I am new to the site and dont know where else to go for help. I have a 65 gallon fresh water aquarium. In it is 4 goldfish, one is 1.5 inches, ones 3 inches and two are 4 inches and a 4-5 inch pleco. One of my goldfish has shown signs of ammonia poisoning. I had rushed to the pet store and bought some ammo-lock. Once home I tested the water everything seemed fine but the ammonia and nitrates or nitrites were just a little bit over 0. The lady at the pet store had told me to do a slight water change about 20-25% and to use ammo-lock as directed. My poor goldfish seems to be going downhill fast and I dont want to lose it yet! The poor thing has had 2 close calls so far and I'm not going to let this be the last. I'm worried the oxygen in the tank might not be good enough. I have pictures of the condition of my goldfish and a picture of my tank with the bubbles from the filter. I had taken the goldfish out gently with a net and put him in a small container because he just lays in the bottom and doesnt move. Now in the small container I just put a little bit of stress coat to help with the white marks on him and he seems to be moving in the container more than he does in the tank. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!
Goldfish help ASAP
- Thread starter dianeeliz
- Start date
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RussellC
Aquarium Advice Freak
If it's poor oxygenation, you should see some or all of your fish frequently hanging out near the surface of the water in your tank, appearing to gasp. If you aren't regularly seeing this behavior, likely the cause is something else.
To really help pinpoint the possible issue(s), knowing the exact levels of your water parameters would be helpful.
Also, what makes you suspect ammonia poisoning specifically?
Additionally, I personally wouldn't transfer the sick goldfish unless I were worried that whatever illness it had was beginning to spread to the other fish. Moving a fish is stressful -- especially if it already isn't doing so well.
If you could post how long your tank's been set-up, what kind of filter you have, and what your water parameters are (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH) exactly, the community could probably guide you better from there.
Good luck!
To really help pinpoint the possible issue(s), knowing the exact levels of your water parameters would be helpful.
Also, what makes you suspect ammonia poisoning specifically?
Additionally, I personally wouldn't transfer the sick goldfish unless I were worried that whatever illness it had was beginning to spread to the other fish. Moving a fish is stressful -- especially if it already isn't doing so well.
If you could post how long your tank's been set-up, what kind of filter you have, and what your water parameters are (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH) exactly, the community could probably guide you better from there.
Good luck!
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Hi! Welcome to AA!!! Lets try to see if we can figure out whats happening here & what the best means we can try to help. A few questions first!
How long has the tank been setup?
Do you do change the filter media at all or just swish it weekly to clean it?
What are you using to test your parameters (liquid or strips)?
What are your exact numbers for ammonia, nitrite, nitarte & ph?
Did these symtpoms happen overnight or gradually (over days)?
Did you do anything different recently or add anything new (fish, filters, decor, etc)?
What is your normal water change schedule (%/#wk)?
Ok, looking at the pic, I do not know what your moor normally looks like. Please explain what has changed from norm. He also looks like (in addition to discoloration) like he has sores on him as well. Where is he now? Do you have the means to qt him (even a 10/20g plastic storage bin with aeration & filter will work)? The more info you can provide, the better we will be able to help!
How long has the tank been setup?
Do you do change the filter media at all or just swish it weekly to clean it?
What are you using to test your parameters (liquid or strips)?
What are your exact numbers for ammonia, nitrite, nitarte & ph?
Did these symtpoms happen overnight or gradually (over days)?
Did you do anything different recently or add anything new (fish, filters, decor, etc)?
What is your normal water change schedule (%/#wk)?
Ok, looking at the pic, I do not know what your moor normally looks like. Please explain what has changed from norm. He also looks like (in addition to discoloration) like he has sores on him as well. Where is he now? Do you have the means to qt him (even a 10/20g plastic storage bin with aeration & filter will work)? The more info you can provide, the better we will be able to help!
Derekkaine
Aquarium Advice Activist
If nothing is working you can put them into a bowl of oil and let them expire naturally.
JLK will help you if anyone can. Humanely putting down the fish using CLOVE OIL is a little premature. There is a process for doing it BTW, its not like putting it in vegetable oil.
How long has the tank been setup?
* 5-6 months, I did cycle the tank before putting the fish in.
Do you do change the filter media at all or just swish it weekly to clean it?
* Used to swish and change filter media but was told not to by people at pet store
What are you using to test your parameters (liquid or strips)?
* liquid
What are your exact numbers for ammonia, nitrite, nitarte & ph?
* ammonia 0
*ph 7.0
* nitrite 0
*nitrate 5.0 ppm
Did these symtpoms happen overnight or gradually (over days)?
* gradually but mostly only to the black moor. noticed last night one other goldfish had some white stuff on him but is gone today
Did you do anything different recently or add anything new (fish, filters, decor, etc)?
* added a new fish june 24th
What is your normal water change schedule (%/#wk)?
* 20% 3 days a week
i dont know if this helps either but my filter is a aqua clear and i believe its for a 100 something gallon tank and the people at the pet store said it would keep the tank really clean. dont mind the arrow in the picture he had a white spot on him a long time ago and i tried to figure out what it was.
* 5-6 months, I did cycle the tank before putting the fish in.
Do you do change the filter media at all or just swish it weekly to clean it?
* Used to swish and change filter media but was told not to by people at pet store
What are you using to test your parameters (liquid or strips)?
* liquid
What are your exact numbers for ammonia, nitrite, nitarte & ph?
* ammonia 0
*ph 7.0
* nitrite 0
*nitrate 5.0 ppm
Did these symtpoms happen overnight or gradually (over days)?
* gradually but mostly only to the black moor. noticed last night one other goldfish had some white stuff on him but is gone today
Did you do anything different recently or add anything new (fish, filters, decor, etc)?
* added a new fish june 24th
What is your normal water change schedule (%/#wk)?
* 20% 3 days a week
i dont know if this helps either but my filter is a aqua clear and i believe its for a 100 something gallon tank and the people at the pet store said it would keep the tank really clean. dont mind the arrow in the picture he had a white spot on him a long time ago and i tried to figure out what it was.
Attachments
I dont know if this makes a difference but I used to have 4 snails. two died and the other two disappeared. my water was reallly cloudy and green and I had the lights off for days and no matter what the cloudiness would come back. come to find out the two missing snails were stuck in one of the tanks ornaments and once I took care of that problem the normal water returned.
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Thank you for the info! It sounds like your tank is stable & your numbers look good. Its possible that you may have had a mini-cycle (spike in toxins) when you added the new fish that went undetected. This may have been enough to affect your moor. Was the new fish quarantined for a few weeks before adding him? If not, its possible he may have introduced something as well.
Ok, is he eating at all or shows any interest in food? Does he have red/open sores or any type of white film or fuzzy areas? Is he still in the small container? Can you possibly setup a quarantine tank for him? As I mentioned earlier, it does not need to be expensive- a plastic storage container with aeration/some type filtration will work fine short term. Do you have aquarium salt? I would start by making sure he has adequate water & aeration. If any of your other fish are showing similar symptoms, he would be better off back in the big tank & you can treat the tank as whole. Let us know & we can further advise!
Ok, is he eating at all or shows any interest in food? Does he have red/open sores or any type of white film or fuzzy areas? Is he still in the small container? Can you possibly setup a quarantine tank for him? As I mentioned earlier, it does not need to be expensive- a plastic storage container with aeration/some type filtration will work fine short term. Do you have aquarium salt? I would start by making sure he has adequate water & aeration. If any of your other fish are showing similar symptoms, he would be better off back in the big tank & you can treat the tank as whole. Let us know & we can further advise!
well he has that one spot where his black is gone and it looks like he has a few red sores. he looks like hes doing a lot better in a small tupperware container. when hes in the big tank he just sits on the bottom and cant really swim. As for the new fish im not sure because that fish was a surprise so I dont really know. in the big tank it seems like its hard for him to get food but by himself where he is now he does eat and it seems like hes got an appetite. Would it hurt to put him back into the regular tank with the others and treat them all just in case. he seems to have a slimy film on him and one of his eyes look almost all black. I dont have aquarium salt but am getting ready to go to the store and could pick some up. would a 5 gallon bucket be ok to put him in? hes only about an inch and a half in size
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok, it sounds like he may have some buoyancy issues if he is doing better swimming in the small container vs the big tank. There is increased pressure from the deep water which can aggravate swim bladder conditions. This can sometimes be successfully handled with a change in diet. A diet change would be good for everyone else as well. We will come back to this in bit.
You can try the bucket but you will need to change his water daily & give him an airstone/bubbler. I am not sure where you reside- I know many countries are very strict in respect to fish meds. My suggestion would be to treat him with aq salt & antibiotic medicated food if he is eating. If antibiotics are not accessible, we can try just salt & hope for the best!
You can try the bucket but you will need to change his water daily & give him an airstone/bubbler. I am not sure where you reside- I know many countries are very strict in respect to fish meds. My suggestion would be to treat him with aq salt & antibiotic medicated food if he is eating. If antibiotics are not accessible, we can try just salt & hope for the best!
Well the poor fish has had a rough few encounters. when i first got him he got sucked up by the filter intake tube thing by his eye and he recovered from that. then i moved and had to leave him at the old place with our room mate because we didnt have heat or water at the new place. our room mate calls and said that he was dead i rush over to find the tank disgustingly brownish green and he was almost flippers up. luckily he recovered from that as well. he also has had problems with buoyancy(he would stay upside down) but i feed them peas and it usually helps. i totally forgot the aquarium salt when i went to the store should i put him in the bucket with the air pump and put some stress coat in there or melafix? I live in new hampshire and as far as I know i dont think theres any laws abut fish medication
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
The poor guy!!! Hes fighter! No melafix- let's keep this relatively simple. I am not big fan of it anyway. Healthy water can accomplish the same things melafix claims to treat. Ok. If he is in the small container, the bucket would be a better option because it will offer more water. Pick up the salt tomorrow & we will start with that. Do you have a kitchen scale? If not, Walmart carries small ones (2cup) for $4-5. This will make dosing a lot easier & more accurate. Also good to have on hand in the future if you need to dose your big tank with salt.
Next, if you have a decent lfs or pond store, they may carry an antibiotic med food for goldfish/koi. Your other option is to go to The Goldfish Connection's website & their store. They sell a kanamycin med goldfish food called Medi-Gold. This would be my choice for med food for him & it's good to have on hand in general. I have a phone # for them if you don't want to order online (their site used to be bit strange for ordering stuff- don't know if it still is). I would like to see how he does with just salt & go from there but have a med on hand in the event it's needed.
Next, if you have a decent lfs or pond store, they may carry an antibiotic med food for goldfish/koi. Your other option is to go to The Goldfish Connection's website & their store. They sell a kanamycin med goldfish food called Medi-Gold. This would be my choice for med food for him & it's good to have on hand in general. I have a phone # for them if you don't want to order online (their site used to be bit strange for ordering stuff- don't know if it still is). I would like to see how he does with just salt & go from there but have a med on hand in the event it's needed.
Hes definitely one of my favorite goldfish so to euthanize them is NOT an option especially when hes a trooper. I ended up running to another walmart and got some aquarium salt but unfortunately no scale. should i put him in the 5 gallon bucket put the bubbler and aquarium salt in there? i have little teaspoon measuring things if that helps any. Should i fill the bucket up half way, take some water from the tank and put a little new water in or just tank water?
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Half tank half new, conditioned water should be fine. Ok, don't just dump salt in! Use some type of closed container & add 5 level teaspoons of salt & fill with a bit of tank water. Shake until salt is dissolved completely. This will give you a @.1% salinity when added to the 5g of water. Then, slowly add the salt solution a bit at time over 12-24hr period of time. This will allow him to adjust gradually. When you do a water change daily, you need to add back the amount of salt you removed (ie, 50% wc, add back 1/2 original dose). Make sure it's dissolved & add back with new water. Let's see how he does with this level- it may need to be increased a bit. An excellent tip
for making the salt easier to use & dissolve- use a coffee grinder to pulverize it first then measure & dissolve (thanks, shanny!). Good luck & let us know how he is doing!
for making the salt easier to use & dissolve- use a coffee grinder to pulverize it first then measure & dissolve (thanks, shanny!). Good luck & let us know how he is doing!
Thank you. i had started before i got the response so i just used all aquarium water. i figured id see how he was doing in the morning and do a water change. ive been watching him and he seems to be kind of curved looking sometimes. Hes making me nervous because hes staying in one spot and not moving much. I tried to feed him some peas which i mushed up a little bit because he has a small mouth and he didnt seem to eat much. I hope hes going to be ok! 
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
Definitely do a water change. make sure the water is temp matched & properly conditioned. I have to wonder if theres something in the water in your tank thats contributing factor here. Let us know if he improves at all with a water change. Hers the Goldfish connection's numbers 888-864-6919/814-864-3908 (M-F 10-3). Keep us posted!
jlk
Aquarium Advice Addict
I would not be concerned with this - yet. Its likely a mix of stress of being moved around & him not being well in general. If you have him for awhile, its not likely that its a parasite issue but, introducing a new fish could have introduced something into the tank as well (which means all of your fish would likely be infected). Try offering him just various veggies & some fruits over the next few days & see if his poop reflects what he is eating (ie, green veggies=green poop). Cooked, plain broccoli florets, bits of spinach, zucchini, etc are tasty as well as fruits- tangerine/orange segments, soft apple/pear/banana, bits berry, melon (particularly watermelon), etc. Anything can be game as long as its soft enough to tear or in bits (i use a garlic press). No heavy starches or spicy stuff. Keep us posted!
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