I have a freshwater small goldfish in a medium sized tank. I clean the tank every three days and we have had "Jeff" for three possibly even four years. Recently, he has stopped swimming as much and stays still in the tank corners, diagonally pointing downwards. We always treat the water, I feed him a tiny amount at the same time every day but he just looks a bit sad and listless. Any ideas welcomed!
Old goldfish
- Thread starter Bets
- Start date
- Tags listless old stopped swimming
Bets, welcome and sorry to hear about your issues. We need more info. What type of goldfish is this; Common, comet or fancy? What is the footprint of the tank and how many gallons? Commons or comets need very large tanks or ponds to do well, where a single fancy by themselves can do well in a 20g tank, with 10g added for each additional fancy.
Sure, a goldfish can live in a bowl, but they are not going to do well and will eventually die from poor water conditions and/or organ failure. Kept well, they will live for decades.
I have a keep a goldfish 55g tank that has one comet and 3 fancies. Technically not enough room. I do an 80% water change once per week.
Sure, a goldfish can live in a bowl, but they are not going to do well and will eventually die from poor water conditions and/or organ failure. Kept well, they will live for decades.
I have a keep a goldfish 55g tank that has one comet and 3 fancies. Technically not enough room. I do an 80% water change once per week.
Hi thanks Freshy Fish for your reply. I had no idea what type until I looked it up. At first I thought he was a fantail but then I discovered that he must be an Oranda as he has a prominent wen on the top of his face, which I worried was a tumour! I discover it's not, but these fish are sensitive to water temperatures, but I am careful with checking. I think the tank is approximately 10 litres and I clean it every 3 days. It has no oxygenation or anything other than water that I have always treated with the cold water treatment the man at the fish shop sold us all those years ago. Jeff is still listing in the corner but was certainly perked up by a shelled pea for a short time last night. I wonder if the tank, whilst it's been great, might now need to be replaced with something larger?
~2.6 gallons of water is not nearly enough for a single oranda/fancy goldfish. Without filtration, there will be little to no nitrogen cycle in this tank to process the ammonia the fish produces. The fish is most likely suffering from poor water quality. Clear, clean looking water means very little. Having zero ammonia, nitrate and very low nitrate are the important factors.