Hi, Im new to this forum, been searching all day for different dieases my goldfishes have, one says finrot which its tail and around the dorsal fin and the anal fins and the 2 fins under the fishes head are encircled in red(like blood streaks), the fishes tail is frayed and like broken off.... My other gold fish his tail isnt quite red yet but has like white substance stuck to it all over his tail, under his body is really red under the neck going upward to his mouth, my littlest goldfish though looks real bad, hes turned red all over, tail is frayed stringy, he looks like theres a coating covering his eyes and parts of his body. they both just lay at bottom of tank mostly all day, when they are fed they eat but like give up after a min or so. I went to pet store today and asked them what it was and they told me to get some mycarin for finrot, i have a 29 gallon tank and its just them 2 in there. i put 2 tablets in there today, took the filters out like i was told, and took some water out to lower the gallons to match the pills dosage. i also put 3 teaspoons of salt the pet store told me to get to help with their slimy coating?all of there fins look as if they are stuck together they dont flow freely while swimming, they look like they are using there body to move instead of there fins.. i have common goldfish by the way, Will they die of this even though i got the medicine to treat it? Do i need to buy something else? Do they have more then one diesease? I need help here. Thanks alot and would appreciate any comments or suggestions

misty4kevin

Your fish do have finrot but it doesn't sound like this is all they have, more a combination of things, all of which are usually caused by poor water quality. So, first things first, you need to concentrate on that and get it perfect, otherwise any good medicines will do will be undone by the bad water.
How big is your tank and how many fish are in it? What is your maintenance schedule and have you tested your water parameters (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)? If you haven't then you need to do this as a matter of urgency.Test kits are widely available at fish stores, or most stores will test the water for you for a small charge. If you get them to do this though, make sure you take a pen and paper and get the actual readings and don't just let them tell you it's ok or not ok.
If you give us all this information it will make diagnosis a lot easier.

I also wanted to ask about the red marks - are the ones on the body like bruises or are they like spots? Also is is blood red or a darker sort of bruise type colour?

Hi Fishy, thanks for replying to me, really appreciate it

Well i have a 29 gallon tank with 2 common goldfish in it that ive had now for 8 months. I just added a algae eater 2 days ago.... I am new to all this fish thing and knew nothing about testing the water. ive never tested it before since ive had them and they did really good.. What is it im suppose to buy to test the water and what am i testing for? what is good and what is bad when im testing the water? My littlest goldfish had red patches and kinda looks like blood streaks and spotsand im thinking shes got popeye cause there bulging out and clouded.. and i noticed tonight her gills arent opening much and shes opening her mouth alot more then usuall, Im assuming to try to breath,My biggest gold fish is getting it also just not as bad, What do u recommend me to do first ? should i stop medicine and change water completly clean out fish tank then put them back in clean fish tank and clean water? I suggested that to the pet store lady and she told me not to do that cause of fear stressing them out more and making them worse... and ive never noticed any difference in there behavior, this is 2nd day of medicine, thanks alot and am waiting on youre reply

misty

Misty, you can get test kits at the pet store. You'll need ammonia, nitrite, and pH testers for sure - nitrate and KH would be nice to know, too! You can also take a sample of your water to your local pet shop and ask them to test it for you (most will do this for free). Ammonia and nitrite should be 0, pH above 7.0 and lower than 9. Don't rely on the pet shop employee to tell you whether or not your levels are okay, make them give you actual #s.

Don't stop medicating. Once you start with a med, it's a good idea to finish out the treatment. Your fish definitely do have a bacterial problem which this med may help, but that may not be their only problem, and water quality is the most important factor in fish health, so it is important to get it checked ASAP.

Do not clean the tank out completely, but do perform a water change before your next dose of the meds (~30% of the tank capacity). Be sure the water is about the same temp. and don't forget the dechlorinator.

Good luck.

You definitely need to get the test kits as it really does sound like a water quality issue. Ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are probably the most important for now. Ammonia should be 0, nitrite 0 and nitrates below 20. We can't really give much more advice until we know what they are. if you get your water tested at your fish store make them give you the actual figures and dont just let them tell you it's ok/not ok as their advice is often wrong. If you get the water quality perfect then your fish have a much better chance of making a full recovery.

Thanks alot guys,but ive got some good news. I completly changed the water in the fish tank and cleaned the fake plants, rocks, ornaments. Put the clorineout in there and gave them more medicine, this morning i got up and my littlest fish is up swimming around but still is the same look wise, just more active, only thing now is he hasnt ate hardly anything as well as the biggest one, but both tried this morning...., big one is still lying on bottom of tank and little one is at top22 move his tail then float then move it again. they seem more active now though, im going to get those test kits and more medicine for the finrot, popeye,body fungus(not sure if they have that or not) and gill diesease(not sure if they have that either) plus some medicine to keep them from getting sick, plus ive added 3 teaspoons of rock salt, they seem better now though ill keep yall updated.

I'm glad to hear your fish are doing better, Misty.

Are you familiar with the cycling process? Cycling is what turns harmful ammonia (from fish waste) into a less toxic form (nitrate) and is very important for the health of your fish. To keep the cycle from crashing once it's established, you shouldn't disturb the biological media of the filter (what type of filter do you have?), or completely clean off any tank decorations unless necessary, since the "good bacteria" that does the converting live on most every surface.

It sounds like your tank is not yet cycled, and that is likely a huge contributer to your problems. We'll know for sure when you get your water parameters tested.

Good luck

thanks, but that all confuses me, should i put filters back in then since i cleaned the whole tank out, petstore told me to leave them out while im giving meds..... got some bad news, my smallest baby died ( i dont want my other to do die also im in need of help quick like thanks for replying
misty

That depends... do you have carbon inside your filters? It's usually between the layers of filter floss. If you do, then yes leave them out. If not, you can put them back in.

You really need to get your mitts on some test kits so you can monitor the levels in your water. All the medicine in the world won't help if the fish is in poor water conditions. Have you got test kits yet? Sometimes they're pricey at local shops. You can get a "master kit" at Big Al's Online for I think about $15, and if you could pick up the nitrate tester in addition to that, you'd have all you need.

You shouldn't ever completely remove your filters as the water will quickly become toxic if this is done. It is however necessary to remove any carbon as this will absorb the medication and so stop it working. Once medicating is finished you can replace it.

hi again, Yes my filters have like charcoal stuff in them, but i guess i dont need to do anything else as both my fish and algea eater died:(. But before i buy any more fish im going to get all the testers i need,all the meds i need, maybe even books to help me learn on there needs. I thought i was doing everything right, had them for 8 months and did nothing differently........then all of a sudden got sick and now all are dead:(now before i buy anymore fish how should i go about cleaning out the fish tank to get any of the old bacteria out of it so my new fish dont get what the old ones had??. any suggestions on what i should get before i buy my new fish as far as taking care of them and so forth besides the testing kits. Is there one paticular filter better then the others or what? Im not sure if im going to get more common goldfish or just get quite a few of the little neons or something havent decided yet. thanks alot guys again for the help and opinions.

misty

You should definitely give your tank and everything in it a good clean...but remember not to use soap, as any film left on the tank will only poison the fish. Buy the required water testers (at least pH, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate), and to get info about cycling the tank, just look at the left hand colomn on this page, and you'll be able to find all the info you need to raise healthy fish. You'll have to cycle your tank before introducing any new fish, which can take up to 6 weeks, or you can use products that you can buy to speed up the process (look under tank cycling for more info). You shouldn't really need to buy any meds yet, as you don't want to overmedicate your new fish without knowing what disease/illness they may have. As long as you set up a cycle, and continue with weekly water changes, your fish should remain healthy. It sounds to me that your problem with your fish that died was bad water quality, (which led to stress, fungus, fin rot, and popeye), and you should be able to control that without the use of meds, as long as you test your water, and do water changes. Good luck with everything!

Depending on the med being administered, bypassing your filter (esp. the biofilter) is a good idea. Also, if the tank is not cycled to begin with or if frequent water changes are going to be performed, there is no harm in removing the filter media entirely.

Misty, I'm sorry you lost your fish. Definitely do get the test kits. A lot of bad situations can be prevented with simple water testing. What type of filter do you have now? Be sure it's rated for at least 2X the gallons in your tank if you want to keep goldies again (they're messy fish). I like power filters with biowheels because of the biological filtration they provide. Sponge filters are great for biological filtration as well (though you'll need another filter for *mechanical* filtration.

As for the tank, you can wash it out with a bleach solution (1 part bleach to 12 parts water), rinse, and let it air dry. Be sure to disinfect the filter and anything else you may want to reuse as well. Air drying will let the chlorine evaporate, or you can fill with water and add dechlorinator at a few times its recommended dosage. Be sure the smell is gone before putting fish back in.

Commons tend to grow rather large, but 2 fancy goldies would do great in that tank.

Good luck.

TY all for youre opinions and help! they were all appreciated very much. I have the filters that came with the tank, I bought the tank starters kit, and i didnt know u could buy different sized filters, maybe that was the problem cause my commons were rather large, and the filters couldve been to small for them, but anyhow before i get more fish i am going to get all the testing kits for the water . again thanks guys for the help

misty

Sometimes all it takes is one new fish to being in the disease and infect the others. Perhaps your new one was already getting sick when you got it. <_<

Losing your fish is a hard way to learn about the importance of water quality, but at least you learned a good lesson in fishkeeping. Your next little fishies will be lucky to have someone who knows what they're doing.