haven't had any issues.

Thank you also for all of your advice it has been so helpful, i do take everything on board just sometimes I get a bit frustrated as I am given different advice from different people and don’t know what to do for the best.

 

They just suck it up and spit back out. The sand. The sinking pellets are good because then less tendency to suck air at the surface. I have sand substrate too. They actually bully/shoulder each out of the way trying to get to them first.

Just post an update when you can over the weekend. Best of luck!
FWIW: my first goldfish was a rescue, came in a sad little one gallon bowl and was left over the summer by an elementary school teacher. She (fish friend) got an upgrade to a 3 gallon punch bowl, then a 10 gallon plus friend, now they live in a 20 long and will be in a 40 gallon soon. I feared that one gallon would stunt her growth. Nope. Not in the least. But I have kept tank size to something I can physically and financially manage: upgrading accordingly. It sounds like you’ve been doing the same. So like I said before don’t panic.

Hi, I have purchased some sinking pellets for my goldfish and they are very small, the packet advises small amounts a few times per day. Can you please advise what a small amount would be. Thank you for your help in advance.

 

Hi, I have purchased some sinking pellets for my goldfish and they are very small, the packet advises small amounts a few times per day. Can you please advise what a small amount would be. Thank you for your help in advance.

A pinch. I just sprinkle in a bit once or twice a day depending on what else I am feeding. They can smell it and will hunt down every last morsel. Bonus since they move the sand around to see if they missed some it keeps stuff broken up and moving toward/into filters.

Just play around with how much your fish will eat in one go. A little goes a long way with it because it pretty good quality food. Also don’t worry if it doesn’t immediately sink.

 

A pinch. I just sprinkle in a bit once or twice a day depending on what else I am feeding. They can smell it and will hunt down every last morsel. Bonus since they move the sand around to see if they missed some it keeps stuff broken up and moving toward/into filters.

Just play around with how much your fish will eat in one go. A little goes a long way with it because it pretty good quality food. Also don’t worry if it doesn’t immediately sink.

Thank you