Please don't let it be flukes or something sinister like that...

[corrieberry]

I got the Interpret Anti Fungus and Finrot. It was cheap AND they have all the other interpret treatments. Good to note for future reference! Dosing now, but I'm going to dose slightly under the recommended for the theoretical volume of my tank, cos I've never worked it out when it has stuff in it.

 

[corrieberry]

Is there any way to edit a post once you've posted it, but a while back? I don't have the option on the above post.

Anyway.

I don't think things are too good. Ellie and Archie are looking happier today, but Ory is looking a whole lot worse. I dosed with the above, then doubled the aeration on the tank - it now has four air stones and surface agitation from two filters. Ory was gasping away, and I discovered he had got a bit of pea stuck in his throat. I tweezed it out and released him (I think I rubbed a good bit of his slime off). After about ten minutes he was still lying on the bottom gasping. I added another airstone, but I'm sure that with four it's not an oxygen problem - probably my man-handling him. I didn't have a choice - I didn't want to anaesthetise him again as I thought it might be a blow to his immune system. He is swimming about a bit more now, but dorsal fin is drooping, all fins are looking incredibly bloodshot, and he has what looks like the salt speckles of ich trailing off his pectoral fins.

Is he going to die?

I can't do another WC till next Monday because of this medication, unless you all think I should just do it anyway?

 

[corrieberry]

Don't know if anyone's reading anymore...today Ellie is much less bloodshot. Ory is not floatinig anymore, but looks stiff - as if it's too much effort to swim.

 

[Lupin]

Oops...I forgot to get back to this thread.

Glad Ellie is doing well so far. With Ory, I'd try to do another water change and redose the medicine. See if Ory's bloodshot fins begin to improve a bit. Any updated photos of Ory? What about the water parameters?

 

[corrieberry]

Now Archie is going downhill with slight improvements from the other two. His fins are starting to look ragged. Ellie is looking less red in some areas, but not in others. Ory doesn't have spots on his wen anymore, and is a bit more mobile. All signs of white spots have gone from everyone. They are all less active, resting on the bottom a lot.

Params are 20 nitrate, 0 ammonia and nitrite, but extremely worryingly 8.4 pH. Could this be the meds? I have had steady 8.0 in this tank since the day I set it up - it's been running and fully cycled since April. I'm worried something is going to crash. Substrate is a mix of aragonite and playsand. Temperature is 22 C or 72 F. Too high or OK?

 

[geekboy]

The recently higher PH seems a bit odd, since alkaline water tends to be more PH stable. That is certainly pushing the comfort zone for goldies, but shouldn't be a deal breaker so long as it doesn't continue to change. I could be wrong here, but perhaps the extra high PH is a result of the all the extra aeration gassing off excess CO2. Not that I would stop the bubblers -- I'd say the benefits of keeping the oxygen up are worth it.

Trying to make alkaline water more acidic is almost always a bad idea since the water wants to fight your efforts with heavy buffering (and tends to crash right when you make any headway), but in a pinch some RO filtered water can be mixed in during water changes.

 

[Lupin]

What are your hardness levels, Corrie? Aragonite played its role in buffering your water. If your hardness levels are high, I would not worry about the pH going on a steep dive. Your pH is fine for the goldies. A lot of medicines tend to have side effects. Gasping heavily despite not doing this on the surface, bottom sitting and lack of appetite are just ones of the many side effects of powerful meds.

 

[mel_20_20]

Corrie, I have been following this thread and wishing with all my heart that your little fish get better. Ory is just the handsomest little guy, such a precious face, and your others, too.

Lupes and the others are standing by to help you. I'm no goldie keeper, but I often wish I had them. They have such personalities and are so interested in their humans.

Please know that I'm pulling for your little Ory, Ellie and Archie, as are so many others here.

 

[corrieberry]

Corrie, I have been following this thread and wishing with all my heart that your little fish get better. Ory is just the handsomest little guy, such a precious face, and your others, too.

Lupes and the others are standing by to help you. I'm no goldie keeper, but I often wish I had them. They have such personalities and are so interested in their humans.

Please know that I'm pulling for your little Ory, Ellie and Archie, as are so many others here.

Thanks I'm so glad I have people I can ask for help. When I get even a little bit upset or down about it most of the people in my house laugh at me and say 'they're only fish, you can just buy new ones if they die' or 'well if they die you won't have to look after them anymore and will have time to do other things'. :angryfire::wall:

Lupin, I've managed to get away without hardness testing before. Is it KH or GH or both? I will have to go out and get those tests. At least when they've all recovered from this I will have all the medicines required for most normal things, and won't go through the same thing!

Geekboy, I'd rather find the cause of the problem than try fix it with temporary measures - thank you very much for the advice, though. If I wanted to add RO, I have zero idea where I'd be able to get it anyway. Maybe I'll make enquiries for emergency situations.

 

[Lupin]

KH is carbonate hardness and GH is general hardness. I'd test both since you mentioned you were worried about the pH.