Young Black Moor Blind?

[awilson360]

My young black moor, about 1.5 - 2 inches long doesn't seem to be able to see. His eyes are clear and looking healthy but at feeding time he can't seem to find any food. I deliberately drop the food in front of him and he can't seem to get it, sometimes it takes minutes for him to realise there is food in the tank and by then the oranda has completely eaten it all.

Anyone got any ideas?

Thanks.

 

[Curiosity101]

Have you tried using visual cues outside of the tank to get it's attention. If it's only non responsive at dinner time then perhaps you're overfeeding (though it's not often you meet a goldfish who will turn down food).

How long have you had it?

 

[awilson360]

Have you tried using visual cues outside of the tank to get it's attention. If it's only non responsive at dinner time then perhaps you're overfeeding (though it's not often you meet a goldfish who will turn down food).

How long have you had it?

Had it about a week now and he has only really been eating 1 tiny flake of food a day. The Oranda will take everything you throw at it. Maybe they fed him different food at the LFS?

 

[Curiosity101]

Have you tried attracting it's attention outside of the tank? EG. put your finger against the glass and move it around. If you can get it's attention then it definitely isn't blind. But yes there is a possibility they weren't fed flake. Flake isn't the best food for them anyways, sinking pellets are a better option

 

[awilson360]

Have you tried attracting it's attention outside of the tank? EG. put your finger against the glass and move it around. If you can get it's attention then it definitely isn't blind. But yes there is a possibility they weren't fed flake. Flake isn't the best food for them anyways, sinking pellets are a better option

Ok I'll go and try to attract his attention!
Are these the kind of pellets you would recommend?
http/www.petsathome.com/shop/goldfish-pellet-pouch-100gm-by-aquarian-37213

 

[Curiosity101]

Definitely the kind of pellet I'd recommend. As for actually picking a brand I can't really help. Aim to give them a varied diet if possible. Eg. if you're having brocolli then chuck a piece in the tank for the goldies, same goes for spinach, lettuce, courgette etc with possibly the odd treat of bloodworm. Goldies are mainly vegetarian and the pellets will be fine (so will flake 'probably') However a varied diet that is based mainly around pellets is probably going to give your goldies the best chance of a long healthy life.

 

[awilson360]

Definitely the kind of pellet I'd recommend. As for actually picking a brand I can't really help. Aim to give them a varied diet if possible. Eg. if you're having brocolli then chuck a piece in the tank for the goldies, same goes for spinach, lettuce, courgette etc with possibly the odd treat of bloodworm. Goldies are mainly vegetarian and the pellets will be fine (so will flake 'probably') However a varied diet that is based mainly around pellets is probably going to give your goldies the best chance of a long healthy life.

Ok thanks for the advice.
I've just tried to attract the Black Moor's attention and he doesn't seem to acknowledge it. This fish also had a slight white glazed kind of fungus growing on its forehead which I have done a 3 day treatment for however he still seems to swim about with his dorsal fin clamped and occasionally go rest between two rocks, do you think it is wise returning him to the LFS for a more healthier fish?

 

[Curiosity101]

Having read your other posts I think that although there is a small chance he is blind the main issues you're seeing (white glaze/fungus, clamped fins, lack of responsiveness) is more likely to be down to ammonia poisoning cause the tank isn't cycled.

How many water changes have you done since getting the goldfish? I'd imagine that the ammonia is way off the charts right now. Where abouts are you based? My best suggestion would be to take both fish back along with a sample of water and ask the shop to test it for you (normally free, max charge around £1). Ask for the EXACT results (take a pen n paper to write it down). You may not want to take the fish back though, in which case you're stuck in a fish in cycle situation but you still need to get your water tested.

You will need a test kit in the long run so I'd suggest getting one now, don't get paper strips if you do get one. Get a liquid based kit such as the API Master Test kit.

Then read the info on here about a fish in cycle.

 

[awilson360]

Having read your other posts I think that although there is a small chance he is blind the main issues you're seeing (white glaze/fungus, clamped fins, lack of responsiveness) is more likely to be down to ammonia poisoning cause the tank isn't cycled.

How many water changes have you done since getting the goldfish? I'd imagine that the ammonia is way off the charts right now. Where abouts are you based? My best suggestion would be to take both fish back along with a sample of water and ask the shop to test it for you (normally free, max charge around £1). Ask for the EXACT results (take a pen n paper to write it down). You may not want to take the fish back though, in which case you're stuck in a fish in cycle situation but you still need to get your water tested.

You will need a test kit in the long run so I'd suggest getting one now, don't get paper strips if you do get one. Get a liquid based kit such as the API Master Test kit.

Then read the info on here about a fish in cycle.

Well I've been doing water tests everyday since I got the fish using the API Master Test Kit and I have managed to keep the Ammonia down between 0.25 and 0.5 ppm and the Nitrite today is at 0.5 ppm with Nitrate at 5-10 ppm.

The fungus on the Black Moor's head has gotten better since administering esha 2000 over 3 days, so I don't think it was Ammonia burns causing it, more likely a small parasite thriving due to the the stress of moving from the store because I noticed the fungus on his head the following day of getting him.

 

[Curiosity101]

Hmm, well if you're keeping on top of the water levels (though technically it should be ammonia 0-0.25 and nitrite 0-0.25) then you are probably right that it'll be stress. However I don't think it'll be stress from the move. It'll be chemical stress from the fish in cycling. To this day I've never had a fish die after transport from a shop without there being water spikes involved. Infact I had a battered up and very ill looking black widow tetra that'd been housed with a tiger barb, a few days later with good food and clean water and it perked up and started to regrow it's fins. It's been on a 1.5 hour car journey to get to me (came with a tank I bought).

 

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

My goldfish aren't that interested in outside stimulation unless it's feeding time. You could try getting tweezers or something and putting food right in front of it's nose. As others have said maybe he doesn't like the food he's been given.

I've got algae eaters (well had) in my tank; so I got algae wafers for them and the fish go absolutely mental over them; I've never seen anything like it. You could always try something like that too.

 

[awilson360]

Thanks for the help guys.
Well today the Black Moor seems to have perked up compared to yesterday.
I've got an aquarium double the size of the current one, I was thinking of transferring them across, e.g. all the water, gravel, filter and rocks etc to keep some of the bacteria. It should at least half the toxicity of the water and make it easier to maintain.
What do you think?

 

[Curiosity101]

I think that water changes will be harder but that overall it'll be easier on the fish cause like you said there is more water imbetween changes to dilute waste.