Rescue fish...advice needed!

[Richtea67]

Hi all

We have suddenly rescued two fish from a neighbour who is unable to look after them. We have no information on the type of fish they are, but I think one is a Black Moor goldfish and the other maybe a Orlanda small goldfish?? Their tank was very dirty when we got them and the filter wasn't working. We've cleaned the tank as per instructions, have replaced the filter cartridge and airstone and have bought a new airpump. We have food and tap water conditioner.

Having done a bit of research it seems the tank is way too small for this breed of fish, and think we need at least 60l tank? It is currently 35l biorb tank. The plants in the tank are live...not sure what I should be doing to look after them?

They are currently in my daughter's bedroom, which we are decorating in a few weeks time....so will need to stay in that tank for a little while whilst we get the room sorted.

Is there anything I could do to make this tank better for them temporarily?

Anything to consider when buying the new tank? Moving to a new tank also seems a daunting process, so any tips on this would be great. Also a lot of the tanks I've seen say not suitable for coldwater/goldfish....and only for temparate/tropical. Is there a reason for this. Any tank recommendation would be great.

We're complete novices, and I want to do my best for thesr little guys as don't think they've been looked after unfortunately. Have attached a photo of them and the current tank set up.

You are right they need a bigger tank long term, but short term that doesnt look horrendous. They have space to swim freely and there is only two of them. You are doing all the right things with filter and airstone. A 1/4 water change weekly will also help.

Make sure you put them in a room away from any decorating as some paints can be toxic.

Thank you for your reply, will definitely do the weekly water change. When we got them the water was so murky and the filter broken...the poor things were gulping for air at the surface! They are now swimming about and looking much happier!

I had a biorb for many years and i didn't do a weekly water change , the filter system in a biorb is excellent.
You could perhaps buy a ph test kit ,you can get simple basic ones for the time being , goldfish produce a lot more waste than usual small aquarium fish and this will tell you if the tank environment is healthy for them.
I really hope you do well with them, i rescued some goldfish once from shockingly bad conditions and sadly they didn't live as long as other fish i have had , i think the massive change was to much of a shock for them.
I cried when i saw my poor souls, i'm happy that yours now stand a chance.

Thank you for the advice both, much appreciated. Any idea about these plants and how to keep them going? Some are floating on the top, but I've taken out the brown ones, but some bits are dropping to the bottom. The one looks like it's in foam wrapping. I'm assuming it's supposed to be planted, however there is only a thin layer of gravel, no sand substrate. Have attached some clearer pics of plants.

I suggest you replace the standard gravel you have with biorb official ceramic filtrate media, this will give best efficacy with the pump system, use enough to cover /almost cover the filter 'disc'.
Then use the foam and metal fastener to wrap around the base of the clumps of plants you have and bury the base in the media to stop it floating,also the floating plants in your picture won't last long with those fish , mine loved to eat them !
An aquarium shop is the best place for plant advice.
For years i bought proper biorb filters and air stones until a friend with a biorb told me about the copy versions on ebay , they look and acted exactly the same, come in multi packs and are a fraction of the price.
I can't say enough how easy and efficient i found my biorb ,i kept my water level to just under the light and it did get algae growth on it which was no problem to wipe off ,the clarity of the tank is so good and with the lighting system it is a pleasure to watch.

Do you know anyone else who keeps fish who can give you some of the filter media to get your filter working asap? It can take weeks and weeks for a tank to cycle and develop the right bacteria in enough quantities to deal with the fish waste, which is the main problem in a tank. Also a set of water testing chemicals is good to have as the water changes while you wait for the tank to develop properly are done according to levels of ammonia or nitrite in the water, rather than any particular time limits.

Goldfish are lovely and good fun to watch. But they make a lot of waste (ammonia) and you need to be trying to keep that as low as possible to give the fish their best chance at being healthy. The bacteria that eat the ammonia develop first, but then produce nitrite as their waste product, which is also not healthy for the fish.

It's often high levels of nitrite or ammonia in the water that mean the fish cannot get the oxygen from the water when they are gasping at the surface, not actual low levels of oxygen in the water itself.

It takes a few more weeks for the bacteria that eat the nitrite to develop. When they work they produce nitrate as a waste product, which can only be removed by water changes.

Good luck with the lovely fish. Black Moors are my very favourites, but even in a 4ft wide tank, I found them difficult to keep healthy.

Please be-aware that the bacteria needed for a healthy aquarium live in the filter. If you're cleaning this, never wash it in tap water, just swirl it in water you've taken out of the tank. If you have replaced the filter entirely, you may find that your tank will crash which means an ammonia spike which isn't good for the fish so be prepared for frequent water changes until things build up again. Get some tap safe (or similiar) as well for when you do the water changes. This helps neutralise some of the chemicals that are in our water which are less great for fish.

Spend some time looking up the nitrogen cycle and how the chemistry of a tank works. It sounds complicated but its actually fairly easy when things get going. You probably will need a bigger tank at some point soon though. Good luck!

Thank you for replying. I did make the rookie error of replacing the filter cartridge, as that was the advice I found for a filter not working. In the end I bought a new air pump, which has fixed the filter. I have a water test kit arriving tomorrow, and will do frequent water changes. I'm looking at 100L plus tanks....unfortunately my daughter is insisting keeping them in her bedroom...so the tank is going to take up half the space. Made a bit of an impulsive decision when agreeing to rescue these fish! But glad we did and will do our best by them.

The plant with the thin leaves is called Vallisneria and the other I can't remember right now. Both are quite fast growers. They ideally need to be taken out of the foam and planted. Add some more gravel or sand for a deeper substrate and pick up some plant root tabs and they will hopefully survive. Keep an eye out on gumtree etc for a bigger tank if your looking for one, bargains to be had 👍🏻

Thankyou @FloorLamp. Do you also mean that the floating ones need planting?

I tested the water tonight and the ammonia reading was very high, can't remember off the top of my head but the highest it could be on the chart. I'm not sure how long they were living without the filter working, and also me changing the filter cartridge probably didn't help 😪. I also ordered some ammonia remover which will be delivered tomorrow. Fingers crossed they survive.

I may also be collecting a 90l tank which someone was advertising on Facebook tomorrow...if the little guys survive the night 🤞

Hi...need some further advice I'm afraid. Ammonia levels have come up as the max 8ppm (very dark green). Last night I did a 25% water change (using water conditioner). Reading was just as high today so did a second 25% change, still no change. I put in pure aquarium balls, and some ammonia lock just now, and am going to retest in 2 hours. I've cut right back on the feeding, just putting a couple of flakes at a time.

Anything else I can do? I'm not sure how long the ammonia lock lasts and whether I just keep monitoring and adding it as i need. Should I do a daily 25% water change do you think? The orange fish looks OK, the Black Moor not feeding at all and a bit sluggish. 😪

Keep doing what you're doing - %25 water change every day and things will start to settle. If you know anyone else with a tank, it would be worth asking if you can get some of their filter material - even if its a different filter type, you can stuff some of the material in to yours.

I have a black moor in a 200lt tank - you need something bigger. Someone told me it's not about keeping fish, it's about keeping water quality. Keep checking nitrates and get a good water conditioner - I use seachem prime which is very good for nitrates. Good luck, very abused animals are fish xx

@Twynklebell thank you will keep up with daily water changes, water testing and ammo lock as needed. I know a couple of people with outdoor ponds...probably totally different filter mechanisms.

@ILovePeggySue thank you. I picked up a 125l tank today....which is all that will fit really in the space. We could get bigger if needed but would need to relocate them elsewhere in the house. We need to get some decorating sorted in the next couple of weeks before setting up the new tank. And I definitely want to take time to cycle it correctly. I've learnt a lot about water chemistry the last couple of days! Very cruel how they have been kept I agree. I think if we get fish in the future I would also try to rescue them!

When you move them to the tank - take the filter with it from the smaller tank if the big tank has its own fillter. No harm at all in running both together until everything is established. Second the suggestion of seachem prime - it stinks but its very good :)

@Twynklebell thank you. I don't think I will be able to take the filter from the small tank as it looks built in (biorb)...but thought I would take the sponge/media and transfer that across to the new filter.

One more question...the filter sponge today looked very bunged up with bits of plant matter. Should I give it a quick rinse in tank water? Or just scrape off the debris? Or would that be the worst thing to do?

Use tank water in a separate bucket and give the filter sponge a good squeeze and swish around in the water, then replace sponge in filter. Good luck. The constant water changes trying to get the tank to settle and develop the good bacteria is tiring. I made loads of mistakes at first, had my fish in small tank, used fresh water to clean things. It was a steep learning curve and I still have problems with just the one fish! 🐟

Right so good and bad news....after the ammonia spike, the nitrite then spiked and the fish (black moor) especially were looking very ropey. After frequent water changes and the seacham prime ammonia and nitrites now at 0. All good, phew.

However now the fish has perked up the black moor has become very aggressive to the other fish and has not stopped chasing and nipping him this morning. I will try and upload a video here if I can. I'm guessing it's an issue around food competition and the tank being too small. But when I have fed them the black moor has not been interested in eating...only attacking the other one! We really didn't want to move to the bigger tank until after the decorating...but I'm worried he's going to stress out the goldfish and kill it! Any advice??

I can't work out how to do the video...but it's constant chasing him around the tank and nipping his fins 😫

That is a grumpy fish then. I am not sure as mine when i had two together were OK with each other. Can you try some fish forums and see if anyone has encountered the same problems? You could try giving extra obstacles for the bullied fish to hide behind?