Fish diseases

United States
January 28, 2007 6:44pm CST
My one goldfish constantly is getting sick. He gets all droopy, and his eye gets cloudy. He just sits at the bottom of the tank and the angel fish kinda hits him as if to say "get up". I treat the tank and then things are fine for about a month, then it starts all over again. Does anyone know what could be causing this?
1 person likes this
1 response
@Signal20 (2281)
• United States
30 Jan 07
How big is the tank they're in? A goldfish should have no less then 15 gallons for itself. An angelfish needs a minimum of 30 gallons, preferably a taller tank then wide. Those are just minimum requirements, obviously bigger is better for them. Goldfish really shouldn't be mixed with tropical/community type fish, or cichlids. Goldfish are messy-they put out a lot of ammonia naturally through their respirations and waste, and they're a cool water fish. They do best with a temp of about 68-74 degrees F. Angelfish are warm water and prefer a temp of about 76-80 degrees F. Goldfish really aren't compatible with a lot of fish. How often are you doing water changes? Cloudy eye is usally a sign of poor water conditions. You should be doing a 20-25% water change/gravel vac every week. I guarantee this would stop that problem, and would save you money on buying medicines every month, just to have him sick again. You don't have to add aquarium salt to the tank, but if you do, it can help a bit. The dosage would be 1 tablespoon for every 5 gallons. But remember, when the water evaporates, the salt does not. The only time the salt is removed from the tank water, is when you do water changes. I'd also suggest getting a water test kit. Your water parameters are probably out of whack-as stated in the above paragraph. Your ammonia and nitrite levels should be 0 ppm, and nitrates under 20 ppm. That's where the weekly water changes would come in, to reduce it to those levels. If they're not currently at those levels, you'll need to start doing daily water changes of about 15-20%, until they do reach those levels. Then continue with the weekly routine. Good luck!