upside down alive floating fish

Question
I have had this goldfish for approx. 1 1/2 years and I noticed right a way he did not act like the other goldfish i  have, but I said oh well if he dies he dies.... well about six mths ago he started floating upside down and then flip over. well i watch him every evening now and he stays on his belly more than his "right" side. people often question me " do you know your fish is dead?" He also has trouble making it to the bottom of the tank, as soon as he stops swimimng towards the bottom of the tank he immediatly floats to the top of the water. he has no control over his body. So may queston is why does this happen, is he simply a "not so bright" fish or is ther a medical reason, and is there anything i can do about it? thanks for your time, cynthia daniel

Answer
Hi Cynthia,
 The problem is that he has some sort of infection in his swim bladder such that he cannot regulate his buoyancy.  Unfortunately I know of no solution for swim bladder problems
so I don't think that there is anything you can do for him
other than to keep taking care of him. Evidentally he is still doing okay because he is still alive after a long time with this problem.

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
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