# Goldfish - on his side, barely moving - please help



## Omega

Hello there

I wonder if anyone could help me. We have had our lovely little fish for about six months. This morning I came down and found Omega on his side in the bowl. He looked like he was dead as he was not moving. About ten minutes later he started trying to swim round the bowl. He is lying on his side and is not moving his uppermost side fin. He is breathing and occasionally tries to have a little swim. I have separated him from the other fish but we just want to help him and don't know what to do. Sorry to bother you but your help would be very much appreciate.
Many thanks


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## shortbackandsides

Hi when you say bowl,do you mean the small glass ones with no filter or air pump??


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## Omega

Hello
Both fish were in a big glass bowl. They have stones in the bottom, an ornament, and a fake plant (just thought I would tell you exactely what is in there). I have been feeding them goldfish flakes and I put aquasafe drops in the water when they are cleaned out as it is a hard water area. We have another fish in there but I have moved the poorly one out into a separate bowl.


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## candysmum

Omega said:


> Hello there
> 
> I wonder if anyone could help me. We have had our lovely little fish for about six months. This morning I came down and found Omega on his side in the bowl. He looked like he was dead as he was not moving. About ten minutes later he started trying to swim round the bowl. He is lying on his side and is not moving his uppermost side fin. He is breathing and occasionally tries to have a little swim. I have separated him from the other fish but we just want to help him and don't know what to do. Sorry to bother you but your help would be very much appreciate.
> Many thanks


when had a tank i had a few fish this happened too i tried everythign i knew and got more books and i still lost them. In the end When the last fish went like it Rather than letting him suffer i let put him to sleep. I then sold the rest of the fish and the Tank as i couldn't do it anymore i had more potions and lotions and fliters and pumps for the tank then anything else.


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## tinamary

Have you changed the water or sprayed anything around the tank/bowl. Things like furniture polish, flee spray. hair spray can be toxic.
It might be worth changing the water slowly by trickling fresh water in.

The chlorine in the water from the tap can sometimes be damaging to them.
Leave a bowl of fresh water on the side for a few hours and let the chlorine disperse then trickle this in.


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## shortbackandsides

keeping fish in a bowl imo is cruel,sorry to be blunt but you need a proper tank with a FILTER AND AIR PUMP as gold fish are messy at the best of times,your are probably starved of oxygen and being slowly poisoned in thier own waste


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## shortbackandsides

when you set up a new tank you need to leave it to mature for around 4/5 weeks,add some tryzym bio start and a pinch of food after a week or so ,so the filter can start to mature after the set time add 1 fish per week and you shouldnt have any problemsregular water changes around 25%-40% every 2 weeks,replaced with fresh treated water,rinse filter sponge out in OLD WATER TAKEN FROM TANK,NOT CLEAN or you will destroy the good bacteria and risk losing your fish


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## Omega

Thank you all for your replies. Unfortunately, we asked the advice of the local aquatic centre on how to look after the fish and how to keep them. They said just to get a big glass bowl - so we got the biggest we could. They said a pump wasn't necessary (we did ask if we should be getting one) and they said just to put water in the bowl and then put the fish (in the bag they came home in) in the water for half and hour before tipping them in. I wouldn't ever intentionally be cruel to an animal - so sorry if I have offended anyone on this site.
Thanks very much for your help.


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## shortbackandsides

Omega said:


> Thank you all for your replies. Unfortunately, we asked the advice of the local aquatic centre on how to look after the fish and how to keep them. They said just to get a big glass bowl - so we got the biggest we could. They said a pump wasn't necessary (we did ask if we should be getting one) and they said just to put water in the bowl and then put the fish (in the bag they came home in) in the water for half and hour before tipping them in. I wouldn't ever intentionally be cruel to an animal - so sorry if I have offended anyone on this site.
> Thanks very much for your help.


it was not a very good aquatic center then,that was terrible advice they gave youstart again,maybe use the bowl for a plantand im sure you fish will be much happieryou can buy starter tanks quite cheaply,you need a filter and air pump.:thumbup1:


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## Guest

I don't think you are being cruel and I don't think anyone on the forum does either.
We have quite a large pond - with pimps and filter, this has happened to us on several occassions - the kindest thing is to euthanaze - doesn't sound very nice and something I cannot bring myself to do. 

regards
DT


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## LittleMissSunshine

sounds like a problem with the swim bladder, look it up (google it) and you should get answers about causes and cures...

Good luck xxxx


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## tinamary

Im sure you have not offended me. I have been given very bad advice from pet shops in the past and find now that i reserch anything myself before making my mind up.
alot (not all) of these pet shops would not have a clue how to look after the animals they sell. Just very good at selling them.


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## shortbackandsides

tinamary said:


> Im sure you have not offended me. I have been given very bad advice from pet shops in the past and find now that i reserch anything myself before making my mind up.
> alot (not all) of these pet shops would not have a clue how to look after the animals they sell. Just very good at selling them.


totally agree,a lot of aquatic workers wouldnt know a guppy from a oscarmuch better to come on here


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## Guest

Bad advice is rife in shops so don't blame yourself, you'll get better advice on forums and magazines in my experience. 

When you set up a bigger tank with a filter don't bother with the commercial cycling products, they usually contain the wrong bacteria. Instead use fish food or bottled household ammonia from a chemist or supermarket to kick-start the cycle. 

The problem with the fish could be due to the water quality in the bowl. I would obtain a test kit for pH, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate from an aquatic store. If the ammonia and/or nitrite are present carry out several large water changes using dechlorinated water. 

Swimbladder problems can be caused by several things such as internal damage or tumors pressing against the swimbladder (untreatable but also very unlikely), taking in too much air when feeding (especially if you feed a lot of floating foods) and internal bacteria (which can be related to the water quality, poor water quality lowers the fishes immune system, leaving them open to disease). The second cause can be cured by simply cutting out the dry food and feeding some more frozen and live foods such as bloodworm and daphnia. Placing the fish into another container with just enough water to cover the fish will also help as will adding some epsom salts (available from a chemist) which will help to clear out the digestive system. If internal bacteria is the cause you will need a chemical treatment, also placing the fish into a seperate container with a low water level will help. I would try eSHA 2000 or Interpet no. 9 anti-internal bacterial treatment.


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## Omega

Thanks again for all your replies. Having spent many years looking after rescue animals the last thing I would have wanted is to think I was putting a couple of fish through a living hell. I obviously will not be visiting that aquatic centre again.

I went downstairs after reading some of the posts and to my surprise Omega seems to be swimming around as happy as anything. I have lowered the level of the water in his 'hospital' bowl and he seems to be swimming quite normally - I can't see any damage to his fins but his body did look at bit bloated this morning. Clearly, something is not right with him and therefore this needs to be addressed. I have found a pet centre that is attached to a local veterinary surgery and it has been recommened for its expertise re equipment and advice. So, once my husband has finished work we are going off to get a pump, filter, etc to see if we can't give the fish a better home. We will also invest in some frozen and live foods to see if this helps out as they are on dried food at the moment and I am hoping we will be able to get some of the treatments suggested as the centre is geared up to help sick pets so I am hoping they will be well stocked - I will be printing off your help and taking it with me for reference. 

I really appreciate all your comments and wished I had looked at the forum as soon as I got the fish as there is so much good advice and help on here. Thanks again.


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## Omega

Hello
Just a quick update. Omega is now - or so it seems - fighting fit once more. I got him and his tank mate some bloodworms and some Interpet treatment. He seemed a bit slow to eat on Thursday but since then he has been fine. He doesn't appear to have any problems with swimming and the bloodworms have been a real hit. Thanks again for all your comments and advice. Much appreciated.


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## tinamary

Thats brilliant, i do love a happy ending


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## Superpettoysrus.com

oh good....think im going to get some blood worms for my lil guys, wanted to buy some new fish today soon but we got snow


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## JANICE199

*Hi Ya...I thought this might be of help to you..I was watching QI the other night and this very suject came up...Apparently a lot of us think fish are dead when they are on their side when in most cases they arent...From the programe it seems fish do this when over fed.... but do recover.*


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## tinamary

JANICE199 said:


> *Hi Ya...I thought this might be of help to you..I was watching QI the other night and this very suject came up...Apparently a lot of us think fish are dead when they are on their side when in most cases they arent...From the programe it seems fish do this when over fed.... but do recover.*


That is sooo sad to think they could end up down the loo


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## JANICE199

tinamary said:


> That is sooo sad to think they could end up down the loo


*lol i know! thats what Alan Davies said..*


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## KarenHSmith

Mine were doing this - and I got told, it was because they didn't have enough oxygen. If your (like mine) are in a big glass bowl and proberly got a lid which is suppose to be on top, make sure you don't use it - It does stop the air going into them .


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## Guest

KarenHSmith said:


> Mine were doing this - and I got told, it was because they didn't have enough oxygen. If your (like mine) are in a big glass bowl and proberly got a lid which is suppose to be on top, make sure you don't use it - It does stop the air going into them .


Swimbladder problems are usually caused by taking in too much air into the swimbladder (especially if you feed a lot of floating foods), rather than a lack of oxygen. Small volumes of water change more rapidly in terms of chemistry, which can cause a great deal of stress to fish. The result is often mild internal-bacteria infections, which often affects the swimbladder.


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## Omega

I must say, I have a daughter aged 3 and a son aged 2 and when I saw Omega was on his side and not moving I rushed upstairs to talk to my husband (who works from home). We both agreed that we should explain what had happened to my daughter. She was a little upset but thank goodness I put him in another bowl while we thought about what to do with him. It was at this point that he started to show signs of life which was then difficult to explain to my daughter. She told her Grandma that 'Omega is a little bit dead'. Following his treatments and the blood worm he is doing very nicely - in fact he is swimming faster than ever - I think he is frightened to stop moving in case I call time on him. On a serious note - I am so grateful to everyone on here.


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