dying goldfish

fishy123 · 11-08-2006, 08:41 PM

I have a 10 gallon tank currently with 1 really, really hardy baby oranda goldfish. I have had 4 other orandas, and one bubble pearlscale die on me, one after the other. All of them were in my tank one at a time with the hardy baby oranda. After one would die I would get another one. I put them all in properly. Two of them got a bacterial disease, only the little hardy oranda survived it. Two got ick, one of those was the bubble pearlscale which also got big poofy clear rings around its eyes.

Though all of this the hardy oranda is still doing great. I used Melafix for the bacterial infections. I used Aqua Sol for one case of Ick and Rid Ick for the other case. Both fish died anyway.

f1oored · 11-08-2006, 08:58 PM

Maybe the local pet store you are getting your fish from is having some problems with disease. Tell us a little more about your setup and maybe what type of regular maintenance you do on the tank.

Tommy Gun · 11-08-2006, 09:07 PM

To add to f1oored's questions, how long have you had the tank and have you been testing your water for ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites? Sounds like you may have an uncycled tank or a water quality issue that is stressing your fish to the point that they cannot survive some of the other issues. I would also think that the place where you are buying these fish has a problem in its tanks but now that you have had them in your tank, you should take measures to ensure that you clear up the whole tank from the problems and not just the fish.

By the way, welcome to the forum! It is good to meet you and I can assure you that if you have questions, this is the place to get them answered correctly! There are TONS of very knowledgable people on here with all sorts of experience with many types of fish and situations.

gm333 · 11-08-2006, 10:10 PM

Welcome to the forum!
My guess would be they suffered from ammonia poisoning, or developed diseases from stress because of high ammonia. One oranda is all you should keep in a 10gallon tank, even with weekly waterchanges. It will also need to have a larger tank in the future since orandas can get well over 8" if kept healthy. Goldfish produce large quantities of waste.

fishy123 · 11-09-2006, 09:11 PM

but why does my really really hardy one not die with the other ones. have I just been lucky

tommy guns

's how often should I test my tank

I know you can't clean out the whole tank, because you have to leave some bacteria in the tank for the fish or he will die.

To not take out bacteria, how should I clean my tank and when, when I put the medicine in?

gm333 · 11-09-2006, 11:10 PM

Your other fish probably has more resistance to ammonia than the others, it can still be affected if the ammonia is not taken out of the tank. You should at least test the tank for ammonia and nitrates once a week. Do a 30% waterchange every other day till the ammonia gets down to 0. Then keep up the waterchanges weekly to ensure the ammonia stays at 0 and the nitrates stay below 25. You also need to be syphoning the gravel evry other waterchange. Also make sure when feeding you only put in small amounts or until the fish quits eating there should be no leftover food after feeding.

fishuz · 11-09-2006, 11:38 PM

Sound like your fish( with the rings around the eyes) had a fungal disease which can be a secondary infection caused by ich (white spot). Ich is a parasite. These are both common with poor water quality and aquarium conditions. Ich can develop from stress and also from the improper introduction to the aquarium and fluctuating water temperature but mostly from poor water quality. there are medications for these problems available at your LFS but maintaining the conditions of your tank is the best defense. listen to the advice given above and you should be heading down the right path towards curing these issues. Good Luck

fishy123 · 11-10-2006, 12:18 AM

I did everything you guys told me to do, and everything looks GREAT!!
Will my one oranda get lonely without a partner? If not, what are the benefits of not having a partner, such as faster growing etc. If he needs a partner, what would you suggest for a 10 gallon tank. Thanks for all of your help, good advice, and time. Oh and by the way I have a bubble wall but cant turn it on because the current is too strong for the little guy!! HELP!!!! using tetra whisper 10 gal. air pump, also cut bubble tube down to 2" from 8" with tetra 10 gal power filter

gm333 · 11-10-2006, 01:18 AM

He wont get lonely by himself, if you feel the need to get him a friend, look into getting a bigger tank. To control the flow of air, purchase a needle valve from your lfs, they are plastic and very cheap.

Loman · 11-10-2006, 01:36 AM

A gold fish only remebers things for 3 seconds anyway - so if he is lonely he will soon forget