My fish are upside-down/ can't swim
This is a common problem whereby fish lose their equilibrium and are unable to maintain their position. This can result in the fish swimming awkwardly, laying upside-down either on the bottom or top of the water, or unable to maintain a horizontal position in the water. This is often attributed to swim-bladder problems and indeed this is the most common cause of loss of equilibrium. The swim-bladder is an air-filled sac laying just under the backbone at the top of the abdominal cavity. By inflating / deflating the swim-bladder, the fish can adjust its position in the water and maintain neutral buoyancy.

The swim-bladder can be affected by bacterial or viral diseases. In addition the swim-bladder may malfunction, leading to over or under inflation. Clearly anything which affects the proper functioning of the swim-bladder will also affect the fish's equilibrium.

However, before diagnosing all equilibrium problems as swim-bladder disease, we should be aware that there are other conditions which can cause buoyancy problems. Disease in other organs such as kidneys and intestines for example can also cause problems. This can happen if there is any swelling of the affected organs leading to either a change in organ density or pressure being put on the swim-bladder. This is often a problem with fancy goldfish whose abdominal cavity is tightly packed.

Treatment is difficult, mainly because it is virtually impossible to diagnose the cause and secondly there are only a few conditions that will respond to treatment. It is always worth considering a course of antibiotic injections in case a bacterial infection is involved. An attempt should be made to see whether the fish is defecating, in case the problem is being caused by an intestinal blockage. If this is suspected it is worth either trying to feed the fish a few frozen peas, which act as a laxative, or else try baths in Epsom salts (70g / litre for 5 minutes) which has the same effect.

If these treatments do not work, there is little else that can be done. There is some work being carried out on exploratory surgery, but there are very few veterinarians undertaking this "cutting edge" procedure.

There are a few reports of fish recovering from balance problems, so it is worth giving the fish some time. One report suggested "wedging" the fish upright between two objects was helpful. If there is no sign of recovery after 7-10 days, the kindest thing is to euthanase the fish.






Why can't my goldfish swim? PFK
Fancy goldfish often develop problems which prevent them from swimming properly. Affected fish usually float at the surface unable to swim downwards, or just wobble about.

All of the problems are caused by the swimbladder, a gas-filled organ which controls the buoyancy, but determining the cause of the swimbladder problem can be more tricky. There are three main possibilities to investigate: diet, infection and genetic defects.

Dried foods, especially pellets, can swell up and the fish may ingest air. Try pre-soaking the food or offering frozen foods like Daphnia, which is said to have a laxative effect.

Fish in less than perfect water may pick up bacterial infections of the swimbladder. These can be tricky to treat. Improve water conditions and try adding Interpet's Swimbladder Treatment 13.

If changing the diet or treating for infection doesn't work, chances are that the problem is a genetic one. Fancy goldfish have been selectively bred over hundreds of years and their body shapes are totally different to that of a "normal" goldfish.

This can lead to internal problems which deform the swimbladder making it difficult for the fish to swim normally. Unfortunately, if the problem is genetic it can't be cured, but the condition rarely proves harmful.

Talking to the fella in the shop on thursday about the bulge my neons get in the stomach as they feed and he said my bars i was buying have a tendancy to stuff them selves silly to quickly which means they gulp to much air when eating from the surface meaning they fill with air and then cant swim properly ending up near the surface until they pass they air after about 30 minutes or so.

Not had this yet as they have yet to feed from the surface, prefering instead to allow the neons to grab bits of flake and take then to midwater where the barbs nick it off them if they dont get it in there gobs quick enough

My two fantails have had constant problems with swim bladder and the best solution we found was to change their diet.

Even after soaking their dried food, the fish instantly started floating (or sinking). So rather than feeding dried food, we now feed them 'fresh' frozen food. Also feeding halves of peas seemed to help.

You can buy pellets now like Tetras Goldmedal that are easily digested so as to reduce the problem of floating after feeding who ever can come up with food that completely prevents swimbladder I think would be a very rich person wish

For over a year my fancy goldfish every now and then loses its buoyancy, but for the last 3 weeks it has been upside down floating. A few weeks ago I treated it with swimbladder treatment 13 and salt, but no improvement, I want to treat it with another course of 13 but i have lost the instructions and don't want to overdose, if you have the swimbladder 13 instructions, please could you let me know how long you have to wait before you do a second course.

Many thanks

Nickie

It says to wait 4 days before treating with Interpet no 13 again and 7 days before using any other treatment, do you remember what to do as in dissolve in warm water etc.

Forgot to add, do a 30% water change before re-doseing

thanks for your reply, I do recall that a course consists of using the treatment on day 1, 4, 8 and 13 I think. but I recall reading that after a course you should wait a longer period of time before repeating the whole course again, is this true?

On the bottle it tells you to stir the swimbladder treatment in half a litre of warm water untill fully dissolved, then distribute evenly over the aquarium surface.
repeat the liquid treatment on days 4, 8 and twelve.
And in the booklet it tells you wait 4 days before repeating the same treatment, or 7 days for any other treatment doing the 30% water change before hand

Did you also use the Aqualibrium salt when you treated your fish the last time

Thanks I will start treatment again tonight. Yes last time I added aqualibrium salt, I fed it less, I gently increased the water temperature added living plants but nothing seems to work.

The fish is still eating and is calm when floating, so is it ok to leave the fish to live upside down if no treatments works.

The other thing is that my orange goldfish swims next to the fancy fish and nugges it, is it true that healthy fish dont like sharing a tank with an ill fish?