Sick Goldfish

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vonkster

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Jun 9, 2012
Messages
25
Hello everyone,

I currently have two small goldfish in a 29 gallon tank. I use an emperor 400 filter. My nitrite levels and ammonia levels are 0. Nitrates are maybe around 20-30 ppm and my ph is about 8. I do about a 10 percent water change every week and replace my filters about once a month. Currently, the temperature in my tank is about 76 degrees F. My fish have lived in this tank for a little over a month now. My last vacuum gravel was last weekend and I try and do this about once a month. I have added some new ornaments/plastic plants to my tank recently...and I admit to not rinsing off one of them before placing it in the tank.

So here is what is happening....I have a goldfish that shows symptoms of constipation (I am pretty new to aquariums so I may be wrong about this?) He swims actively like a normal fish sometimes....but then he also just rests at the bottom of the tank as well. The fish poop from both fish has also been long and stringy although only one out of my two fish appears sick. To correct this problem, I am fasting my sick fish and placing him in an epsom salt bath twice a day for at least 15 minutes. I also put some cucumber and spinach leaves in a blender and blended them in some aquarium water so that the healthy fish would have a better diet then the flakes I had been feeding them (I am fasting my sick fish so I have not been feeding him this).

My sick fish has also developed reddish spots on the back of his fins.

I would like to know if:

A) If there is more I can do to help cure my fish? Do you think it is still constipation or is it something else?

B) How long does the epsom salt bath treatment take? I have been doing the for a day and a half now....I don't know that he is getting better.

C) I have read that tetracycline (spelling??) is a useful treatment in such cases; however, I have also read that this medication is not very good if my ph is high. Is there any other medication I can use that would help my fish get better?

D) How big of a deal is a ph of 8 for goldfish? It is this high due to the coral substrate I use to help keep the ph level constant and it also elevates the low ph (around 6.5 if I remember correctly) of my tap water.

Thanks in advance for your answers!
 
Hi! Can I ask why you believe your fish is constipated? If your seeing poop, then constipation is not an issue. Is the only symptom you have noticed is occasional bottom sitting, I would suspect your water. Only changing 10% on a goldfish tank weekly does little to provide them with healthy water. Dissolved solids as well as nitrates need to be removed & vital minerals & electrolytes need to be replenished.

I would stop with the Epsom salt baths. Handling your fish frequently may be the reason behind the red spots you are now seeing & is likely further stressing him. A pic though of the spots would help to id them. Offer both of them only veggies for next few days. Then gradually add in a quality sicking goldfish pellet (hikari or nls) in addition to daily veggies & occasional meals of live/fresh proteins.

I would also suggest increasing your water changes. With such a big ph difference between your tap & your tank, big water changes will not work here. I would try doing 20% daily for atleast the next week to try & improve water quality then stick to 20% atleast 2x week.
 
I believe my fish was constipated based on the information I thought I had read about goldfish constipation. I thought long strings of fish poop was a sign of constipation...which my goldfish had....but I think feeding only veggies has helped out with this issue. Also...the fish will rest at the bottom of the tank when constipated as well.

I will stop the epsom salt baths and do as you say.

I would attach a picture of the red spots on my fish...but they appear to be mostly gone now. My fish also appears lively although I have not been around very long to observe his long term behavior (I didn't give him an epsom salt bath this morning so the reddish spots may have disappeared because of this?)

I will keep you updated on the health of my fish. Maybe he is better now!

****************************

I change my filter cartridges once a month because I thought I was supposed to replace them that often.
 
Bottom sitting in goldfish is indicative of a water quality issue such as high nitrates, nitrites, ammonia or dissolved solids or lack of sufficient minerals/electrolytes. This is why I suggested the wc routine listed above. Long stringy poop sometimes can indicate a digestive issue but it can also indicate a dietary issue (lack of sufficient veggies/fruits, subpar quality food, lack of fresh protiens, etc). Their poop should be firm strands the color of what they have been eating (ie, lots green veggies=green poop). White, stringy poop can indicate a parasite issue. Do the wcs, continue to feed veggies & just keep a close eye on everyone. If anything changes, let us know! :)
 
Hello everyone,

My goldfish seems to have recovered successfully from the first problem I described. However, my goldfish has developed black spots at the end of his tail. I have attached a picture so you can see for yourself.

I am still doing the frequent water changes recommended in the posts above.

I have recently tested my water quality....I would say nitrates are about 30 ppm, ammonia is at 0, nitrites are at 0, and my ph is about 7.8.

I also put aquarium salt in my tank so if this is fin rot, it is a case aquarium salt will not cure. (I just add that since I think aquarium salt helps cure cases of fin rot).

So anyone got any advice on how to fix this problem?

IMG_0338.JPG
 
Replacing your filters every month has likely restarted your cycle each time you have done this because your filter media houses the largest portion of your good bacteria. You have likely had spikes in toxins that went undetected. What you are seeing now is that your fish is starting to heal from ammonia/toxin burns now that theres healthy water in the tank. These black areas will heal on their own with nothing special other than healthy water but it does take time. Just stay on top of your testing & keeping the water healthy. If anything changes, let us know! :)
 
jlk,

Thanks for all your advice....I appreciate it.

You stated that replacing my filter cartridges has killed my bacteria cycle? How often should I replace them? I also had an idea....I use an emperor 400 filter which uses 2 filter cartridges instead of one. Perhaps alternating which filter cartridge gets changed each month would be optimal instead of replacing both of them? That way, one portion of my filter will always have lots of good bacteria...helping to regulate toxins during a filter cartridge change. Would this filter cartridge replacement schedule continue to work even when my goldfish get big and produce more waste?

Also, I use aquarium salt and happen to own a refractometer. What is the maximum specific gravity my aquarium should be at?
 
Hi again! Ok, I have 2 emperors. You honestly do not need to change the filters (blue ones). With one, I slit the bottom of the blue material, dumped out the carbon & stuffed it with filter floss (polyfill). The other one, I cut off the all blue material & placed filter foam (sponge) in front of the black plastic piece the blue material was attached to. I dont know if one way works better than other but the sponges are easier to clean. All you need to do is swish the cartridge/foam in a bucket of used tank water when you do a water change. Thats it! I have the grey cartridges stuffed with polyfill as well which I remove once a week & swish/squeeze in a bucket of tank water to clean it.

In respect to the salt, i really dont think its necessary. Goldfish are freshwater water fish. Using salt longterm can lead to nephric, metabolic & endocrine damage. That doesnt mean remove it all right away- your fish will need to adjust to decreasing salinity over a period of time. I just would not add anymore with subsequent water changes & it will be gradually reduced until the tank has the natural salinity of tap water. :)
 
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