Do you know that your goldfish can experience stress just like you do? If you’re stressed because of too much load of work or something is not going as you expect, fish experience stress due to different reasons. Read more about reasons why your fish get stressed and how to overcome it.
There are some factors causing goldfish or other fish to get stressed, such as the change of habitat, disturbance in routine or behavior and others. As a goldfish parent, it is very important to know and understand the signs of a stressed goldfish.
You may have ever seen your aquarium and think that your goldfish live peacefully. All your fish just need to swim around all day, get fed and cared by you. However, they might not be happy in their aquarium, they may get stressed.
Moreover, it is sometimes not easy to understand the signs your fish trying to tell you. Here they are, the common signs that tell your goldfish is stressed. Understanding them will enable you to prevent your goldfish from getting worse conditions, or even death.
- Gasping at the Surface
If your goldfish is gasping at the surface, it means that there’s something wrong. This is a sign of stress due to the poor water condition, which is mostly a lack of oxygen.
A fish that is gasping at the surface of water commonly experiences lack of oxygen or unable to absorb the oxygen from water. If there’s only one fish that is gasping at the surface of the water while the others are normal, then you should immediately treat the gasping fish. There’s no wonder that gasping at the surface us also listed as one of the signs of your fish pet is stress.
- Lack of Appetite
A stressed fish tends to experience lack of appetite, unwilling to eat. Make sure you also pay attention to the nutrients your fish will need to stay healthy.
- Strange Swimming
A stressed fish tends to develop strange swimming patterns. If you notice your fish swimming frantically without going anywhere, crashing at the bottom of its tank, rubbing itself at the gravel or rocks and locking its fins at its side, then your fish may experience stress.
Talk to your vet immediately about the best treatment and look into what may cause it. The strange way your fish is swimming can also be one of the symptoms that tell your fish is sick.
- Disease
When a fish is stressed, then it may be infected by several diseases, such as ich. Ich is characterized by the appearance of white spots on the fish body. If you observe and notice any visible ailments or sores on the body of your fish, then you should talk to your vet about the possible treatment.
Also get to know the common diseases of fish can have. By knowing the common diseases, you can decide the best treatment for your fish.
- Clamped Fins
A stressed fish tends to clamp its fins close against its body. Some experienced aquarists use this sign to quickly identify the problems with their fish. So, if you notice that some of your fish clamp their fins, then treat them immediately. Cure them and avoid some occasions that stimulate stress to your fish.
- Red or White Sores
The presence of white or red sores might indicate that your fish is fighting with the others, scraping on sharp rocks and small wounds that get infected and grow bigger. Once you notice a small sore, then cure it immediately as larger or older sores are more difficult to be treated.
- Other Signs
Besides the ones mentioned before, there are some other signs of stressed fish, such as fin-rot. Fin-rot is a condition where the edges of the fish’s fins disintegrate. Fin-rot is quite difficult to be cured.
There are more signs of stressed fish is pop eye. Pop eye is a condition where the fish’s eye bulges out, and cotton mouth, where the fish has some patches that look like cotton around its mouth.
These three signs usually occur after the more subtle signs. Before they occur, the fish often show milder signs, such as clamped fins.
Stressed fish is not something that cannot be underestimated. Different with common pets that show symptoms obviously, it is quite difficult to notice the symptoms of stress in fish.
It is because all you see in your fish tank is your fish keep swimming around just like normal. You have to observe it carefully so that you will be aware of the signs.
There are some ways you can do to prevent stress in your goldfish. First, you can introduce some plants to the aquarium. Plants offer shelter and security for goldfish as well as absorbing the toxic released from the fish waste. Besides, improve the water quality.
You can add a tablespoon of aquarium or sea salt per 5 gallons of water. It will be helpful to keep the goldfish in a good health. When your fish is in a good health, it will be less likely for it to get stressed.