goldfish with no fins

[Havindier]

Hello, I recently got this fancy goldfish from someone and almost all his fins are missing; I have been told it has not been fed for months. What should I do to help it? is this called fin rot? should I add antibiotics or salt?

 

[connorlindeman]

Looks like fin rot. Caused by bad water quality.
Not fed for months? It would likely be dead. It may be too far gone but if its kept in proper conditions it may bounce back.

 

[connorlindeman]

Did it have any companions in its old tank? IT could have been bullied which would cause the fin loss.

 

[Havindier]

Did it have any companions in its old tank? IT could have been bullied which would cause the fin loss.

I'm not sure. I took it from my friend and he told me it was like this since he had bought it.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I'd keep it in a separate tank for now, feed it up, and make sure he has constant, fresh clean water. Regular large water changes gives him the best chance to heal.

I'd have a word with your friend too, if he's keeping live animals without feeding them for months. That's disgustingly cruel.

 

[Havindier]

Regular large water changes gives him the best chance to heal.

How often do you suggest?

I'd have a word with your friend too, if he's keeping live animals without feeding them for months. That's disgustingly cruel.

you are totally right

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

How often do you suggest?

you are totally right

Depends on the size of the tank, filtration, how fast it gets mucky, but as often as possible really. Daily ideally.

 

[Havindier]

Should I add anti-bacterial too?

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Should I add anti-bacterial too?

No, antibiotics are already over-used and now becoming useless against many illnesses, and costing people's lives as a result. Only use an antibiotic if you're sure there's a bacterial infection going on, and it's too early to tell whether there is one happening here.

I'm not an expert with illnesses, but it's possible aquarium salt treatment might be useful here, tagging @Colin_T who is very knowledgeable about illnesses for more info!

 

[Havindier]

No, antibiotics are already over-used and now becoming useless against many illnesses, and costing people's lives as a result. Only use an antibiotic if you're sure there's a bacterial infection going on, and it's too early to tell whether there is one happening here.

I'm not an expert with illnesses, but it's possible aquarium salt treatment might be useful here, tagging @Colin_T who is very knowledgeable about illnesses for more info!

Thank you

 

[DragonScales+Doubletails]

I honestly think it's kinda cute. finless and all

 

[Colin_T]

Big water changes and gravel cleaning the substrate every day for a week or two.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.

Add some salt, (see directions below).

Feed it well 3 times a day for a couple of weeks.

If it gets worse during the next week, post more pictures.

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SALT
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt) or swimming pool salt to the aquarium at the dose rate of 1 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water. If there is no improvement after 48 hours you can double that dose rate so there is 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, Bettas & gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.

The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria, fish, plants, shrimp or snails.

After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week using only fresh water that has been dechlorinated. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that. This dilutes the salt out of the tank slowly so it doesn't harm the fish.

If you do water changes while using salt, you need to treat the new water with salt before adding it to the tank. This will keep the salt level stable in the tank and minimise stress on the fish.

When you first add salt, add the salt to a small bucket of tank water and dissolve the salt. Then slowly pour the salt water into the tank near the filter outlet. Add the salt over a couple of minutes.