Blackening Fins

Question
Hi Chris:
My 4 yo son has a golden fantail in a simple 1-gallon bowl. It seems to have been doing well these past three months, but almost overnight its fins seem to be blackening/darkening on the edges. Is this an infection of some kind? Or part of the maturation process? We change the water often, using tap water with a de-chlorinator & feed it a small pinch of goldfish flakes twice daily. Thanks for your help!


Answer
Hi Kathryn;

The allexperts system is messed up today! I hope you didn't already get a blank answer from me. It told me I answered your question already (which I didn't) and then it disappeared. I found you again so now I can answer. Whew! Sorry about the mix-up.....

Anyway, your little fish needs a bigger home. The black on him is from burns caused by waste toxins. Goldfish are deep-bodied messy fish that need a regular tank with a filter. Now that he has undoubtedly grown a bit since you first got him, it is even more cruicial he have a larger home. I wouldn't get anything smaller than a 10 gallon for now. Later on he will need up to 55 gallons. Goldfish get to be 6 to 8 inches long and just need lots of space to be healthy.

Something that will help for now is feeding him only once a day, or just less food at each feeding. Also, change his water at least twice a week. Even replacing 25% of the water every day will greatly help.

Followups welcome

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins

Come on over and join us on the freshwater fish forum at About.com to get even more information too;
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