Sick goldfish?

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animallover09

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I have been gone since Monday and my husband was in charge of feeding the fish. I'm not sure how this fish got so big while I was gone. Is something wrong or is it about to have some babies?

I have a feeling that something is wrong with it because the other fish have white bumps growing on them. I started a discussion a while back about this and no one would/could help me. I rescued them from a muddy bucket of water and I tried treating them with ich medicine and then some fungus medicine. I have no idea what is wrong and I would really like to help them.

There is a photo of the bloated fish and another fish that has the bumps that I was talking about.

Can anyone help?
 

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Unfortunately, it looks like you have 2 sick fish there. :( The bloated one looks to have bloat ( a medical condition usually caused by poor water quality) and the second looks to have some patches of either fungus or lymphosystis. The first is an infection of a wound again related to poor water quality and the second is a virus brought about when in poor water.

First thing is to check water parameters then prepare for a water change. You want to know what the parameters are before the change so you know how much needs changing. Depending on the condition of the water and the other fish in the tank, you may need to use a hospital tank to medicate the sick ones to prevent things from going downhill with your other fish.

Hope this helps
 
Okay. I am sure that these fish got this fungus type disease from being in the muddy bucket of water I found them in since my water parameters have been stable.

I went and bought aquarium salt today in hopes of curing him. I did a 50% water change and added about half of the recommended salt to the tank. The directions say to add 1 tablespoon per gallon so I dissolved 5 tablespoons in a bowl and have been pouring the dissolved water/salt solution slowly throughout the day.

Should I add the other 5 tablespoons tomorrow? I also bought prima fix that treats fungal infections. Should I add this to the tank as well? Or will the salt and medicine be toxic to mix? I have to treat all of them in the 55 gallon tank because I don't have a quarantine tank and all 7 of them need to be treated.
 
I've heard a lot of pros and cons with Primafix and truthfully, I've never used the item so I can't say yes or no to it's effectiveness. I prefer to use Nitrofurazone (Furan 2) for bacterial and fungal infections because it treats both gram + and gram - causes. The big drawback to this med is it will discolor your water and silicone in the tank which is why it's recommended to use in a separate tank. For me, I'd say "The heck with the silicone " and treat the tank because colored silicone will not hurt the fish or the tank later on. If you cannot get Furan 2, Fungus Cure by Jungle labs/Tetra contains Nitrofurazone in the ingredients. Just use as directed.
Other meds that claim to be effective for bloat include maracyn2 ( not harmful to biologic filter) and Kanamycin. Be aware that both the Furan and Kanamycin will effect your biological filter bed.

As for the salt, the preferred method for a bloated fish is to use Epsom Salt ( mag. Sulphate) not regular salt (Sodium Chloride). Studies have shown that a 6% solution for extreme cases has worked best but in extreme cases, many fish do not survive long enough for the treatment to work if the salt is not given orally. You should look up online methods to give this orally.

As for how the fish got sick, yes, being in the bad water in the bucket could have been the catalyst for this whole thing. They will need to be maintained in a clean environment to get them to heal and heal quickly.

Hope this helps
 
As for those medicines you recommended, I don't think they sell that in Petco do they? I could never find it.

Also, should I add the other 5 dissolved tablespoons of aquarium salt into the tank throughout the day or wait a while?

The fish still seems to be doing okay but just looks horrible. I feel bad for him.
 
The fish with bloat sadly did not make it....

I am still working to try and cure the others with the white bumps though.
 
As for those medicines you recommended, I don't think they sell that in Petco do they? I could never find it.

Also, should I add the other 5 dissolved tablespoons of aquarium salt into the tank throughout the day or wait a while?

The fish still seems to be doing okay but just looks horrible. I feel bad for him.

Yes, Petco should carry at least one of those meds. I know mine does. Ask a clerk for them as I found that Petco , in particular, does not always put all their meds in one place.
Good luck (y)
 
Pimafix is good if you catch it right away or it is a mild case. Since it is all natural and a generic fungus type of thing it isn't geared towards specific fungi. I had luck with it when I started to see the beginning of something right after we got home from vacation


It might be worth a try but from looking at the one with the spots it doesn't seem to me like it will be effective. Sometimes it will disappear because the pimafix is enough to keep it in check but not cure/get rid of it. If you have it on hand I say use it until you can get an actual better medication



That said- I am not at all dissing primafix or melafix just that whatever they have looks far along


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You don't need to dissolve aquarium salt first, just sea salt. But the aquarium salt is better than nothing. As with all sick fish you should buy a cheap ten gallon tank and keep them in there with your salt, anti microbial (furan, methyelene blue, malachite green) along with a good antibiotic (kanamycin, minocycline, oxytetracycline, triple sulfa, or ampicillin). I raise guppies and fancy Goldie's, I get my fish from wherever I can get them, even walmart. If you do a daily 25% waterchange and then redose, after a week they should all be healthy and ready for the main tank. Same is true with any sick fish. If have not lost a fish due to disease in a long time using this method.


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You don't need to dissolve aquarium salt first, just sea salt. But the aquarium salt is better than nothing.

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This is untrue. Sea salt and aquarium salt are both the same chemical- sodium chloride (NaCl). Unless the sea salt is certified organic, it will also likely contain anti-caking agents and may have grandiose mineral claims. Aquarium, canning, pickling, rock, sea, table and solar/pool salts are all the same chemical as well- NaCl. Some types may contain additional additives so read ingredient labels carefully. Sodium chloride should be the only ingredient listed.

All salt should be dissolved in some conditioned water prior to adding to a tank or bath for treatment purposes. This will ensure stable salinity levels necessary for treatment as well as prevent accidental ingestion and chemical burns. Coarse salts such as aquarium or rock salt can take a lengthy amount of time to dissolve completely.
 
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