Lionhead with bulge on belly lying at bottom of tank..

Question
QUESTION:
Hi,
My Lionhead goldfish is resting at the bottom of the tank today in his hiding
spot (all of the fish use this hiding spot when something is wrong)--he's
energetic when I feed him, and is swimming normally. His appearance is
normal except that I noticed he is a bit lop-sided in the belly. The left side of
his belly is larger than his right, and when he rests at the bottom of the tank,
he tilts to the left. He's about 3" long and shares a 20 gallon tank with 4 other
goldfish. He's energetic when looking for food but otherwise hangs at the
bottom. I just did a water change yesterday, and the ammonia levels are fine.
What's wrong and how do I help him?
Additionally, he doesn't have any "pine-cone" scales protruding off of his
body and his spine seems slightly curved to the right--away from the bulge.

Thank!

Tank is 20 gallons, been set up for 6 months, has 4 other goldfish in it (a
ryukin, 2 pearlscale, 1 oranda). Filter is a 20 gallon Aqueon Filter.
Don't know Ammonia levels etc as i ran out of testing strips. Change the
water, 1x/week, 5 gallons changed each time



ANSWER: Hi Jessica;

It could possibly be as simple as constipation, or could be an internal infection, organ inflammation or even a tumor. The only one we can really help is constipation so try first feeding your fish more fiber. It's necessary for all goldfish anyway. For the next three days only give them peas. Cook, peel, squish and feed. Peas act as a laxative. Give them no other foods at all for the three days. Goldfish are largely vegetarian and the diets we tend to feed are too high in protein and sorely lacking in fiber. Feed your fish veggies at least every other day. A few suggestions are; Peas, cooked shredded carrots, cooked broccoli, cooked green beans, romaine lettuce bits, slightly cooked squash slices, and cucumber slices. Leave them in for a few hours for your goldfish to nibble on. Veggies don't rot quickly like flaked and pelleted diets do.

Hopefully your little gal will be feeling better very soon...

Oh, I almost forgot!... When you get more ammonia testers, you would be better off to get the kind with liquid drops and a little tube. The strips are not very accurate at all.

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Chris,
Thank so much for your response. I fed the fish peas yesterday, hoping it was something as simple as constipation. The Lion Head gobbled them up, then went back to his hiding spot and pooped quite a bit. But the bulge was still there several hours later, and he was still hiding, and breathing heavily. I'm going to get the ammonia testing kit today.
What if it's an internal infection or organ inflammation? What are the chances of egg-binding?
I will keep feeding them peas for the next several days.
Best,
Jessica

Answer
Hi Jessica;

Internal infection in large fish is very difficult if not impossible to diagnose and treat without injecting antibiotics from a vet. Organ inflammation isn't something that can be treated really. We can't tell for sure if it is either one anyway without diagnostic tests at a vet office. That's the hard part about treating fish. I do see it as a positive sign that your fish had a good bowel movement. I would keep with the plan of feeding peas for a few days and hopefully whatever is going on will correct itself.

Egg binding is possible but the treatment is actually what you are already doing with the peas. All we can do is work on the digestion to relieve constipation that could be putting pressure on the reproductive organs and hope the eggs are re-absorbed eventually.

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins