fantail with a swim bladder problem

Question
hi Karen,
my little fantail has just been diagnosed with a swim bladder problem, with all the other reasons he could of got it i was told it could be due the clarity of the water and how big the tank is.
i have a small 8 litre tank with 5 fantails, the water stays crystal clear for over a week and i change the water every second weekend. i have a small filter that works well, it has a raised arm with like a water fall so the water gets aerated at the same time.
there is always heaps of air particles floating around especially stuck to the under side of the fake plants. i didn't know if this could be contributing to his problem cause he is sucking in too much air from the water and the air bubbles under the plant leaves.
how long would you recommend us putting the filter on for and what would be a suitable tank size.

Answer
Hi Lauren,
If your tank is only 8 litres (which is only about 1 gallon) then your tank is severely overstocked with 5 fantails living in that small volume. Your fish are at risk for severe pollution problems and they won't be able to handle living in the tank longterm. Probably not anymore than month. If they survive longer than that, they will likely be stunted. I don't mean to be harsh about it. Even daily water changes wouldn't be enough for keeping the 5 fantails healthy. The best thing you could do now is to move your fantails into an inexpensive 10-gallon with a hob power filter. This would be a much healthier and better home for your fantails. Although it still isn't large enough longterm it will be 100 times better than what they are in now.
There's really no way you can continue keeping that many goldies in such a small aquarium.

A much better tank size longterm for your 5 fantails would be actually somewhere close to a 50-gallon. A 46-gallon might do well enough, goldfish need plenty of room to thrive. And a simple HOB power filter would work perfect for them.

For now, try to upgrade your goldfishes home, even if its just a 10-gallon. Work on getting the little fantail with swim bladder disorder straightened out and you can move on from there. Most swim bladder problems are related to diet, too much starchy foods or too much food at one time. It could also be water quality related. Try fasting the little fantail for at least a day or two and then giving him a peeled and mashed pea. Continue to watch the fantail and notice if he has any particular changes in his appearance or behavior at all. Usually swim bladder is not life threatening and usually most fish recover well from it. You can read more about swim bladder here in this detailed article-
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/Swim%20Bladder%20Disorder.html

Best of luck with everything!
I hope this helps,
Karen~