Lost my beautiful girl comet

[ABB63]

I am so devastated. I was doing a full tank clean and moving my beautiful 12” comet named Cheetos when she flipped out of my hands as I was transferring her to the holding tank and fell to the floor. when I put her in the water she was bleeding heavily from her right side gills. It stopped after about 30 seconds but she started to show signs of blood pooling in her fins and all over her head. 

I got the large tank filled back up and got her back in there with her partner “coco” but she slowly lost the ability to move and breath. Her partner Coco had been bumping her to get her to move and he hung right next to her when she slowly laid at the bottom. she died a couple of hours later. I am in shock that I foolishly killed my beautiful girl. She and Coco have been a pair that have grown up together for almost 6 years. I am so heartbroken I can’t Stop crying. 

Can I leave Coco alone now? or do I look for another larger goldfish to share the tank? It’s an 80 gallon reef tank I set up for them to be able to swim around.  

Ann 

Edited November 10, 2019 by ABB63
Deleted a duplicate photo

[koko]

Oh NO! Im am so utterly sorry to hear this   

Im at a loss for words.. Um the other fish my show signs of being sad just to let you know. I had a fish that did after there pal died. Just keep an eye out.

Again Im so so sorry

My I ask why you move them out of the tank? 

[FishyMandy]

Oh no I'm so so sorry xxxx

[aussieJJDude]

Im sorry to hear! Consider next time using a spare towel soaked in water? Its a lot easier to grip the fish, and since they are covered with a towel, less likely to spazz out?


Goldies are social fish, so I would reccomend getting another. Of course, you're ultimately the caregiver, so you should really get a goldie once you're ready. But just watch for signs of your single goldie, they known to be a lot more reclusive and not as active.

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[ABB63]

1 hour ago, koko said:

Oh NO! Im am so utterly sorry to hear this   

Im at a loss for words.. Um the other fish my show signs of being sad just to let you know. I had a fish that did after there pal died. Just keep an eye out.

Again Im so so sorry

My I ask why you move them out of the tank? 

I know. I am so horrified this happened. I wanted to do a 100% change to get the junk that collects off the bottom.  I was putting them in my 20 gallon to hold them so I could clean the big tank. I am worried Coco will not be ok. I don’t know what to do for him by himself now. 

[ABB63]

Koko, this was the large female I had asked you about being pregnant a while ago and we were thinking I was overfeeding. 

[ABB63]

1 hour ago, aussieJJDude said:

Im sorry to hear! Consider next time using a spare towel soaked in water? Its a lot easier to grip the fish, and since they are covered with a towel, less likely to spazz out?


Goldies are social fish, so I would reccomend getting another. Of course, you're ultimately the caregiver, so you should really get a goldie once you're ready. But just watch for signs of your single goldie, they known to be a lot more reclusive and not as active.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
 

 

1 hour ago, aussieJJDude said:

Im sorry to hear! Consider next time using a spare towel soaked in water? Its a lot easier to grip the fish, and since they are covered with a towel, less likely to spazz out?


Goldies are social fish, so I would reccomend getting another. Of course, you're ultimately the caregiver, so you should really get a goldie once you're ready. But just watch for signs of your single goldie, they known to be a lot more reclusive and not as active.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
 

 

1 hour ago, aussieJJDude said:

Im sorry to hear! Consider next time using a spare towel soaked in water? Its a lot easier to grip the fish, and since they are covered with a towel, less likely to spazz out?


Goldies are social fish, so I would reccomend getting another. Of course, you're ultimately the caregiver, so you should really get a goldie once you're ready. But just watch for signs of your single goldie, they known to be a lot more reclusive and not as active.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
 

I usually use a plastic container to scoop them up but for some reason this time I tried to pick her up.

Coco is pretty large. If I get another fish do I need to find another large fish like him?

Edited November 11, 2019 by ABB63

[ABB63]

My shabunkin Coco that has been left alone is at least 10-12”. He is already acting differently hiding behind the mopani in the center if the tank. They used to settle together side by side each night on the left side of the tank.

I know I need to get him a new partner. What size fish would I need to give him to live with? They have large fish in an indoor pond at LFS where I got my pair when they were babies. 

[aussieJJDude]

I usually use a plastic container to scoop them up but for some reason this time I tried to pick her up.
Coco is pretty large. If I get another fish do I need to find another large fish like him?

Ah. I feel your pain, had similar experiences. Looking back on them, they arevgreat learning tools!

You mentioned he is about 12inch? I'd try and source one at least 4 inches, but I know that larger fish can be pricey... I'd ideally look around the 6 - 10 inch mark to ensure the new one can hold its own.

(Most of the time, i like to introduce new fish in pairs or more, to help disperse any interest onto one fish... but an 80g is a little tight for a trio of single tailed goldies IMO, and I'm sure you dont feel like upgrading. Haha)

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[FishyMandy]

I've made mistakes that lead to the death of fish, it feels horrible, i know. But the best thing you can do is take it as a learning experience,  as JJ said

[ABB63]

Thanks for sharing. I do feel horrible to let that happen to her. Now I have to be concerned about my boy shabunkin. He has never been alone. I don’t know what to look for in his behavior. I’m going to talk to the local fish store it has expertise in pond fish. I’ll see if I can get him a tank mate so he has companionship. Scared about introducing a new fish though. 

[koko]

Im sorry to hear! Consider next time using a spare towel soaked in water? Its a lot easier to grip the fish, and since they are covered with a towel, less likely to spazz out?


Goldies are social fish, so I would reccomend getting another. Of course, you're ultimately the caregiver, so you should really get a goldie once you're ready. But just watch for signs of your single goldie, they known to be a lot more reclusive and not as active.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Great idea, never thought about doing the towel thing. [emoji106]

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[koko]

Koko, this was the large female I had asked you about being pregnant a while ago and we were thinking I was overfeeding. 

The white one ? This is just so sad to hear. Don't beat yourself up though. Aussiejjdude is right the are social creatures. Maybe sometime when your ready you can find another one.
How is the other fish doing today?

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[ABB63]

Shannon, yes it was her. I am heartsick. The other fish is kind of lost. He used to rest next to her all the time. He ate his pellets yesterday evening and again this morning. I was watching him and he seems to be swimming around looking for her. This morning when I left for work he was just resting where they used to hang out. 

I call the LFS this morning where i got them when they were 2” long. They are goldfish pond experts but they don't have any goldfish larger than 3” because the season is over. I also left a message for my neighbor who has a large goldfish pond to ask her for some help. 

Still cant believe it. I only do that full tank clean about once a year. 

I attached photos of the two. He is the calico shabunkin and she is the gold common. She measured 13” nose to end if tail. 

[koko]

I still can't believe that happened... Yeah when two fish grow up together and one looses the other they go sad.
TDs fish radar did that when his pal passed away.... I'm sure the right fish will come.... I would maybe spend time talking to him.

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[ABB63]

Shannon, yes it was her. I am heartsick. The other fish is kind of lost. He used to rest next to her all the time. He ate his pellets yesterday evening and again this morning. I was watching him and he seems to be swimming around looking for her. 
 

I call the LFS this morning that are goldfish pond experts and they don't have any goldfish larger than 3” because the season is over. I also left a message for my neighbor who has a large goldfish pond to ask her for some help. 

Still cant believe it. I only do that full tank clean once a year. 
i attached photos of the two. He is the calico shabunkin and she is the gold common. 

[ABB63]

16 minutes ago, koko said:

I still can't believe that happened... Yeah when two fish grow up together and one looses the other they go sad.
TDs fish radar did that when his pal passed away.... I'm sure the right fish will come.... I would maybe spend time talking to him.

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk
 

I’ll definitely be spending more time with him now. He loves peas so I’ll make him some peas tonight. 

Maybe I can connect with a local breeder who has some mature fish. 

[ABB63]

I have been able to find a dealer that can get me a large shubunkin for my tank. my current shubunkin is a male can i get another male? Or do i need a female? The one i lost was female.  

[koko]

Just now, ABB63 said:

I have been able to find a dealer that can get me a large shubunkin for my tank. my current shubunkin is a male can i get another male? Or do i need a female? The one i lost was female.  

I dont think it would matter  But I personally like one female and one male  that's just me.

[ABB63]

On 11/11/2019 at 5:40 AM, FishyMandy said:

I've made mistakes that lead to the death of fish, it feels horrible, i know. But the best thing you can do is take it as a learning experience,  as JJ said

 

On 11/12/2019 at 1:01 PM, koko said:

I dont think it would matter  But I personally like one female and one male  that's just me.

I decided not to wait and I was able to connect with a fish breeder to get another large goldfish. Tomorrow morning I’ll be getting 8 to 10 inch female tricolored shubunkin to go with my male shubunkin. I’m really super excited. And I’m also really super nervous About putting a new fish into the tank with him.

I’m assuming that I have to let the bag with the new fish float in the water on the top for about half an hour to acclimate the water to the right temperature. Do I need to be aware of anything else to introduce the new fish into my tank?

[ABB63]

1 hour ago, ABB63 said:

 

I decided not to wait and I was able to connect with a fish breeder to get another large goldfish. Tomorrow morning I’ll be getting 8 to 10 inch female tricolored shubunkin to go with my male shubunkin. I’m really super excited. And I’m also really super nervous About putting a new fish into the tank with him

I just realized I need to quarantine this new fish. Will get my 20 gallon set up for her arrival. 

[FishyMandy]

Yep Quarantine is really important  Can't wait to see her!

[koko]

18 hours ago, ABB63 said:

I just realized I need to quarantine this new fish. Will get my 20 gallon set up for her arrival. 

Yes like FishyMandy said QT is really important.  

I can't wait either  

[ABB63]

On 11/14/2019 at 2:06 AM, FishyMandy said:

Yep Quarantine is really important  Can't wait to see her!

I have my 3 applications of salt in the QT added 12 hours apart. The new shubunkin is about 5”.  She is eating like a champ and really active. So all great signs. 

Question. How do you decide how long to leave the salt in before you start the water changes to remove the salt? 

[ABB63]

Here she is.