Goldfish Ailments
How To Avoid Goldfish Ailments. If you are thinking about getting a few goldfish to add to your aquarium, you should learn about goldfish ailments. Most of the time, you can own a goldfish for years and never encounter any problems. But on occasions ailments and parasites can make a goldfish ill. You can take some precautionary measures to avoid having these goldfish ailments.
The first thing you can do is to follow the basic instructions when you purchase your goldfish. This includes things like water temperature, feeding schedules, how big the aquarium should be and companion fish. If all of these instructions are not followed, you run the risk of having goldfish ailments.
Never use chemicals to clean your aquarium. They can be harmful not only to goldfish but to all the fish that live in the aquarium. Bleach, ammonia cleaners and substances with grit should never be used to clean the glass surface of the aquarium. All of these substances can leave a residue that can be deadly to fish and even if you rinse the glass repeatedly, the chemicals can remain. You can use a clean cloth and water to remove most stains but if you have water with a lot of calcium white deposits, you can use vinegar to remove them. For stubborn stains, wipe the area with vinegar and let it sit for 15 minutes and then wipe the area again. Make sure to rinse the area completely, until the vinegar odor is gone.
This same rule also goes for plastic and aquatic plants, rocks, aquarium equipment or any other decorations. When you purchase these items, most of them will have instructions on cleaning or sterilization procedures. If they do not have instructions, make sure to ask someone at the pet store for some advice. Most plastic plants and bedding pebbles can be cleaned by soaking them in a mix of a small amount of vinegar and water. Always rinse everything you use thoroughly and don’t forget to also clean the nets or any containers being used to remove the fish.
It may be a good idea to sterilize the fish too before placing it in the tank. This is another great way to avoid goldfish ailments and keep the other fish in your tank safe. Most pet stores carry fish sterilizers and they contain a potassium permanganate solution mixed with water. Soak the goldfish in the solution a few hours and they can be placed directly into the tank with the other fish.
You should always be on the look out for fish that are sluggish or have drooping fins. This can be a sign of a sick fish. You can also make sure that they are not eliminating any slime or bubbles. If you do have a fish that has these symptoms, you should separate from the other fish. Keep them in isolation until you find what is wrong and how to treat the fish thoroughly.
One of the biggest goldfish ailments is constipation. This can be from overfeeding or from a crowding of internal organs. This occasionally happens to goldfish and the symptoms include a lack of eliminations and sluggish behavior. If the problem is a result of overfeeding, reduce the amount of food. You can also give the fish either finely chopped lettuce, spinach or a mix of castor oil and chopped up earth worms to help with the constipation problem.
Another common ailment is fin congestion. This happens when the goldfish has bad blood circulation. The result is spilt or frayed tail sections and fins. The tails can even become bloodshot. This occurs because of over feeding, water temperature variations and overcrowding.
