# Unwell Black Moor - Please Help!



## babybunny (Feb 4, 2009)

Hi guys,

I seem to have a problem with one of my black moors. At first I thought it was swim bladder disorder and have been treating it for this for the last two weeks. 

The thing is it's not like any other black moor I own or have owned, it's back tail fins seem to be a lot smaller than it should be (if I'm honest it was the reason I bought it - it looked cute!). I am now wondering if this is the reason it now seems to be unbalanced. In the last couple of days it has taken a turn for the worse and appears to be doing headstands and just letting the current of the water push it around the bottom of the tank - nose down. At feeding time it will still rush for the food and seems to be able to swim normal. 

I was just wondering if anyone else had ever known this kind of thing? I have been keeping cold water fish for nearly 15 years and have never seen anything like it! 

The tank set-up is: 130 litre with five other average sized fantails. Water temp is fine and all recent water checks have been fine too. All other fish are fine.

Please help - don't want to lose my cute blackmoor if I can help it! :nonod:


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## scosha37 (Feb 24, 2008)

aww poor moory..

I had one for 7 years he was a funny thing he was lazy he used to do that just let the current move him along... his swim bladder went  i did get something for it he lasted a year after that..

i think is quite comman in Moors and Orandas...

sorry i havent got cure..hope it gets better soon..


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2009)

Fancy goldfish often have difficulties swimming and are very susceptible to developing problems with their swimbladders due to the shape of their bodies. Swimbladder problems usually cause the fish to drop to the bottom of the tank or float to the top, depending on how bad it is. There are three main causes of the problem with the swimbladder, either the fish takes in too much air when feeding (especially if you feed a lot of floating foods, moving the fish into a spare tank with just enough water to cover the fishes body can help), bloat (changing the diet can help, cut out the dry foods and start feeding some more frozen and live foods, adding some epsom salts can help to clear out the gut) and internal bacterial infections (these are usually brought upon by poor water quality, which causes stress which in turn lowers the immune system. However you say that your water parameters are fine so I think we can rule this out).


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## babybunny (Feb 4, 2009)

Thanks Luke and scosha37 for your replies. 

I think I will probably try the salts tomorrow when I can get to the shop. Although I'm still inclined to think that it has something to do with the size of its tail fins, they are tiny in comparison to the rest of its body! I suppose that if that is the case there isn't much I can do about it.


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## momentofmadness (Jul 19, 2008)

My red and white Oranda has been like this.. have been trying to help him.. My boys told me today he is on the bottom of the tank still with us but keeps lying on his side.. I don't seem to have been able to do anything to help him.. And he has lost loads of weight...:sad:


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