Goldfish And Orfe Advice Please

[kellyinman1]

My dad brought a new house and is moving in tomorrow. I went round there today and they have a small garden pond. its about 1ft deep by about 6ft x 3ft wide.
There are lots of common goldfish but they are a really funny shape, like really really fat! ive never seen any so fat! just wondering if they atchually get fat from over feeding or if there is something wrong with them?
The other fish is a huge orfe, must be 2ft long. its got a really bent back, its like a s shape, again this cant be normal so im asume its because its in a pond way to small, is this the case? the lady that lived there before said it was 22years old!!!
Any help and advice would be great!
Thanx

 

[fifefish]

the goldfish could be filled with eggs, or could be a strain of goldfish that has a very egg-like appearance,
as for the orfe, I don't know what it is but one of my orfe in my pond has a kink in its tail, it has had it for years and still swims just fine,
Im not sure if it was a bacteria infection that has twisted its spine,

 

[mixmaster jay]

goldfish do get fat when they get large and when they have not got enough room to swim about if you rook the biggest one out and put it in a say a 4ft/5ft tank it will grow abit longer and its belly will go down me and my mate who owns a lfs did this with a massive white goldfish (wich he rescued from a 2ft tank and it was 13") and it grew 2" and 3 weeks and its stomach went down a bit so it sounds like they are well overcrowded and as for the orfe sounds like it could of been the same thing over crowding

ive also found this for you hope it helps you out oh and the pond needs to be atleast 3ft deep by the sounds of things or get rid of alot of them to thin out the stock


1. Electrical shock (check your pond for leaking electricity) or lighting.
2. Fish tuberculosis. Some fish become huge with tumors while others become bent with tuberculosis. My fish have been exposed so my orfe may have been bent from that.
3. Physical injury.
4. Genetic malformation (only if born that way).
5. Vitamin deficiences - perhaps Vitamin A, C, D, or E.

I have not heard of fish getting arthritis.

Once bent, the fish rarely improves but can still function often for years like that. Fish with bent spines often become anorexic, probably because it's harder to swim and find food as well as due to the underlying problem.

Aside from continuing to take good care of the pond, feeding good food, etc., there's not much you can do. I wish I had better news. A bent spine itself is not contagious but, if it's due to electrical problems, fish tuberculosis, or vitamin deficiency, those things may also affect the other fish.

 

[kellyinman1]

Hiya thanx veru much for the advice. Ill pass it on to him.

 

[mixmaster jay]

no problem

 

[saltynay]

Each goldfish needs to have 15-20 gallons of space with the initial goldy having 30 gallons, I reccomend you dig the pond a lot deeper it might seem like hard work but after one weekend you will probably be at sufficient depth and then the fish will be a lot happier, larger, more colourful and may even start spawning which is always good to see the growth of an animal from your care.