I posted a while ago about my new fancy goldfish spending a significant amount of time bottom sitting - the verdict was that they were probably just sleeping which didn't feel right to me - I was correct.

One of them has developed symptoms of dropsy, the others are worsening in lethargy and have begun flashing (with a couple diving sideways into the gravel). It seems clear to me that they're dealing with something, probably parasites? Maybe gill flukes? I've dosed their tank with fluke and worms treatment, I've also added some aquarium salt. For the oranda who has dropsy symptoms, I'm doing 1-2 daily epsom salt and methylene blue baths. I'm fasting the tank for the minute, not sure if I should feed them as normal?

Anything else I should be doing? These guys were almost done with their 4 week quarantine post shipping.

Ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate no more than 10ppm.

Last year I fed my goldfish some leftover pumpkin guts and fresh after carving pumpkins and they loved it! I googled it and said to avoid feeding the guts. My goldfish loved to eat the pumpkin guts without seeds last year is there a legitimate concern if they eat the guts? Also do you feed your goldfish any parts of pumpkins?

Hello, I’ve read a ton on this Reddit and have 3 specific questions.

Have a rescue comet or common goldfish, he was initially saved by a friend as a juvenile from going down a toilet at a dinner table, she got him a 20G hex tank and 10-30G filter, built up the micro biome to get water controlled, no substrate and minimal anything in the tank and he grew over 3 years to about 5 inches body length including tail, so stunted. She left the country so I took him over and read all the things. Weirdly he is missing a pectoral fin, just a stump. Don’t know when it happened but it doesn’t seem to affect his swimming ability or activity at all. Must have got caught but I can’t imagine in what

After researching further I recognized the situation and added smooth driftwood and floating plants to his tank but there isn’t room for anything else. He does not seem to eat the plants and is thriving. I live in a small downtown condo so only option is for him to have natural light for most of the day so we have a UV sterilizer so water is always clear, only algae on walls accumulated, and I clean algae buildup during weekly half tank water change. Water testing shows total balance, it never changes and there is no nitrate build up in the week but I still do the change like clockwork. I also looked into rehoming him and local shops won’t take him and don’t have space.

I can’t upgrade to what he needs, both due to space and condo rules, but Ive negotiated and I can fit a 40 gallon but it’s a big investment and space taker for me, since the furniture the 20G is on will not hold the weight of a bigger tank I need new stand and new filter upgrading to the 30-70L filter. If I did this I’d get the pool sand substrate, a smooth pot for hiding and some more plants as they thrive in the sunlight.

Three questions
1) understanding there are never guarantees, realistically since he is already stunted does he have the chance to live more than another year or two if i do the upgrades? Please don’t crucify me, based on his behaviour he seems well adjusted. Swims all day, looks for food rooting in driftwood and plants, hides in plants if something scares him and comes to me when I approach and basically takes the food out of my hand. If he isn’t going to live even if I upgrade, it’s a huge investment. If it is probable he could live like another 5 or more years then of course .

2) missing pectoral fin? If he seems unaffected then I shouldn’t worry? Just monitor? Would this affect lifespan?

3) if I do the tank swap, I’ve read about cycling, but it if I move all his stuff (uv lamp which is usually slimy) driftwood and plants, as well as all the stuff inside filter (sponge, carbon pack, those white bead bacteria things) and the almost whole 20G of water, I feel like I don’t need to fish out cycle the tank? Maybe just minimizing feeding for the first week…. And leave the filter components for a month or more before adding more ceramic beads or changing sponge and other components to the new size. Also I would eventually add pool sand and a plant pot and maybe some rooted plants to enrich further. Bonus of being near a window is the plants are thriving. I would not add more fish ever.

My jet black goldfish are developing silver/bronze flakes from both being all black, probably from ambient tropical temps in the high 20s. The whites in my light colored goldfish also turned yellowish especially in the face and wen area. Is that normal unstable coloration? They’re all well under a year old and seem very healthy otherwise.

Hello Everyone!
I just bought this white Oranda yesterday, I’m new to keeping fish and this little guy’s tail on one side seems to be curled in? I’m hoping it’s nothing too bad but I’m unsure and just need some advice. He’s swimming well, no alarming movement or anything..

Can’t help but be anxious as I want the best for the fish, any advice or opinions would be much appreciated!

I’ve checked ammonium, nitrate and nitrite and everything is within recommended parameters.

Hello everyone! My grandfather passed away a little while ago and left me in charge of his goldfish. I’m hoping to get some advice on how to give them the best life possible! When I received them, they were in a very, very small tank (around 0.5 gallons) and in pretty bad condition. My grandfather had been hospitalized for a long time, and unfortunately, nobody was taking care of the fish during that time. Before he got sick, they were in a much larger tank. The orange one is around 6 years old, and the black one is around 1 year old, according to my family.I’ve since moved them into a bigger tank, cycled the water, and added some driftwood, smooth rocks, a couple of live plants, and two mystery snails that were recommended by our local pet store. They seem to be doing better, but I’ve noticed that they spend a lot of time lying at the bottom of the tank. I’m not sure if this is normal behavior or something I should be concerned about. I have absolutely zero experience with fish, and I’m a college student on a pretty limited budget, but I really want to do right by them and give them the best life possible. I’m currently saving up for a much larger tank, but in the meantime, I would really appreciate any advice on what I should prioritize!
A few questions I have:
• Is lying at the bottom of the tank normal, or could it be a sign of something wrong?
•What tank size would you recommend for these two?
•Are there any affordable upgrades I should prioritize in the meantime?
• Is there anything I should know about caring for goldfish, especially older ones?

I have some money set aside, so I’m happy to make any improvements I can afford right now while I work toward getting them a bigger tank.
Thank you so much in advance! I really appreciate any advice.

So I posted a few days ago regarding my white ryukin he’s about a week or so old (in the tank), on Sunday I noticed him start sitting at the bottom of the tank and as people on here pointed out his fins are clamped, I’ve seen him flashing once or twice on the substrate, someone on here said he might of had parasites so I’ve done a treatment on him and I’ve tried him in aquarium salt for 20 minutes but still he’s sitting like this, he does still swim around the tank but he’s more often resting bottom of the substrate, any ideas as I would hate for him to be constantly ill or stressed…in my tank the other two fancies have been in the there for about a month, both are fine and I have had zero problems with them, I’ve been testing water and everything is fine nitrate at its highest was just about 20ppm, the fish are still very small and although there in my 60L this is only temporary, any ideas or advise would be amazing thanks

Recently i started feeding my piggies only 2 times a day instead of 3 bc i was worried i was overfeeding, but this guy is a bit smaller than my other 2 orandas and i was wondering if hes eating enough/looks a good weight.

Hello all! I’m here seeking advice on how to safely transfer my fish over to their new tank. I have two small (about 1 1/2 inch) comets that I got from the fair last month, and I set them up temporarily in the 30 gallon I had on hand. I bought a 45 gallon for them so they’ll have some more space as they grow, and I would like to switch the substrate in their new tank to sand instead of gravel since I‘ve heard that gravel is a choking risk.

my question is, is it safe to change their substrate in a new tank, and how do I preserve their beneficial bacteria properly and prevent potential shock? I made a mistake in the past when I was inexperienced, and I accidentally removed too much beneficial bacteria during tank cleaning, which caused me to lose my fish. I am very nervous about changing too much in their environment, and I plan on moving most of the water from their current tank as well as their filter into the new one so that the bacteria won’t be lost. only thing I’m nervous about is substrate, because I know it’s important as well.

another question that I have, is how I can safely move them from one tank to the other, and how to keep them as stress free as possible during the process. their current tank is on my dresser, and I will be putting the new one in the same place, so I will most likely need to set up a temporary tank to keep them in during the switch so that I can properly transfer everything and set up their new tank.

any advice is greatly appreciated, I’m always trying to learn as much as I possibly can! these little guys are my life, so I want to make sure I’m doing everything correctly to keep them safe and happy, and I know I’ll be upgrading their tank many more times in the coming future. I have full spectrum test kits on hand, stress coat, etc. already to ensure their water parameters remain optimal, and I have gotten them comfortable with me cleaning/moving things around in their tank so I’m hoping to keep them as calm as possible.

I’ve got two adult commons, Big Tracy and Little Lola. I rescued them from the ten gallon they were being kept in my workplace and have had them for about a year and a half. I love them, but they’re getting too big and I can’t fit more than a 75 gallon tank in my apartment. I’d love to keep them, but it’s just not in the cards for me and I want them to be happy and healthy. Anyone know of or have a pond?

Show me your natural setups, PLEASE!!!

I just bought a 60 gallon breeder and I plan to house just two Orandas. I have two other natural aquariums. I was told that goldfish will eat all living plants so I stuck a really pretty fake planted wood and some fake plants in, but I absolutely HATE it. It does not go with my aesthetic AT ALL.

I really want to do something natural looking, even if I can’t do live plants, some type of appealing hardscape that’s suitable for two fancies.

As you can see, I love my plants. I’m hoping to do pothos out of the back of it. The back has been painted black since this picture and I also have added black diamond blasting sand as my “substrate”.

Ai seems to think so at least potentially when full grown bar the short koi which are more niche

just wanted to share this video of my female oranda(?) doing her routine food begging (she literally ate a few minutes before this and is very well fed 😭🤣). i love how excited she gets flapping herself all around LOL!!

also, thank you SO much to everyone who helped on my previous post! all three of my goldies are doing amazing, and i’ll finally be setting up their 60 gallon any day now! 🥹💗

the tiny comet/common in the background at the end has what i suspect is some healing from previous ammonia irritation, but he’s looking so much better! he’s extremely active, eating, and acting completely normal!

i’ve been testing ammonia daily and doing 40–50% water changes 2–3 times a week while they’ve temporarily been in their 20 gallon. i was struggling to get ammonia below 0.25–0.5 ppm, but we’re finally seeing readings around 0–0.25! nitrites have consistently been at 0, and my Aqueon 50 gallon filter has helped tremendously! 🙏

i know their current tank is too small, especially with the comet, which is why getting them into a larger setup has been such a priority for me. i’m sooo excited to give them more room ❤️

sorry for the all over the place post LOL, but any advice or constructive criticism is always appreciated! i’m still learning and just want the best for my new babies 🥺 i’ve definitely found my new obsession, and this community is is amazing!! 🥹🐠💕

I thought she had like a blackeye I won’t get into all of that, but this is the stage we’re at now and her eyeball has been fine until today and now it has like a film over it and I don’t know what I need to do to help her. Please someone. Thanks.

Also a lot of views but no responses yet. Is that normal? Sorry new to all of this.

29 gallons and reran tests on water.