i am a relatively new fish owner , and my new shubunkin is in trouble here. i guess i didnt realize i overfed till it was too late (alot at that) also his airstone line was kinked ( not sure for how long) i did emergency full water change, which i know isnt good, but was better than him in poisoned water. he seems to be a bit better than he was a few days ago ( calm at times, eating again ( but just 1 flake, and frozen pea i feed him 2 x a day) his two raised , shiny gill spots getting better, one is almost gone. he had a hole in his fin close to the body that is healed also i been treating with metaflix each day, and 2 x with parasite clear ( said to do that 2 x with 48 hours difference ( can i give that to him again, and if so for how long?) he has a black dot on his side now, no white things on him though:) when he paces near side of tank ( is this flashing?) his top and bottom fins are closed in towards him? ( is this clamped or normal for when they swim fast? i read on to give him non idonized salt, if i can get that i will. i dont know the water levels of anything, just that tank is clean now. no plants or stones in either, as im watching tank closely. will he be okay soon do u think? and stop racing? that seems to be his only real problem now, his breathing is fine. he seems to be a fighter and im tryng to do what i can for the poor guy. any knowledge or help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi and welcome to the forum.
What size tank is this fish in?Do you have a Filter on it?How long have you had this fish,and the tank set -up? How big is your fish,and is it the only one? WHen you did a complete water change,did you match water with tank temps and use a water-safe product?
Flashing is when the fish is actually scraping up against the glass/ornaments/gravel,etc. Is that what he seems to be doing?Sorry for all the questions-the more we know,the easier it is to help.

hi and ty for for the welcome.ty ty for getting back to me so soon, i been keeping watch nightly on him, no hes just swimming back and forth fast by the side, not against it is his upper and lower fins closed in normal when he swims fast? thats what worries me if thats clamping or not. i think clamping is the back end fin and thats wide open:)

yes i matched the water temp. hes alone in a 10 gallon tank. hes about 3-4 inches long . i got him 4 weeks ago at the petstore. i learned thru this site, to leave tap water out for a day,,,,, i got alot of jugs of it now. water safe product? u mean metafix, or parasitic clear? i used them for treatment only, and yep i got a good filter on it

maybe hes fine, the fast pacing is normal? and im just paranoid, because of the overfeeding and the new clean tank now. also what is it if the a few of the scales, are shiny and out a bit i think, hard to tell

i woke up this morning, my fish was still ( scared me) i actually had to get him to move to check. he was just tuckered out from all the racing past few days or a week. and was sleeping .he seems better so far, still is moving back and forth near side of tank, but at a slower pace, and ate his pea this morning. i just looked and hes moving all over the tank now at normal pace i think hes better!!!!!!! but ill watch rest of the day. i treated him again last night with parasatic clear. how do i know when hes better? poop looks fine too. short and brown, better than its ever been actually (( was long then turned to white stringy when wasnt eating. i guess he is outta the woods now? not sure. can someone give me their opinion? also when they swim fast is it normal for the upper and lower fins to be closer to their body?
ill try and get a pic of him to post, with my name if i can figure out how, how can i be sure hes fine or when hes better?

How muxh do you normally feed and what do you feed him in a week? When you say you overfed him what did you give him?

If you are only giving one flake and peas a day then his diet isnt very good and he needs more than that.

i give him a pea and a large flake twice daily for now, thats all he eats as he is just regaining his appetite back. During overfeeding i was giving him 3 flakes 3 or 4 times a day. the junk in the rocks i guess showed that was way too much. a question >> is it normal they race back and forth beside the tank , not touching sides, with top and bottom fins down towards body? he still does that but not as much as before. when hes having calm moments, a few of them fins are nicely out

i have a question about using melafix for my recouperating fish from ammonia problem, who has a few loose gills still ( shiny , seems to be a bit open) i figured to change the filterand not put in charcoal led one ( says take charcoal l out while using the melafix. also is this just for bubbling action or for the whole duration i need it for? ( been giving him it one tsp a day for 10 gal tank)

MY FISH WAS AMMONIA POISONED, AS I OVERFED HIM, HE WAS DARTING AROUND, NOT EATING, TANK IS ALL CLEANED UP NOW, HES EATING OKAY WHEEWWWWW. SEEMS TO BE STILL OR MOVING SLOW NOW, IS THIS A GOOD SIGN OR BAD ONE? MORE RELAXED, OR WEAKER? HE DOES MOVE WHEN I GO AND SHOO HIM, OR PUT HAND IN TANK ( CHECKING MAKING SURE HE MOVES STILL., MAYBE HES JUST TIRED OUT FROM ALL THAT DARTING AROUND BEFORE?

HOW LONG DO I KEEP FILTER CHARCOAL OUT WHEN I USE MELAFIX ( HE HAS TWO GILLS HANGING A BIT , OR IS HE TOO WEAK FOR THIS MED U THINK? HE

First of all, please don't type in all caps.
Second.
If your fish isn't moving untill you put your hand in the tank, thats bad.
How big is your tank?
Good Luck, to you and your fish.

Please answer the questions up top.
It'll help me and anyone else who trys to help you.

Do you mean lose scales (the shiny things on his skin) or actually the gills, where he breathes from? I don't know the answer to your question, but I know whoever reads this will want that clarified. I know you are worried about your fish, I hope things are ok.

I wrote this in your other post too, but I want to make sure...do you mean loose gills or loose scales? Scales being the shiny things all over their body and gills being the slits they breathe out of. I switch words myself sometimes, that's why I asked!

ty inverted, my tank is a 10 gallon fish is 3 - 4 inches long sry for caps, i was hosting a tourney as well as posting here and didnt realize i was, he is moving around slow usually, in opposition to past week of racing along the sides of tank but if i go near the tank he swims normal ( darts away) he is a bit tilted too but just barely

ty jen again, and your right, ty for correcting me its a few scales not his gills thats a bit shiny and split just one now, it was two, another is just very very slight has healed up.

i want to try more melafix, by changing the filter to one without charcaol as directions say dont use it with charcoal in filter. says not while using it,,,,,,this confuses me, so hesitant ill do it wrong,,,, does that mean while it bubbles, tank is blue from the meds, or till hes healed up, as use melafix one tsp a day it says

sry i answered your questions there not ones up top
i dont know the water balances, have to get to pet store and get it tested,

i had to do emergency complete change, so whatever that give you, ammonia is 0 now im sure as i have no rocks or decor now, and siphon out left over food and poop if any. filter is one that hangs on the side, no roller on it,

i do water changes once a week 20% - 30% but had to do it full when i noticed alot of junk in the stones and fish was sick with ammonia related bacteria im sure

rock airstone, alot of bubbles coming up

meds been using melafix and parasite clear ( used the pc 2 times for two days not sure if can keep using it,) directions say just 2 x with 48 hours between

no other fish but him,

feed peas and goldfish flake food ( he just started eating again, will eat a pea and a large flake in am and pm now since yesterday before i was giving him 3 large flakes 3 sometimes 4 times a day, i thought he was eating it, but must not of been as was alot of stuff when i moved the rocks before that emergency water change

hes also tilted just slightly

he just ate and spit out flakes, but ate the pea i gave him, now is picking off the bottom of tank

sry forgot a few questions,

no water conditioner, but water was left out for 24 hours before adding to tank for declorination

markings on him are one black tiny dot ( ammonia burn?) one scaled is sticking out and shiny, another is almost healed closed now

had brown guck on his eye, which is gone now

melafix and parasite clear meds ( not sure how long to leave the filter charcoal free from filter, says while using it)

seems to be at bottom at times, is like now, when i turned around, went to the bottom after kinda floating moving a bit near the top now i went over and hes swimming fine, hes so confusing me,,

yes sry thanks for the correction, its his scales. hes at the bottom again, yikes!!! he goes up and down, but seems weak now i guess still eating a bit though not racing around which panicked me, first hes going too fast now is too slow, i dont seem to able to win with him

Hi there, Chanc2ride, and !
There are some things in the tap water that doesn't disappate by sitting around over time. Chlorine will, but if you have Chloramines in the water, that will not. Chloramines is basically chlorine and ammonia, and even if the chlorine in it goes away, you'll be stuck with ammonia. Thats why its so important to use a water conditioner when doing water changes - some tap waters have ammonia in it to begin with.

Oh, and I better combine your two threads into one, so there isn't any confussion going on. Its always better to keep one problem and its related questions in one topic.

okay sry just meant to ask about the melafix over in the other section, figured someone may have answer to that, unfornately my husband wont let me get anything more for a fish, ( though will try to get the water tested at the pet store tomorrow if he survives another night, also will try to buy some uniodized salt , i have a heater thats not hooked up, do u think this will help him a bit? i read goldfish dont need a heater, but helps in some cases if they got certain sicknesses, should i use melafix and or parasite clear again? if so please tell me what to do about the charcoal situation, how long to leave the filter charcaol free after i add either or both of these

Oh, well, merging the two posts together doesn't seem to work today, so I'll try that in the morning.
Salt might definetely help him some, if only it destresses him at this point. One teaspoon per gallon of water is fine, and dissolve it first in a small container filled with tank water, then pour it into the tank. Avoids salt burns that way.
You can add parasite clear back into the water as well, but if you are sure it is only ammonia poisoning your fish got, then all he needs is prestine water, a few extra water changes with dechlorinated water, and rest. Although the darting worries me some - has he done that before the overfeeding incident?
Oh, and you can add the charcoal back in after any possible parasite clear treatment is finished according to the instructions on the package.

I just wanted to add that you can buy rock salt or pickling salt from a grocery store and use that in your tank if you need to salt it-those are both safe. Ice cream salt, aquarium salt, sea salt (as long as it has nothing added), solar salt are some other names-just make sure the only ingredient listed is SALT! And mix it in a small bowl of tank water first and then add that to the tank rather than pouring it in directly.

ty jen for all your help, seems you think he may survives this after all, the darting was when the water was dirty i noticed that as he had a problem, so read in this site and checked everthing, so he did it before i changed the water, when he had lotsa stuff at the bottom of his tank, and then since up til today, ( its been 3 or 4 days since i did complete change) hes stopped darting now, seems to just of mellowed out, right now hes eating off the bottom of tank ( good sign) soon i will siphon out whats left over. i will get whatever salt i can get to first. i will use the parasitic again, i know it started with all that ammonia from poop and extra food, not sure if he got bacteria from that or not, no bugs seem apparent though, nothing but one black tiny spot and a few scales out a bit on one side of the scale, looks like its peeled off on one side, and is shiny. right now he doesnt seem week, when hes eating on bottom
so i should get a dechlorinator after i get the water tested tomorrow if they say its needed? not sure if hubby will let me get that right away.

maybe hes weak now cause hes hungry? seems to spit out the flakes, though he ate them earlier this morning but i gave him more peas,, and hes going to town on them, thats new to him,,,,yesterday i started him on that which i read is good for them then. i can also give him earthworms i read. hmmm not too sure abut that. but may try that. he seems to have energy when hes picking at the bottom for food

what about melafix for those loose scales? got it right this time

now he seems happy swimming around fine trying to catch the food thats dropping

hes back to racing maybe hes racing his reflection, not sure which worries me more, racing or too quiet.

i think ill see about getting a video on digital camera and then u can get a better view, since his problem is more what hes doing than how he looks ( no ick, no fungus, no flukes, etc)

il get water tested tomorrow and try to get some kinda salt, like u said, no additives to it

He might be needing more water to swim in as they like to get lots of exercise.

"i learned thru this site, to leave tap water out for a day,,,,, i got alot of jugs of it now. water safe product? u mean metafix, or parasitic clear? i used them for treatment only, and yep i got a good filter on it"


Just want to explain "water safe product".
This is a bottle of water conditioner that you can buy to rid tap water of heavy metals and chlorine (which can kill fish and your Cycle). They work instantly and when used with every water change you don't need to leave out any jugs of water to "stand" at all.

This is not a medicine but something that is to be used at every single change of water in your tank whether it be a 20% water change to a 70% and everything in between!
It means that you can change your water at any time you like without having to wait for buckets of water to sit overnight.

There are lots of different brands of water conditioner but I think that the most people that can get it reccommend "Prime".
I can't get that where I am and you don't "need" to use that brand either but from what I've read it seems to be very good.

How is your little guy today? I really hope he feels better soon. I'm rooting for him.
X

Chanc2ride, I have combined all 3 of your posts into this one, since they are all the same problem with your fish. Please post all responses in here now, otherwise its just confusing for people.

Kila, nice explanation of water conditioner.

Sandy, you might be onto something here - its a shubunkin, and he might already be too confined in his 10 gl tank. They need a lot more space than a fancy goldfish. I remember koi doing the same thing when they outgrew their tanks. A lot of koi literally hate glass tanks and start to get crazy in them.
That doesn't mean that your fish needs to be in a pond, Chanc2ride, he just might be either too uncomfortable in the 10 gl, or he actually might calm down with a friend in, say, a 20 gl tank.

id first like to say a big thanks for all who are helping me and care, it helps me not to be alone with this crisis >:D<
well * flash* is still alive and swimming around this morning:) not racing not eating or pooping either though maybe he will a bit later today. i understand about the bigger tank it makes sense and a buddy too.unfortunately I cant get that right now, but will try to get that when i can. he started out swimming weakly when i just got up, guess he just did too, is moving along sides now a bit quicker ( maybe he just likes swimming along the sides, is going in the middle and to the top now and then as well. ill try to talk hubby into getting the water conditioner, as i know learned from you here that its important, just gotta convince him....lol flash seems to be swimming better, and more content now, though i wasnt sure he was going to see the morning

i have a pic now of him though it was best could do with him moving around, but cant figure how to get it here i tried to do the url thing to upload a pic

Hopefully you can get your hands on a bottle of water conditioner. Most of them are around $5 I think (depending on bottle size) and should last you a good few water changes.

If you go to www.photobucket.com you can upload your pictures for free and post the link here for us to see them.

I'm very happy to hear that Flash is still with us.
Fingers crossed. Good luck.

going to pet store later to get some conditioner as well as his water hes in tested.
ty ill try that for the pic be nice for you all to see what u can of him, considering u all know his life story

I'm thinking now that all is fine with flash, though he didnt eat much today, no poop that i seen ( cause he didnt eat much) but seems to be a pattern with him, sluggish when i get up, then races his shadow for the day back and forth beside the tank, now he is calmly swimming around the same as last night, slowed right down about same time sleeping ,moving a little, sleeping, moving little bit.
Maybe I just worried for nothing. or he was sick and now is better at least now im very much more informed and now I know I have to do alot more than i thought with the care of a goldfish
I got his pic best i could with him moving around so fast. If you want to see him just click on my name at the side. It shows his black eye, his other eye is a nice colorful light rim, ( got his worse side there)

here he is. he has one black eye ( shown here) other one is a nice colorful light rim around his eye

thanks Sandy I think thats it.!!!! Not ill just fiesty needing to swim fast (wants more room to keep going, though I was so worried because he did have a messed up overfed tank, it was this racing that made me inspect the tank to find the dirty junk under the rocks, take rocks out, clean the tank and watch how much he really eats, taking out the remainder of food after awhile, and to see he has one missing scale ( thats what the shine is i think) and one is loose, noticed the fungus on his eye for a few days now, but thats cleared up. I wasn't able to get to the pet store yet i am still working on that

Definately work on getting the water testing done.That certainly will help with pinpointing problems,or ruling them out totally. Flash is a pretty fish.

ty devs, i think so too hes mellow today so maybe can get another better pic soon. hasnt eaten much yesterday, nothing today, not racing, but swimming around all over at mellow pace, even let me touch him with no problem, now i did 3 gallon water change ( weekly change). he has long poop started out regular thickness with whitish and clear ( air bubbles?) ended up thin,clear with a bit of whitish/clear in it still hanging, ( about an inch and a quarter ) i read on the poop page and sounds like eggs/ or constipation too, not sure he wasnt even interested in his peas this morning, or flakes, i took them out after a while, then did the water change. tried to go get water tested yesterday, hubby is being ......hmmmm how to put it, well u think of the answer to that one,,,,lol but im still working on getting there to get it tested

got the readings now
nitrate .025
ammonia 0
ph level 7.6 ( high they said)
chloramines( soft water they said, wouldnt test)
ph outta tap ( real high in our area, wouldnt test)

with my readings the guy said any other fish than a goldfish it would be long dead by now.

i got ace ( ammonia, chloramine, clorine eliminator, for goldfish) recommended by them to fix my water levels

they said be good to use a heater at 78 degrees if i wanted ( no heater in now)

also said funny all this trying over a goldfish,,,,i said ya but its a pretty one, not a regular one. they said reason for racing, was probably bored, ( gave me a free feeder tricolored feeder goldfish for a buddy, ( it is really tiny) they said it wouldnt overcrowd him in 10 gal tank, *flash* is swimming around normal now like when i left.
added the conditioner now and getting the little one used to water in bag in the water
still not eaten or pooped but for that one clear long one this morning, pet store guys in the fish dept.the guy said just a pinch once every two days is enough.

well so far seems my crisis is over and he will live:) if he would only eat now. hes swims around much more mellow now, even before i put the conditioner in. but am happy i now know to do this and check the water param. to know what im up against. i hope this ACE removal of annibua chloramine and chlorine also helps the nitrite( which wasnt too bad the pet store said) and the ph ( which was extremely high at 7.5 reading) the guy at the pet store told me it would make the water all perfect. i have a new better pic here if anyone wants to see him, ( and his little and i mean real tiny,new buddy *peewee*) who may keep him occupied and less bored

7.6 is a totally acceptable ph for a goldfish...the guy in the pet store was way off on that! Goldies can live anywhere between 6.5 and 8.5, with preference at 7.0-7.6 (see the article I quoted below). The important thing with your ph is to keep it STABLE! Using any products that raise or lower the ph can hurt your fish, especially if it is done too quickly. Next time you go in have them test your tap water and find out what the ph is-if it is the same as what is in your tank that is great! All fish have a 'preferred" ph level, and for goldies it is 7.0-7.6, but as I said about they can go lower or higher, 7.6 is perfectly fine, the main thing is that the ph is not changing all the time.

Also, is your new fish (who looks very cute, btw) small enough that it could fit in your bigger one's mouth? Goldies will eat anything they can fit in their mouths, so if your new one is that small it is something to watch out for.

Unfortunately, many pet shop employees know little to nothing about goldfish and will give you terrible advice at times, usually just because they don't know any better and sometimes to get you to buy more stuff. I have found the info on this site to be 100000000000000 times more accurate than almost anything said in a pet store, so be careful with what they tell you. I think adding another fish at this point with no testing equipment is probably not a good idea, even though he is small he will still add more waste to the tank, and he will continuie to grow. Hopefully you can get a larger tank soon!

For your readings, did they write down the nitrites? I see you have nitrate and ammonia listed, but there should be a nitrite one too...you want ammonia and nitrite to be at 0 and nitrates should be 10-20.
If you still have any nitrites (and sometimes pet stores will tell you some nitrites are ok, which they are not) then your tank is not finished cycling and you need to be extra vigilant about water changes.

Hope that helped a little...I wish people who worked in pet stores had to really learn about fish before they give out advice...but we can dream can't we?

Your fish is very handsome and I hope he continues to get better!

Here is that article quote I was talking about, written by Emma, if you get a chance, read the whole thing it is VERY informative!

PH (ACIDITY / ALKALINITY). All fish have a preferred pH level: some like acid conditions (below 7 on the pH scale) and others like alkaline conditions (above 7 on the pH scale). Goldfish prefer a pH of between 7.0 and 7.6, which is neutral to slightly alkaline. They will happily adapt to a pH outside this range but NOT lower than 6.5 or higher than 8.5, as these levels are getting dangerous. More importantly, the pH must be completely steady, i.e. never rise and fall. A pH which rises and drops sharply is far worse than one which is outside the fish’s preferred range but holds steady; the fish will become very distressed in changing pH levels. pH steadiness is directly related to water hardness.

Link to whole article: http://www.kokosgoldfish.invisionzone.com/...showtopic=11275

that .025 was the NITRITE reading sry. the guy wouldnt test the ph from tap water i also brought with me, he just said its all high in western NY. I tried to tell him i need that as well as all the readings, ( he wouldnt test the nitrate, or the chloramines either. I told him over and over i needed all the readings i copied from here.

ty about the little guy, hes a little tri colored feeder fish, or rather he was in a feeder fish tank, hes just an inch long, head to end of fin. looks like a baby shubunkin, so matches the bigger one well but no black spots same colors though. I been keeping close eye on them, and they seem fine, though flash hasnt got his appetite back (only problem i got now with him) ill try again in the morning He had long clear with a kinda solid whitish poop maybe with air it looked like yesterday, before that it was short and brown ( food color when he was eating) the store guy said he wouldnt eat him, so i guess we will find out. should i cook them first? or just put them in the tank frozen, i take the skin off after i squeeze it to mush it up in the tank water. i tried peas, which he loved for a few days. as well as his flakes, which i got wet in the tank first and let them drop down into the tank after

i plan on a bigger tank, later when lil one gets bigger, or a small trough pond maybe.

ty for the info. i read all that link u gave me and i saved it to my favorites, thanks i need something to follow, this site has really helped me alot.

my husband and daughter think im crazy doing this and that for a fish, they think a fish is put in a tank and add water and food and they are good to go. I showed my teen daughter stuff here, she still thinks im going overboard, but oh well lol i made him sick with lack of knowledge, i didnt like to see him sufferin, so i was stubborn to get him better.

about the pet store pple not knowing much, i hear ya there, once i told them i wanted a female, and had to show him how i knew it was a female, ( from reading on site) i told the two guys yesterday about feeding peas, they looked at me like i was from nuts , and said they never heard of that. but for the readings, they seemed to understand that except maybe about theh ph reading wasnt bad at all.
the was water tested was from my tap which was in initially was left out for a day , some for a week ( the 20-30% for the changes i did .plus some melafix and parasite clear was added during the past few weeks as well. since the testing i put in the conditioner ACE by Jungle.

so what do i do to get him to start eating if he wont? he seems just fine now otherwise.

I am glad he at least tested your nitrites for you...they should be at 0 once the tank is cycled so keep those water changes going! If you are at 0 ammonia and showing nitrites you are almost there!

So what else have you tried feeding him? I am NOT an expert in goldfish food at all, so I can only tell you what has worked for me. My fish loves peas-fr them I use the frozen ones-but make sure there is no salt added on the ingredients list. I never thought there would be salt in frozen peas until I looked! Canned peas have a ton of salt so best to use fresh or frozen. For frozen ones I put them in a cup with a little tank water and microwave them for 20 seconds or so, then let them cool. Then I drain off the water, pop of the skins and toss them inthe tank. My fish are big enough that i don;t have yto break them up furhter, but for your little guys especially you probably would. With fresh peas you may want to cook them a bit longer.

I have given my fish small pieces of cooked zucchini, which they sort of like, I have tried corn, lettuce and a few other veggies, but peas are their favorite. They also eat dried shrimp, regular flakes and pellets and occasionally bloodworms.

i know that some people have used garlic to get their fish to eat when they are having trouble, I would *think* that you could use regular garlic, squeeze the juice out then soak the food in it, but not sure on that one. I wouldn't use garlic powder or garlic salt since they usually have other additives that might be bad for the fish. I think that Kent makes a garlic additive specifically for fish, I have seen it in the marine and pond sections at our local pet stores, but if you can use regular garlic it may be cheaper!

Maybe, if no one else answers you here, you could make a post in the Goldfish Food section, briefly explain what has been going on with your tank and ask for feeding suggestions for goldfish that do not want to eat. Sorry I am not more helpful in this area!

My fiance and, to a lesser degree, my daughter, think I am nuts about the fish too. I spend money on them, I talk to them, I spend a lot of time taking care of them...blah, blah, blah! But they're my pets! I told my fiance that he talks to the cats and spoils them to death (as do I) I just feel that way about my fish too!

Hope things continue to improve, this is a great site for learning stuff...i knew NOTHING when I came here. :-)

you have been alot of help jen. thanks. I will go out and get some fresh peas today and prepare it the way you do. i will check out the goldfish food section here as well. I didnt know there was one.

he did try to eat the flakes today, but spit it back out. so off to the store to get the peas.

I am surprised hes doing better now, and even survived !!!!!!

flash is finally eating!!!!!! this morning he spit out his food ( appeared to be all of it. but just awhile ago his poop was still clear but thicker with a little bit of color greenish tint, with a little bit of solid green . He was looking like he was really hungry, so i tried to feed him again. He actually ate well , he didnt spit the majority of it out, then started towards the end I think he tried to eat after he was full. but hes not going to starve to death afterall. which was my latest fear. * I couldnt get the peas yet. i will when i can (in a week maybe i can)

oh oh now more troubles i think. seems he is losing his skin, around his face a bit. he seemed a bit pinkish before but i added it up to his coloring, that i never really noticed before. it looked a bit white or pinkinsh/white just now, and upon a closer look it looks like his skin is peeling a bit. should i use melafix for this , i do have this . does this ever end? seems to be one problem after another

I really think that most of Flash's problems have all stemmed around poor water quality,and that water changes would be appreciated at least twice a week. You said Flash is around 3-4 inches in a 10 gal. tank.I have a Red Cap around the same size in the same tank size,and I do 50% water changes twice a week for him. He may not need that big of a water change,but with my work hours,it's easier to do it like that. Goldfish are able to make water toxic in no time at all-even when tank water is looking great.
Taking another fish home was really a bad idea,at this point.It will only increase the toxins in your water
I would really recommend you investing in a Test Drop kit,so that you are more aware of your water Params.You may even want to consider getting one of those Rubbermaid Tub's until you're able to get a bigger tank for your fish.
Losing his skin could possibly be a sign of PH crashing .Gasping, darting, hyperactivity, Cloudy, thick slime coat ,are all signs of that,which your fish has shown off and on.Ph drops when water isn't changed out often enough and wastes/Ammonia build up.Toxins all build up which can certainly explain his erratic behavior off and on. I would recommend you doing a 50% water change today ,with tank temp matched and treated water,and start doing those every couple of days and see if he improves.With out a test kit though,we're still guessing here.When you had your water tested,If I'm not mistaken,you had just done a water change so number's were possibly alot worse then what they showed.
I know it seems like so much to take in,but water conditions are so important as filtration and size of tank.When things aren't ideal,problems seem to be continuous. Good luck and keep us posted.

great ty devs i can do that . 50% water changes now and twice a week, instead of 20-30% once a week

I have the conditioner now and water left in jugs for the changes. I want to make sure i do this right. I just add one drop of conditioner to each gallon in the 1 gallon of left out water, then add the water from treated jugs to the tank?

Do i stir up the rocks and siphon out junk out of there? i have been doing this daily after i feed to get the poop and the food remains out. test kit? it was hard enough for me to get the conditioner. well for about a week to see whats going on at the bottom ( poop and left over food)

at least hes finally eating, not darting, so thats gotten better, just his skin on his face is pink, my daughter said hes always had that. its his coloring. hmmmm well ill do the changes, and also do u think if i can get my hands on some non iodized salt that that would be good too? not sure if i can get some or not. hubby is grrrrrrr when i ask for money for the fish supplies. I also treated with melafix llast night should i do this for the rest of the week as well? ( says use it for 7 days)

Or should i just keep with the 50% changes twice a week? i can go anytime to the pet store and get the water tested there.

If you have a conditioner that removes Chlorine/Chloramines/Metals,etc., then you can actually use it as soon as you dose.If you feel better sitting water out and aging it as you have been-that is fine too.The main thing is that you're using conditioner,and that you're matching new water to tank water-that is very important.As for siphoning water,never stir up your water to do this.This could possibly release toxic gases that build after your tanks been running a while.The best way to syphon is to stick the hose completely in the gravel-in one spot,and kind of wiggle the hose a bit until the food/waste runs clear,then move on to another spot.Some people do half their tank during water changes/some the whole tank/and some may try daily.I know myself that if I see alot of uneaten food( with my fish ,that never happens), or waste,I'll stop and siphon it up. A good filter really helps on that.
I personally choose NOT to use salt unless I think a fish is sick,but because you're not able to know constantly what your params actually are,salt will help the stress level of dealing with Nitrites if your having those issues.If you keep up with improving water conditions,you won't even need to do that.
Melafix is fine if you want to aid in healing.I have a large bottle of it and have never used it myself.You'd be amazed on how fast pristene water can aid an ailing fish.

I know it's really hard to do it all,when you have a hubby that thinks that way-I use to have one
Hang in there, read all the articles on the forum that you can,and continue to try and keep his tank near perfect.If you have any questions,please feel free to ask.Good luck!

I just added the rocks back in yesterday so havent stirred them up as yet .Whewwwww glad i didnt either, I just meant I collected the junk from the bottom with siphon hose daily for the last week . I took the rocks out when I did that emergency change last week to see what was going on with food and poop. thanks i will siphon the way you said you to it.

About the conditioner Im not sure how you mean to do it. I add 5 gallons to tank, with water thats been sitting out. Do i just add 5 drops of conditioner to the tank or one drop to each jug? I think either is good if thats the right amt. to add the conditioner. From now on I think i can just add tap water and put in the conditioner one drop as per gallon of what I replace. I had the water sitting out before I knew about the needing of the conditioner to just the tap water so I am using that up.

I am not sure of he needs the melafix or not, I just figured it might help with his loss of skin around his face. If thats what happened. Sorry I am a bit confused whats changed and what was the way it was before now, as there has been alot going on with him.

As hes eating again, I hope not to have alot of left over food ( the little guy has taken care of the extra food the past few days as well.

Waiting on reply then I will do my tank change 50%.

I took the water from the bottom of the tank to have it tested, if that made more of an accurate than the top of it when iIchanged it that day.

I will hold off on the salt for now, and see if the water changes will help, use melafix as well for a week as that may improve his skin problem if he has one. it is only around his face that its pink.

I agree his problems stemmed from poor water conditions. Overfeeding and unconditioned water. these two i have gotten better at, at least. i have been reading alot of articles here as well, and looking at the all the members gorgeous pics of their fish

It is best to add the water conditioner before you add the water to the tank, if you can, so I would do one drop in each jug-or whatever the dosage is. Is it one drop to each gallon?

As for the supplies, not that I am encouraging you to do anything sneaky, but if you are able to spend what you want at the grocery store, they often sell water conditioner there and you can use rock salt/ice cream salt (if you DO end up needing salt in the first place), which you can buy at the grocery store too. My fiance doesn't like me spending money on the fish either so I have certainly been there!

Good luck with your guys, maybe you can save up change for a test kit or something? I have done that before where I saved change from money I spent elsewhere. You can get the Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Freshwater Master Kit from Petsmart for $14.99 if you bring in the online page that has it at that price, they will match that price. And it has all the tests you will need and lasts forever.

Just a thought! :-)

yes its one gallon left out water, so i will do that, one drop per jug. sneakiness? how do you do think i get things....lol . i love that idea, just throw a little extra into the cart.

well off to do that change, ill keep you updated.

Keep us updated on his recovery.

thanks Devs I sure will. His appetite is very good now finally, hes active, his breathing looks fine but he is losing scales more, now on his sides too. hopefully the water changes and or the melafix for a week will help ( no carbon in the filter)

I did change the water 50% siphoned the rocks as en told me and i will again on wednesday, if he survives til then, so i guess now its a wait and see situation.

I wonder if your ph is really high from the tap and then falling and the ph crashes are hurting the fish? I forget, did you ever get a number for the ph straight from the tap?