Calico Oranda on side, lethargic, not swimming...

Question
'Fin' as this fish is called had a problem within 2 weeks of arriving in the tank back at the beginning of March with Swim Bladder, I got some treatment for it and until I fed him on pellets it continued every 2 days when the treatment wore off.
Now at the end of July similar behaviour is being displayed, but having been fed on flakes since moving into a new tank at the beginning of May. Is it likely it's Swim Bladder again, or could it be more serious.

The behaviour can only really be described as on side near surface openning mouth continuously and floating around not trying to do much with fins. I have another Calico Oranda named Nero, and he isn't displaying these symptoms, although as appeared more lethargic in recent days.
I have treated the aquarium last friday for Hair Algae.
Any help would be greatly appreciated,
many thanks

Matt

Answer
Hi Matt,
While swim bladder is usually caused by food-related issues I would also be leery of the Hair algae treatments. I'm not sure what kind of treatment you used but if its a chemical, that could be doing harm to them. It's generally not necessary to have to treat an algae outbreak with chemicals. A much better method is to treat the actual causes rather than the symptoms. That means keeping the nutrient levels low (goldfish are notorious for polluting their tank very quickly) so extra water changes and controlling the amount of light the aquarium recieves is usually all that is needed to get rid of an algae outbreak. Also removing as much of the hair algae as possible helps tremendously.

All goldfish are susceptible to swim bladder problems, some more than others and some fish are born with a somewhat deformed swim bladder. The best way to prevent this is to feed only foods that have absorbed water thoroughly before the fish eats it to prevent a blockage and floating problems. Also, offer green peas very often to help prevent digestive problems as well as other vegetables like romaine lettuce and zucchini.

I'd do some extra water changes and take close consideration to the diet of the goldfish and the type of foods being fed.

This article also helps tremendously-
http://flippersandfins.net/SwimbladderDisease.htm


Best of luck!
Karen~