Tropical Fish Forum
Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice => Fish Health => Topic started by: scaniajess on August 15, 2013, 05:43:59 PM
-
I have a 40 UK gal tank with two goldfish that are well over 10 years old. One of them, for the past three months or so has been acting very strange. At first he was just laying on the bottom of the tank, then he would get bursts of erratic swimming before resting again. He then developed a bend and would almost tip onto his side which convinced me he was about to die (that was over a month ago). He's now got a lot of bumps all over his tail and fins (looks like tumours) and his dorsal fin is turning black. He just looks like he's going crazy, thats the only way I can describe his behaviour :(
I've had the tank running for years and the water parameters are always perfect as I thought maybe he had ammonia poisoning.
-
The tank is big enough, the water is good, so we have to look elsewhwere.
The lumps - do they look like small cauliflowers? My last betta has lymphocystis - the cauliflower lumps - and he was OK for ages then suddenly went downhill. This is an incurable disease, unfortunately.
Or as you say, it could be tumors though I've not had personal experience of that.
Other than that, I'm afraid I can't be much help, I'm sorry.
-
Thanks for replying :) The lumps are just solid white perfectly round lumps. All over his tail and along the edges of his fins. I wish I could get him still enough to take a good pic. I'll try again tomorrow.
-
Hi Scaniajess,
Sorry to hear about your poorly goldfish :( I have been reading up a bit lately on different diseases after losing a dwarf gourami to a disease they are prone to. Now, I am a complete know nothing, but I'm wondering if your fishy could have Neon Tetra Disease? I know that sounds mad, but it does affect other fish too, including goldfish. The symptoms sound just like you describe, with the lumps, which are the muscles being distorted by the disease and the dorsal fin turning black. Just a thought?
Sadly, even if I am right, it doesn't help you much as there is no cure :( but you could maybe put him in to another tank if you have one, to try and protect your other fish.
It is caused by them eating something that is carrying the parasite. Have you had another fish dead that they may have eaten some of? Or, have you fed them tubifex?
Anyway, like I said....just a thought...
All the best
Resa