Are Goldfish Fin Nippers? (All You Need To Know)

Written by John Sawyer in Fish Species,Goldfish

Goldfish are the most common fish every aquarist love to add to their home aquarium. They are peaceful fishes that enjoy the company of their tankmates. However, sometimes goldfish show some strange aggressive behavior, worrying us.

One of the behaviors we sometimes discover in our goldfish is chasing, which raises a question. Are your goldfish fin nippers? Are they chasing the other goldfish and nipping their fins? Let us find out.

Goldfish are peaceful species that do not prefer aggression in their tank. However, your goldfish can turn into fin nippers when kept in an overcrowded tank or with unsuitable tankmates. Consider providing adequate living conditions and compatible tankmates to prevent such goldfish behavior.

The below article will discuss the reasons and preventions for your goldfish turning into fin nippers.

Goldfish temperament

Goldfish are peaceful fishes that do not prefer aggression in their tank.

However, many factors like an overcrowded tank, stress, and pairing the slim-bodied goldfish with the fancy can make your goldfish territorial.

In such as case, you will discover your goldfish nipping the fins of the other tankmates.

Also read: Are Goldfish Aggressive?

Do goldfish nip each other fins?

Although goldfish are calm species, they can turn aggressive towards their tankmates if you place them under inadequate tank conditions.

Your goldfish will not nip each other fins if you provide them with good living conditions and place them with compatible tankmates.

Some goldfish are also of aggressive personalities and can be a threat to the other fishes in the tank.

What factors can make your goldfish a fin nipper?

Here are the factors that can make your goldfish a fin nipper

  1. Overstocking
  2. Pairing with unsuitable tankmates
  3. Personality
  4. Competing for food
  5. Illness
  6. New tankmates
  7. Breeding

Overstocking

Goldfish require ample space in their tank to swim freely. Overstocking your goldfish tank will provide no room in the tank for your fish to swim freely, eventually making them territorial.

A territorial goldfish can be aggressive towards the other tankmates to protect their territories and mark boundaries. 

An aggressive goldfish can further nip the fins of the other tankmates leading to significant injuries.

Also read: What Happens When You Overstock Goldfish Tank? 

Pairing with unsuitable tankmates

Pairing your goldfish with unsuitable tankmates can also make your goldfish aggressive and start nipping the fins of their tankmates. 

Suppose you pair your common goldfish with fancy goldfish, you can see aggression in the tank as they have different personalities. 

Common Goldfish are fast swimmers, whereas fancy goldfish are slow swimmers that can make them compete for food in the tank, eventually leading to aggression.

Common goldfish can chew the fins of the fancy goldfish in the tank leading to significant injuries and physical damage.

Also read: Can Common Goldfish Live With Fancy Goldfish?

Personality

Although goldfish are calm species, some goldfish have an aggressive personality. 

These types of goldfish are usually the pack leaders in the fish tank.

However, goldfish with aggressive behavior can be a threat to the other fishes in the tank as they may end up bullying the other fishes in the tank or nipping their fins. 

Competing for food

Your goldfish can turn aggressive and nip the fins of the other tankmates when competing for food. 

Your goldfish can get aggressive in scrambling for food, eventually hurting each other. 

In such a case, you can prevent such issues by adding tank dividers in the tank during feeding times.

Illness

If one goldfish in the tank is sick, the other can attack the fish, eventually leading to fin nipping and significant physical injuries.

Such aggressive behavior can lead to more stress making it difficult for the injured goldfish to recover. 

So, it is essential to provide treatment to the injured goldfish in a separate tank for their well-being. 

New Tankmates

Adding new fishes to an established tank can lead to such issues. 

Your goldfish can turn aggressive towards the new tankmates, leading to fin nipping and physical injuries to the other fishes.

To prevent such a situation of bullying and fin nipping, you should introduce new tankmates properly in the tank.

Here is the way to introduce a new fish to an established tank

  1. Place the sealed bag that your fish came into the aquarium’s water and let it float on the tank’s surface.
  2. Allow the bag to float on the surface for 15 minutes to adapt to the tank’s water temperature.
  3. The final step is to use a net to transfer the fish from the bag to the tank. Ensure not to pour the water from bad into your tank. 

Breeding

Your goldfish can be aggressive towards the female during the breeding season. 

Goldfish usually spawn when the cold water gets warmer during the spring season. 

The male goldfish rub himself against the female to encourage her to lay eggs. 

It may look like a fun activity, but sometimes the male goldfish ends up harassing and nipping the fins of the female goldfish.

Also read: Can Goldfish Get Pregnant?

How to deal with fin nipping fish?

Here are the ways to deal with fin nipping fish in your tank

  1. Remove the aggressive fish from the tank.
  2. Treat the damaged fins.

Remove the aggressive 

Some goldfish may have an aggressive personality that can threaten the other fish in the tank. 

An aggressive goldfish can cause significant physical injuries by nipping the fins of the other tankmates, eventually leading to stress and other major health issues in the other fishes. 

In such a case, it will be best to remove the fin nipper fish from the tank for the well-being of the other fish in the tank. 

Place the aggressive goldfish in a separate tank. However, if you don’t have a different aquarium in the house, you can give the fish to a friend or return it to the pet store.

Treat the damaged fins. 

Once you have removed the fin nipper goldfish from the tank, you should now provide treatment to the bullied fish in the tank. 

Your bullied fish in the tank will remain scared and can be prone to several diseases if you do not treat the wounds. 

Open injuries in the fish can further lead to bacterial infections causing severe health issues like fin rot in your goldfish. 

Therefore, provide adequate treatment to your goldfish to ensure your fish’s well-being.

How can you stop fin nipping in goldfish?

Ensure these things to prevent fish nipping in your goldfish.

  1. Provide Adequate Water Conditions
  2. Avoid adding aggressive fishes to the tank.
  3. Avoid Overstocking your goldfish tank.
  4. Provide a stress-free environment for your goldfish.

Provide Adequate Water Conditions

You should provide adequate water conditions in your tank to prevent such behavior of your goldfish. 

Ensure to perform 30% weekly water changes to maintain the tank’s water quality. 

Consider adding a water filter to the tank as it helps to eliminate the harmful chemicals from the water and keep your tank’s water clean. 

We advise you to purchase Fluval High-Performance Filter to maintain your tank’s water quality.

You can buy it from Amazon Fluval High Performance Aquarium Filter.

Also read: Do Goldfish Need Filters?

In addition, you should also keep eyeing the tank’s ammonia and nitrite levels as a spike in the ammonia level can lead to significant health issues like ammonia poisoning in goldfish.

We advise you to buy the API Ammonia test kit as it provides accurate results.

You can buy it from Amazon  API TEST KIT.

Avoid adding aggressive tankmates

Goldfish are peaceful fishes that do not prefer aggression in their tank. However, adding aggressive fishes to their tank can lead to severe aggression in your tank. 

You will see a lot of chasing and nipping fins in the tank that can lead to significant injuries in your fish. 

Therefore you should always pair your goldfish with compatible tankmates to provide good living conditions in the tank. Some of the best tankmates for your goldfish are:

  1. Guppy 
  2. Zebra Danios
  3. Rosy Barbs 
  4. Snails 
  5. Giant Danios

Also read: Can Goldfish Live With Angelfish?

Avoid Overstocking

Goldfish require ample space in their tank to swim freely. Overstocking your goldfish tank can make your goldfish aggressive and nip the fins of the other tankmates.

So, you should provide ample space in the tank to prevent such behavior of your goldfish.

We advise you to add one gallon of water per inch of fish to avoid overcrowding your goldfish tank.

Provide stress-free environment

You should provide a stress-free environment to your goldfish to prevent such goldfish behavior. 

Here are the ways to provide a stress-free environment to your goldfish

  1. Provide adequate water conditions in your goldfish tank.
  2. Maintain good water conditions in the tank.
  3. Avoid adding aggressive tankmates to your fish tank.
  4. Add lots of live aquatic plants to keep the tank well-oxygenated.
  5. Avoid overcrowding your goldfish tank.
  6. Provide high-quality, nutritious food to your goldfish.

Also read: What To Do If My Goldfish Is Stressed?

Conclusion:

  1. Goldfish are peaceful fishes that do not prefer aggression in their tank.
  2. Your goldfish can turn aggressive if you place them under inadequate tank conditions.
  3. Inadequate tank conditions, personality, and unsuitable tankmates are some factors that can make your goldfish fin nippers. 
  4. You can deal with the fin nipping fish by removing the aggressive fish from the tank. 
  5. Provide adequate water parameters and lots of live aquatic plants, and avoid adding aggressive tankmates to prevent such aggressive behavior of your fish.

Reference: ScienceDirect

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