AboutBenty Expertise GOT A QUESTION ABOUT:
Basic needs for specific fish, illnesses, best tankmates, breeding, water chemistry, tricks to safely cut corners, and/or “stupid” questions? Maybe I can help! :)
I like to explain why you do things in aquariums (like why to use spring instead of distilled, or what pH numbers mean, ect.) so you understand why and not just taking someone’s word for it. I also like giving answers where you have two choices so you can choose which is best for the time and money you can commit to your fish. I understand how tight money can be and how expensive fish related things get.
I will NEVER leave you with an “I don’t know.” Ever. I hate that. That would waste your time and that's just mean. :)
Puedo contestar tus preguntas en español también.
Experience I have had tropical fish since 1999. I currently have: a 55gal, ten 10gal, 3 five gallons, three 2gal, and a bunch of jars and bowls. At the time I'm typing this, I have: 14 angels, 13 goldfish, 73 bettas, 12 barbs, 5 catfish, too many guppies, 4 gouramis, 2 plecos, 10 loaches, bunch of swordtails, and probably a few others, lol.
I love to rescue fish. I've had everything from mutant danios, to one eyed goldfish, to my newest adoptee, a 2 year old betta with a MASSIVE tumor problem. He was brought to a pet shop and left there because the lady didn't know what to do with him. He's pretty scary looking. One of the guys at the store there I know let me have him. :D YAY! Elephant Man lives in a gallon bowl with pretty stones in my bathroom.
Plus!!!
I sell: veil, delta, halfmoon, plakat, and crowntail bettas as well as halfblack and blonde tuxedo fancy guppies. Ask me about it sometime.
Expert: Benty Date: 5/19/2008 Subject: my fish is loseing its scales
Question i have a 40 gallon tank ph of 7.0 with 3 fake plants a fake coral rack fixture and it has 5 small freshwater fish and a frog and suckerfish. my main concern is about my largest fish he is a black puffer eyed (dont know the rea name of fish) goldfish he looks like he has ballon for eyes about an inch big when i bought him he ate and swam normally then i went to feed him last night and he was stuck to the filter at the part that sucks up water and almost half of the back of his body was trashed he is missing scales and his tale looks like it has been stuck in a blender i pulled him off and he is now eatting but barely able to swim he is floating around the bottom picking at food and is having a hard time breathing it looks like. please help asap he is my favorit fish and i would hate to lose him thankyou
Answer Hey Ashley!
He sounds like a Black Moor Goldfish.
First off, turn the filter down if you haven't already. Depending on the type and brand of the filter they have different switches and stuff but you'll have to turn that down or it will happen again to someone else.
Fill a rinsed out bowl (like the kind you eat out of or a fish one if you have one handy) in your aqaurium water. Put your little moor in there. Cup him and take him out with your hand if you can. Hands are less abrasive on them than nets. If it's a fight to struggle just use a net. Put him in a dark, calm spot and don't mess with him for atleast a day. Add a tiny bit of extra salt too. Light is stressful to injured fish and can make things worse. Check on him after that day. Add a little bit of his favorite food. See if he eats. If he does that's GREAT! Like... amazingly great! heheheheh. It means he will most likely make it and be totally fine. If he doesn't eat the food, you need to sprinkle a little bit of antibiotic med in there. Fish have slime coats the protect them from bacteria. When they get injured, it's gone and they can get sick very easily. You don't want that right now.
There's a good deal of hope for the little guy too! Don't be too upset just yet. I had a little (like one inch) fantail goldfish (who's now named Lucky, lol). I was changing the tank and messing with it and then some hose in another tank blew or something so I had to leave them. Well, that night I was going to go feed everyone and when I got to their tank, little Lucky's face was stuck up in the filter. I figured he had and was stuck in there. I go to pull out the body and he moved a little bit. I freaked and turned off the filter. The next few days were horrible with him. He would eat... then stop... then eat again. One of his gills got bent backward when he came out of the filter tube as well. THAT was gruesome looking, lol. Lucky is swimming happily around in a special little tank for my "special" fish. His face got deformed from the constant sucking on his face. His mouth is very tiny and isn't wide enough to eat with the other goldfish so he swims with his buddies:
a one eyed goldfish, Patchy the Pirate,
an abused angelfish, Atilla,
a blue gourami, Mama Bear,
and some neglected loaches.
:) As long as the fish still has the will to live, they will. :) I have tons of stories of fish that were near when I got them and they refused to die.
I hope your little guy gets better and lives a long life too. :)
