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[billieollie]

Hi everyone,
Have now started again!!! went back to fish shop with all your suggestions, had the water tested, it was still bright pink...Toxic was the word used!!! went to Tescos, and bought 115ltr of spring water !! Have now emptied over 50% of water, refilled with spring water added half a packet of salt ( dose suggestted by shop) and started the medicine again. need to go back to shop on Saturday to chk water levels. Billie and Ollie haven't changed since yesterday, they are still at bottom of the tank, they pop up for a swim every now and then. Both their tails are completely shreaded, and they still has lots of blood spots/lines all over them. Yesterday only one of the new fish (tinkerbell) had blood spots on her, today another one has them now (Jack Sparrow). Is there anything else I can do?
p.s.
Just to let you know that my 5 year old daughter named the fish, we also have Velma and Dotty.
We also have 3 dogs, that I rescued from Dubai, did have five but two left me in may this year, also have 2 horses here in England and 2 retired horses in France.

 

[WILDER]

Just keep up with water changes.
Tail and fin rot can be prevI'm not the writer of this article.

ented by keeping ammonia and nitrite levels low, adding salt at regular intervals, and quarantine of new fish. Guppies are particularly susceptible to this disease, and you will first recognize it as a ragged edge on the tail fin. Healthy adult tail fins should have a fairly straight edge, though sometimes adolescents will have temporary ragged fins due to uneven growth. As the disease progresses, the other fins become ragged, and the fins develop a white (sometimes though not always, fuzzy) margin. Sometimes, the fins will also develop red bloodspots. If the disease is allowed to continue, your guppies will die. In most species of fish this disease is a combination of bacteria and fungus on the fins themselves, however guppies tend towards acquiring an internal bacterial infection which spreads to the fins. You may try the salt treatment (instructions given later), as this sometimes does the trick. If that doesn't work, an antibiotic such as tetracycline can be used. Let your pet shop help you. They will specifically need to know if you use a bio-filter as many antibiotics will kill your filter.


http/healthybetta.com/articles/Illness%2...sis/finrot.html

Red spots on skin can be caused by:
Regarding the small red dot, small pinprick like haemorrhages (called petechiae) can be due to a local lesion, a generalised septicaemia or toxaemia caused by acute viral and bacterial infections.

 

[dwarfgourami]

When the shop advised against water changes, they may have thought about the fact that you will be diluting any medication you ise. But no invalid can survive under toxic conditions, so you need to do what an earlier poster suggested- measure how much water you take out and replace the proportionate amount of medication. I find a graded bucket saves a lot of time. As long as you use water conditioner, you shouldn't need to use spring water. The important thing is diluting the toxins. And the only way to do that is lots of water changes.

 

[billieollie]

Hi everyone,
Thought I should let you all know that Ollie didnt make it, she died this afternoon. As I write this all the fish are at the bottom of the tank between the rock and the filter, Billie is now also covered in red lumps and streaks of blood all over his body. My daughter is very very upset, I didn't think that I would be upset over a goldfish, but I am. Ollie is now in the garden, and in the words of my daughter, she has gone up to the sky, where there is a big fish tank!!!

Are they all going to die??

 

[WILDER]

Sorry not nice, R.I.P. the other one with the lumps sounds in a bad way too, when you do a water change say you remove a gallon you just add the med back to the gallon you have removed, good luck.

 

[black angel]

Just read all the way through this, can you tell me where the spots are on the fish and if you can get a pic to show us of the worst one. Are they red and pushing through from underneath and is there any white to them or do they look like acne? Do they open up and all and liquid come out? Really small like pimples or large?
You probably have a bacterial infection running rampant through your tank and small water changes are doing nothing to halt it.
You need a bacterial med such as myxazin but i dont know if you are uk or not.
As for the pet store telling you not to change the water that is ludicrous.
The first step to even try and get your tank under control is to do large significant water changes to get the water in perfect condition before treatment can start.
For the next few days do 50% water changes until the ammonia and nitrite levels have gone down to 0, you will need to purchase your own kits for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates and ph. The dropper tests are the best but for time and money you can get the strip test from esha.
Once you get the water good *use a gravel vac as well* then you can start treating.
Use only aquarium salt but thats only if there is significant nitrite levels, as salt does nothing for bacterial and viral diseases.

And you shouldnt use bottled water as it contains minerals that may harm the fish.
Test your tap water and it should read ammonia, nitrite 0. Nitrate should register.
Are the fish scratching at all or zipping around the tank like they were stung?

 

[billieollie]

Hi,
Out of the five fish I have left, only 1 has spots, they just look like red spots he has 3 on him. Billie one of my orginal fish, has a blood red colour on the base of all his fins and what looks like red veins running through his tail, his tail is also shreaded and bit's of it have fallen off. ( do the tails re-grow?) The others have now started to get the same red bloody fins and tails, but not as bad as Billie. I presume that they are now infected. Since this morning none of the fish have been swiming around, they are all huddled together between the rock and the filter. Billie is actually nose down and his tail is pointing upwards ( as if he is doing a handstand!) I gave them some food this morning which they all ate, but since then they are just staying at the bottom. I am still putting the medicine in everyday, and only feeding them every couple of days. The fish shop said not to do another water change until monday ( done 50% on thursday and added salt) as he wants me to take him some of the water to do tests. I do not understand what I am doing wrong, I had billie and ollie in a smaller tank for about 2 years, I never did water changes, or salt, I just left them to it, and they were fine. I thought I would get them a bigger tank and some company, but its all gone horribly wrong.In the morning and when we get back from school in the afternoon, I have to run to the tank before my daughter see's it incase another one of them have died.
Can someone please telll me if all of them are going to die. If they are is there a way I can put them to sleep, as Ollie looked terrible and she must have been in pain.

 

[black angel]

Headstanding is due to either toxic water or kidney damage.
I'm afraid if you dont do immediate huge water changes your fish are going to die.
Even if they make it to when you take the water samples in your fish will be even sicker.
As you have chosen to listen to your pet store then theres nothing more i can say to you.

 

[black angel]

can you take a pic and post it?

 

[billieollie]

Hi,..black angel
I have just done a 50% water change, added aquasafe, and some more medicine. I gave them some food, but Billie didnt eat. Shall I add some more salt? I am looking at the tank now and it looks empty, as they are all behind the rock and filter. Please let me know what else I can do.

 

[WILDER]

How much salt have you added, as usually it's one tablespoon to 5gal.

 

[billieollie]

Hi,
I added about half a packet of salt that I bought from the fish shop, approx 130 grams, the man calculated the amount for me, the tank holds approx 225ltrs. I have also been adding 5 teaspoons of melafix each day. I have not added any more salt since I did the 50% water change on thursday. I have just had a close look at them as I thought billie had died, and now tinkerbell has what looks like fluff all over her, it looks like her skin/scales are falling off, she looks like she has fine bits of cotton wool all over her, she did not have this a few hours ago. what is happening to them??? what can I do??
Please someone tell me what to do.
Today I have added medicine and changed 50% of the water, and added aquasafe.I have given them a small amount of food this morning, but as I said before billie did not come out from behind the rock to eat. 4 of them are all together behind the rock at the bottom of the tank and the other one is either laying in the plants or laying on top of the filter. PLEASE HELP.

 

[WILDER]

Though it might be hard to tell if you have a parasite infestation as bad water quality can make them flick and rub against objects, plus heavy breathing, what do the gills look like, any excess mucas on them, pale, or inflamed gills.

Not the writer of this information below.
Columnaris (a.k.a. Mouth Fungus)



Symptoms:

An infected fish will have off-white to gray cotton-like patches on the head, fins, gills, body and particularly the mouth. In time, these areas will develop into open sores. Gill swelling may occur, gill filaments may stick together and excessive mucus may develop in the gill area. Rapid breathing can be seen. Fins may deteriorate to the point of leaving the fin rays bare. Muscles may be inflamed and capillaries may rupture. Fish, particularly livebearers, may exhibit "shimmying". Infection may be acute (killing an infected fish within hours), or chronic (lingering for several days before eventually killing the fish). As with most diseases, not all symptoms need be present.



Cause:

The bacterium Flexibacter columnaris.



Treatment:

Ensure that your water conditions (e.g., Ammonia, Nitrite, pH, Nitrate levels, and water temp.) are within their proper ranges. If not, perform a water change and/or treat the water accordingly. Recommended medications include: Furanace, Fungus Eliminator, Fungus Cure, Furacyn, Furan-2, Triple Sulfa, E.M. Tablets, Tetracycline, or Potassium Permanganate. Medicated foods are also recommended. Columnaris can be highly infectious and may quickly kill all aquarium inhabitants; therefore, early treatment is essential. All fish, including those not yet showing visible symptoms, as well as the aquarium they inhabit should be treated.

 

[billieollie]

Hi
The gills look ok, and breathing looks normal, she just looks fluffy. If she has this infection and she is going to die as written in your posted article, is there any way of putting her to sleep, so that she doesn't suffer. To be honest they all look as though they are just hanging on waiting for the end. Is there nothing I can do?

 

[black angel]

Over how many days have you ben adding the melafix?
I worked out that you have 50 uk gallons and added enough salt for 130 uk gallons which is nearly .3%
Did you add this all at once or in intervals? Adding salt must be done slowly over 12 hourly periods so the fish get used to it.
Keep doing the 50% water changes each day and only add the dechlorinator with the amount of water you are putting in.
It is vital you try to get the water as clean as possible.
Where are you, US or UK?

You should only be adding at the most 2 teaspoons a day of melafix.