Gravel Woes! Sucking Up Small Bits

Another newbie question - my new black moor is currently checking out his new abode and seems very active and happy.

However he has an unhealthy fixation on the gravel. I'm so annoyed with myself I didn't get larger substrate. The pink gravel is so small he think it's food and is sucking up loads of it, which is common I know.

He's obviously spitting it back out but I'm basically just wondering if this is dangerous and whether to change the whole tank. Within the last 15 mins he seems to have realised it's not food and doing it less at least!

 

Don’t worry! This is perfectly normal with goldfish. They love searching the substrate for food

 

It's very normal but they can swallow it and cause problems! When I had Goldie's in a tank I used large marbles or bare bottom. I know some people say sand and others say large pebbles work also. I would watch very carefully!!

 

Will do! I'm happy he's stopped for now at least. I think it was just at first while he was exploring. Hopefully he seems to have realised it's not just some heaven tank paved with food. The excitement has died down now for him haha. Thanks again

 

I haven't owned fancy goldfish as of yet, but I do know they are descendants of the common carp, which means they actually don't have a proper stomach! They also don't have the nerve network that is ln our stomachs to tell them they are full, so they will never stop searching for food, provided their other needs are met. Its incredibly common for them to constantly comb the gravel for food, and they are built well for taking in inedible debris during their feeding. The concern when you have them taking in big pieces of gravel is obstruction, which is why most people end up using large particles like marbles, tiny particles that pass through easily, like sand, or nothing at all! Right now at least, that gravel looks like it would be tough to get down his throat, if he tries. For the most part, only food gets past the teeth in the throat. Getting bait far enough into a carps mouth to hook it while fishing is a challenge, they definitely can tell the difference! When he gets larger, you might end up considering getting different sized substrate, but right now id be confident he would be ok. The more other objects he has to pick over, the less he will pick at the gravel, too.

 

Amazing! Yes it does make sense. I'm glad I know they're eternally hungry otherwise those eyes would make me feed him constantly. Hoping he does grow, that would be awesome. And would definitely get a bigger tank. Another question actually- he's about 4-5 inches including tail at the moment and was in a much smaller tank at the aquarium centre, so do you think he can still grow? Or has he been stunted now from his original housing? He's in a 29 gallon now

And thanks so much for imparting all your knowledge! It's so interesting

 

He should recover fine from the lack of space, he probably wasn't at the store in very tight conditions too long. I believe (without fact checking rn) that moors can get 8-10 inches max!

 

Yes so I've heard! Here's hoping