[kierae0608]

Why does my fish keep floating to the top of its tank and acting lifeless. it cant swim correctly and even swim upside down.?

[peppercorn]

This?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swim_bladder_disease

[kierae0608]

Nope, sorry it,s not that. I have been giving it swim bladder treatment for around a month now. i have also been giving it fish safe treatment. the water has been tested at the pet store and its fine there has been a number of silver marks appearing on two of them and they also twitch a lot. at night time when the lights are out it seem to swim better.

[kierae0608]

To late, there dead now. :-'(

[Mazurka]

It could have been a number of things - but fundamentally it was a swim bladder problem.  I have kept goldfish now for 12 years (with one of the orignals still surviving despite an ovarian cyst/ tumour) and have found that when they get that ill, it is hard to bring them back, no matter how much medicine you add.

Most fish illness problems relate to water quality one way or another - which in turn relates to how many fish you have, what type they are, how big the tank is, how you fillter the water, how often and how much water you change. 

My first line of defence is salt - routinely adding a teaspoon per 10l / 2gal of aquarium salt or sea salt crystals (not cooking salt as this contains anti caking agents) on a normal water change and when they look sick putting them in smaller tank - to isolate them if it is a disease and to increase the salt concentration to about 4 tsp per 10l , if this fails a short term (5 minutes) salt bath in high concentration solution.   

I have also used "melafix" and "pimafix" as anti bacterial and anti fungal treatments - however it is essential to follow the instructions  - as these are not readily broken down by the bugs in the tank/ fillter.

[kierae0608]

thanks. all part of the learning curve i guess.

[Mazurka]

Afraid so, a nice tank is a thing of beauty, a poor tank is a source of endless frustration!

Sadly most fish forums (and there are plenty) seem to offer contradictory advice on most subjects (other than test and record your water quality regualrly)   

[Don_1]

One of the biggest mistakes people make with keeping fish is to overpopulate the tank. This and/or too small a surface water area or lack of oxygenation and/or filtration can lead to problems. The old fish bowl is the classic mistake. A couple of goldfish in a bowl may look very nice, but the surface area is usually far too small. That is why you will often see fish, in such a set up, surfacing to gulp air.

Over feeding is another problem. In such a confined environment, uneaten food sinks to the bottom where it breaks down along with the fishes poo to contaminate the water with nitrates. A good set up requires a tank of a reasonable size with only enough fish as the tank can support, a good filtration system, good aeration and a good regular cleaning regime. They also need some diversity to get the right balance between fish and plants.

Water quality and oxygenation are all important.