Listless Fish

My fish aren't eating and aren't being aslively as usual after I remodeled their tank to be substrateless so it would be easier for me to clean the tank. I kept all of their ornaments and used the same gravel in the potted plants for them so I wouldn't lose my cycle, and I haven't because all of the parameters are the same. Here's a picture of them in their tank. I am very worried

 

The beneficial bacteria that maintain the cycle is found in areas with high oxygen exchange, meaning 99.9999% of your bacteria is found in your HOB filter, not your gravel; tanks with undergravel filters are more likely to have higher concentrations of bacteria in the substrate.
When you say all your parameters are the same, did you test them yourself? What test kit are you using?
When you removed the gravel, you probably release a bunch of nitrogen and other nasties into the water. Water probably happened was all the poop, uneaten food, detritus, etc. that was in the tank settled and was breaking down in the gravel. Removing the gravel and stirring everything up released all that gunk into the water column. I would personally do a pretty large water change just in case. Other than that, I can't think of anything else to do, other than make sure they're not breathing heavily, don't have any signs of ammonia burn, and watch and wait

 

Can you list your exact water parameters for pH, temp, ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates?

How often do you do water changes, and how much do you change?

What size tank is this?

 

Ammonia 0
Nitrite 5
nitrate 0
36 gallon tank
And I did a 50% water change yesterday

Temp is 70 oh us 7.6
Ammonia 0
Nitrate 5
Nitrate 0
I test myself
I do weekly 50% water changes, and during the week if it looks dirty I vacuum a little bit

 

Do you use a liquid test kit or test strips? Liquid kits are much more accurate and less expensive, so I'd definitely suggest them over test strips.
Did you just clean the tank? The water looks a bit cloudy, so I'm assuming you did. It takes time for fish to adjust to certain changes. You may just need to be patient.
Will you be planning on upgrading this tank? If it's not the cause already, it may cause stress down the line. A 36-gallon tank is the bare minimum for one telescope goldfish, let alone two.

 

Yeah they're moving to the pond as soon as I feel they're ready. The brass one is going in a few weeks and the telescope only has one eye so well try her in a pond but bring her back in if she doesn't do well. I use liquid test kits, and I JUST cleaned the tank before I took that picture

 

They may just be a little bored - it seems like you're doing things right

 

Everything seems great, then. I would just wait it out. It's most likely just stress from the recent change of scenery. Keep an eye on them for the next few days. Feel free to update us By the way, I would personally keep the telescope in this tank. She'll do much better if she's able to deal with the disability in a smaller space.

 

It's no good that they're bored! Is there anything I can do about that

 

You could add more decor? And some additional plants that they can munch on, like anacharis.

 

Some info might be outdated. Hopefully it helps.

 

My oranda has come back to being hungry and active, but Sylvia is still constantly hanging out at the top of the tank in an almost vertical position. She moves around and gets all excited when I come close to the tank, but other than that she just sits there like that. She isn't gulping I think maybe she's looking at her reflection on the surface of the water? Is this bad is there something wrong with her (besides the obvious eye thing, I know she's broken)

 

This is cute! Might be hard to train Sylvia but I'm up for a challenge!

 

Interestingly, I put a camera into my water and found that fish don't actually see the reflections we see from outside the tank... and they have polarized vision which means they can see straight through the top of the water as though it were not even there! (helps them look out for predators). I don't know about the behaviour though... (love the broken doll parts!)

 

Sylvia is a black moor and their eyes are like that. They’re just bred that way. So the eyes are not the problem.

Temp?
Parameters?
Tank size?

 

I attempted it with multiple bettas. Takes some time, but the outcome is worth it. Good luck

 

No she's missing an eye

They love to hide in the doll torsos and I use the doll arms to weigh down lettuce

Here's a better picture of her injury

 

When she sits vertically, does it look as though her body is tilted? Does she have any trouble swimming? How much agitation is on the surface of the water? Does she eat well? Have you attempted any of the things I suggested in the first thread?

 

Yes she recovered beautifully from the loss of her eye (the other fish involved in that has been rehomed) thanks to myfishvet.com she's a very good awimmer, she eats from my hand or from chopsticks, and she grazed in the veggies I leave them. There is a fair amount if agitation because I leave like an inch and a half at the top of the aquarium unfilled so I get more agitation to give them more oxygenated water. She sits straight up when she is vertical. She's stopped doing it as much as she's getting used to the new setup.

Yes she recovered beautifully from the loss of her eye (the other fish involved in that has been rehomed) thanks to myfishvet.com she's a very good awimmer, she eats from my hand or from chopsticks, and she grazed in the veggies I leave them. There is a fair amount if agitation because I leave like an inch and a half at the top of the aquarium unfilled so I get more agitation to give them more oxygenated water. She sits straight up when she is vertical. She's stopped doing it as much as she's getting used to the new setup.

 

All right. She may be more prone to stress due to her injury, therefore she may need more time to adjust compared to your other goldfish. I'd suggest giving her a week or so to get used to everything. If she's still does the same thing, feel free to come back to us.