White spots on gold fish?

[Karl]

I have had issues when I got a new tank, very foolish and amateur of me by over stocking the tank. My exisiting fan tails (3) from previous tank have ended up with shredded tails , and the black pop eye one's eye looked liked it had popped out. Unfortunately I killed 2 of them by way of toilet which I hear is cruel but I felt it was more cruel to leave them. The last fan tail has bad shredded fins and white spots. Over the last few days the white spots are more and more and it almost looks like a layer on the fins. It swims away from other fish who get close but then goes vertical with mouth at top of water and drifts around the tank only to swim away if any fish go near it.

I know I have made several rookie mistakes which won't happen again, however I have been treating the water on a 5 day course for fin rot and bacteria, the 5th day finished today but it hasn't got better, only worse.

All the little fish seem ok, bar 1 that has 1 white spot on it.

What do I do to make the best out of a bad situation, do I kill the last remaining fan tail as I don't think any chemical is working ?

Do I do a 1/4 water change every few days?

Can any one help with what to do? I know the mistakes I have made but keen to resolve it as best I can.

 

[FishFreak1]

It sounds like your fish has ick. Ick is a common fish disease. Go to the store and get some ick cure, if it doesn't work do some reaserch to figure out what it is.

 

[Tammyara]

if you really want to kill a fish humainely, whack it's head REALLY hard. Sounds brutal, but it's an instant death - no time for pain and its a quick holding of the breath on the fish's part.

get rid of the last of the Ich (white spot) or it WILL get worse.

Get some aquarium salt to help replenish the tanks nutrient levels, don't do TOO many water changes, and read the label on the treatment.

Don't kill the fish if it still has a chance - use salt, use the medication (remove filter carbon beforehand), make sure that it is in an adequately spaced tank, i.e, as you are treating it, make sure it's not crammed in and has space to swim, and once it's better, give it about 20 gallons minimum (they grow BIIIIIIG!!)

If I were you, i'd attempt to isolate the affected fish to keep the disease from spreading to any healthy ones - but if they're all infected, there's no point in isolation.

I'd say do a 1/4 water change every 2 days to let the medication do it's work and get rid of some of the infection. People might thumb me down for saying it, but when my fish were sick, i did a quarter water change every day and the fish actually DIED from the water changes because they got so stressed out by it (and stress weakens their immune systems, btw) and only 2 survived. So, i've started a quarter water change every 3 weeks, my tank is absolutely healthy and has been for about a year.

**Remember to remove the filter carbon as the F.C. Removes the medication, so the medication doesn't work!!**

 

[Ken]

well i was going to say ich but tammyara has completely got me beat! take their advice and that should be good