Goldfish with red near gill

[Laser]

I'm not sure if the red I'm seeing by his gill is cause for alarm or not. He has had this since I got him. He acts and looks fine to me otherwise.

I'm trying to upload some pictures but I'm not able to. I'll try again later.

 

[CoryFan]

Are you using the iPhone app? If so, after you load them you have to click on each one and hit "insert inline."

 

[Laser]

Thanks, but no I'm just trying to do it from my PC. I've done it many times before but for some reason it's not working now.

 

[Laser]

There, I finally got one uploaded although the uploader is acting strange still.

 

[jlk]

Its been this red since you purchased him or developed after purchase? Is it both sides or just one side? Can you take a close look at your other guys too and see if theres anything unusual about their gills? Have you noticed anyone 'yawning' or opening their mouthes alot or any heavy or rapid breathing? I know it shouldnt be a water quality issue but I suspect there may be a fluke issue which are VERY common in goldfish, especially those from lfs (vs breeders). Its a good idea to proactively treat goldies for flukes whether they have symptoms or not. Prazipro is a very safe & effective treatment but it needs to be doubled dosed and maintained for atleast 3-4wks.

 

[Laser]

The other two goldfish don't have any red by their gills. Neither of them seem to be breathing heavily, though this guy does seem to yawn sometimes. He actually had red by both gills but being calico I wasn't sure if it was part of his coloration or not. But then one of his gills cleared up and the side you see now in the picture has actually gotten a little darker red, at least I think.

If you highly recommend prazipro I'll probably have to order it because I don't think I can get it around here. Is there anything else I could use or should I just wait for that to arrive?

My LFS carries all of the seachem meds such as metronidazole if any of those are good.

 

[jlk]

A decent lfs should have prazipro (not chain) but they are all different. An immediate option would be to order a small bottle (4oz) and hit a petsmart for API general cure. Its a mix of prazi & metro but I think it runs @$15 for only a 5 or 7 day treament course. They need to be treated for awhile with the prazi & prazipro is just a cheaper option. Shop around for a good deal. Right now Petmountain has 4oz bottle on sale for $8 & change (usually runs $12-15 elsewhere) and if you spend $25, use this coupon code for free shipping (CYBER25). Sale is only good til tomorrow midnight. If you have questions, just ask!

 

[Laser]

Will the 4oz bottle be enough for the fill treatment?

 

[jlk]

Yep, the standard dose is 1 tsp/5mls per 20g. You will need to dose 2tsp/10ml per 20g. Theres 24 tsp in 4oz so there should be enough for 3-4wks (i think your tank is 40 or 45g?).

 

[Laser]

Yeah it's a 40g. I do have tetra parasite guard on hand but I am a little reluctant to use it while I wait for my order to come in. It contains metro, prazi, diflubenzuron, and acriflavine. If that's too strong or potentially damaging I'll either wait for my order from petmountain, (nice site by the way) or pick up something else in the meantime.

 

[jlk]

Yeah, the difluben is potent stuff (insecticide). Make sure you sign up for petmts email list- thats how I got that discount code! Great spot for buying food & supplies when they have sales, otherwise, the shipping can be a bit stiff unless your spending alot to get free shipping.

 

[Laser]

Ok, so the parasite guard is out. I hate to be without something to treat with while I'm waiting but those API meds are way more expensive than they should be. I'll see if my only "good" non-chain lfs has a small bottle of prazi tomorrow. Otherwise I'll have to get the API general cure unless you think I'd be fine without it.

 

[jlk]

Your going to have to make a judgement call on his condition whether you want to start something such as api now or wait for stuff to arrive.

 

[Laser]

Thanks, I appreciate all the help!

 

[Laser]

Thanks, it turns out my LFS did have prazipro, I just never noticed it before. I got a 1 oz bottle to get started with, (which almost cost as much as the 4 oz from pet mountain) but the print on the bottle is very small.

Just to be sure, I will be dosing 10ml per 20 gallons so for a 40 gallon tank I will want to dose 20 ml. Now it says a standard treatment is 5 to 7 days and not to repeat more often than 3 to 5 days.

So how often should I repeat the dosage? Once a week? Every 5 days or every 3 days?

 

[jlk]

Yep, 10ml/20g. Make sure you shake and bang that bottle hard for a minute or 2 before using. Prazi isnt soluable in water so the solution its in needs to be well mixed before each use. Also, it may make your water somewhat foamy/bubbly or temporarily cloudy (dissipates quick). I would follow an approximate every 5 day dosing schedule but every 3-4 days is fine too if your already doing 2x wk water changes. Btw, the print on the 4oz bottles is no easier to read either! lol

 

[Laser]

Good to know, lol. Yeah, I shook the crap out of the bottle for a good 2 minutes. It's tough to pay more for something for me but I couldn't bear the thought of waiting even longer for him. The markup on this stuff is ridiculous.

 

[jlk]

Tell me about it!!! The last time I ran out of it, I made the treck to my better lfs. I think it was $16 or $18 for a 4oz bottle plus $10 in tolls plus gas (and my truck is a gas hog). Oh well, you pay for the convenience factor!