Hi:

My poor comet has come down with something but I'm not sure what it is. About a year ago I treated him for an internal parasite infection because he was pooping white feces. But this time I haven't seen his feces so I don't know if it's the same problem.

First his symptoms: except for feeding time, he goes to the back right side of his 29gal tank (which he shares without another comet, two cories, and a pleco) and lays on the gravel for hours without budging. This is atypical of his usual which is to spend atleast two hours after feeding swimming thru the tank and sampling the gravel for food and then he usually "retires" to the top and rests until his next feeding. He doesn't appear to be gasping for air but he's opening his mouth wider each time he does breathe.

I checked the water params to rule out ammonia/nitrite problems and both readings are at 0.0 with nitrate around 20ppm. I've had him for close to 3 years and really haven't changed anything in his routine for well over 2 years.

Thanxs for any assistance - I'm really at a lost.

has the temperature dropped in the tank at all in the recent past?

is he still eating?

fins clamped?

is the other comet still active?

are you sure hes not getting in his gravel picking time in the middle of the night? many goldies do it at different times of the day, not just while its light.

since the weather has turned a bit nippy around my part of the globe in the past few weeks, my comet too has been acting a bit lethargic. ive attributed this to the drop in temerature lately myself.

keep a close eye on him and let us know if you notice anything else amiss.

paul

No the temp has not dropped - it is kept at very constant, although on the high side at 74* (but this hasn't changed in over 2 years).

He is still eating - lol he has a sixth sense of when feeding time is about to begin and he moves to the designated area for chow.

The other comet (comet#2) is showing no abnormal signs - this comet has the better genes (last year when comet#1 got the parasite infection comet#2 was unaffected by the infection).

When comet#1, the one that has the problem, is swimming about he doesn't have his fins clamped.

Although different goldfish have different active periods, these two comets have always been active during the day, and then turn into slumbering giants towards the end of the day and during nighttime.

hmmm, if he is not pooping and is lethargic, he might be constipated. since he's still eating you could try feeding peas, daphnia or other sorts of "fishy Metamucil" to try and clear out his digestive tract.

since he had an infection before, his poop (or lack of it) will be the thing to watch.

hope he gets better quick.

That I hadn't seen him poop is quite normal - I don't think we can't conclude he's constipated based on my observations. For ex I haven't seen Comet#2 poop in months but he's just fine

Your right, it is tough to catch them pooping sometimes.

When he sits there on the bottom, are his fins clamped then?


Since you say constipation doesnt seem likely and theres no outward signs of infection, oxygen depletion or any "stressors", the only other thing i can think of is that your seeing egg impaction or "eggbound". Could "he" really be a "she"?

That would lead me to these questions:

Are you fairly positive on the sex of them both?

Any breeding tubricles or stars on either one?

Is the "sick" one more roundish in belly than the other?

How long has the sick one been acting this way?

Have you ever seen the well one chasing the other and/or nosing into the rump of the other?

post back soon.

When he sits on the bottom his fins (pectoral ones) are close to his body.

Yes, when I say "he" it could be a "she" and I like to think the other one is a "she". But interesting you should mention this toothless because the sick one is definitely bigger than the well one (by as much as 20%) but this is in terms of total mass. I don't see the sick one's belly real big or anything.

I don't see one or the other chasing each other around.

The sick one has been acting strange for may be 6 days. I first noticed abnormal behavior about 6 days ago when the sick comet started "resting" at the top of the water with it's tail at the surface and it's mouth in the water, the angle being around 30*. This is very abnormal compared to how goldfish normally rest at the top with their dorsal side at the surface. Then about 3 days ago s/he starting laying on the gravel all day.

one of my fish had the same problem. its fat. but it moves about only sometimes.. float by current sometimes too, why?

There could be several different things wrong by the descriptions that youve given so far.

The first one that comes to mind is that perhaps the larger one is indeed a female and is eggbound. You can get a better comparison for sex by looking directly down at them from above. The females tend to have wider bellies than the males, do not get breeding spurs (tubricles), and have an anal vent that is more of an "outie" than an "innie". They usually dont begin breeding until about 2-3 years of age. cooler temperatures or an abundance of food can trigger breeding.

Another one would be that your goldie is constipated. This primarily happens to fancy goldfish with small squat bodies, not the "common/comet/feeder" variety. you can tell constipation by long trailing clearish poo, no poo at all, belly is firmer than normal, floating or bottom sitting.

Then theres bacterial problems. These can come and go without any intervention whatsoever but if noticeable, is best treated immediately. Bacterial infections have a wide array of symptoms that can appear. Internal infections result in red spider vein blotches on the body and/or fins, not eating, gill swelling, popeye, floating, bottom sitting, fin and tailrot and many more.


Honestly, the first thing you should try is aquarium salt. Either in a bath or constant solution, or both. Salt increases osmoregulation and production of fresh slime coat (among other things). In doing this it might help your goldie to "kick" whatever it is thats ailing it. For more on salt and its concentrations, check this link out: Salt and salt dips

If this doesnt perk your goldie up, you may need to try a good wide spectrum antibiotic or better yet, Medi-gold or Metro-med from goldfishconnection.com. heres a link to the page: Goldfish Connection

I highly suggest the medi-gold, its saved a few of my fish and many other members here.

post back soon.

great info tooth!!

I know that info was directed towards Raith, but just wondering if I should try a general remedy like salt? My comet shows signs of being normal but then shows signs of being ill (sitting on the gravel all day).