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If you have a fish pond, fish tank or are seeking advice about keeping tropical fish, you can find advice on our Fish forum.

Fishnet

my goldfish has a red smudge on his back

14 replies

camperli · 04/01/2011 09:30

Any ideas how to treat it? I have some internal bacterial medicine which I think might be the right thing but thought I'd check with the wise ladies of mumsnet first..
thanks!

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EauRouge · 04/01/2011 12:14

Yes, it could be a bacterial infection. The medicine stuff you've got might work but if it doesn't then he'll need antibiotics. What's the water quality like?

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camperli · 04/01/2011 17:00

Thanks for your reply -
Don't really know what the water quality is. We've been changing it fairy regularly but perhaps not enough. We only got him a few months ago. Where do I get goldfish antibiotics from?

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EauRouge · 04/01/2011 17:36

You'd need to get them from a vet or illegally from ebay. Metronidazole is the most commonly used one, if you do a search for for that or 'fish zole' then you'll find instructions (or I'll look it up in one of my books if you like )

What size is the tank? Did you do a fishless cycle before you added the fish? Water changes are usually done once a week or more if the tank is very small or heavily stocked.

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camperli · 04/01/2011 18:33

Hi again. W got him from a friend who is travelling for a while so I REALLY don;'t want to kill him..anyway, he came in some water already, which we topped up. We have not been changing every week and the tank is not huge. So will make sure we change every week from now on.

Be grateful for any information on the antibiotic and will also google myself tonight. I don't know any vets nearby so may resort to (hopefully legal) online purchase.
Thank you!

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Furball · 04/01/2011 18:35

don't change all the water at once though - just 20-30% and use 'tap safe' or similar in the water you re add as it will make it fish friendly

do you have a filter?

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Furball · 04/01/2011 18:50

similar question here

Good link there as well for keeping fish/changing water etc

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camperli · 04/01/2011 19:10

Hi there, yes, we usually only change about 30% of the water. We have a pump in there which was given to us with the fish - don't know if its a filter as well though...

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EauRouge · 04/01/2011 20:25

All fish need a filter so if it doesn't have one then you need to get one pronto. If it's got any kind of sponge or a plate under the gravel then it's a filter. If it's just got a stone that blows bubbles then it's an air pump.

Goldfish get pretty big (they don't grow to the size of their tank) so getting a bigger tank will help keep him healthier. They also live a pretty long time. This has more details.

If there are underlying water quality issues then it's best to fix them first before you treat for anything else. A water testing kit is a very important thing to have so you can prevent any illnesses or problems. You need to be able to test for ammonia, nitrIte, nitrAte and pH.

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camperli · 04/01/2011 21:15

We cleaned it tonight and its definately a filter. It was pretty mucky though so we've given it a good rinse.

We've put in the anti bacterial stuff as well so hopefully things will start to get better.

How long do we need to wait to decide if we should get antibiotics as well do you reckon?

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camperli · 04/01/2011 21:18

That website link was helpful too. thanks

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Furball · 04/01/2011 21:55

to throw in another question - is your filter like a black sponge? if so you need to remove it(just the black sponge, not white) when using anti bac stuff.

Otherwise the carbon stops the medicine from working.

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EauRouge · 04/01/2011 22:20

What did you rinse the filter in? You should never rinse it in tap water, only water taken from the tank. See this for more info.

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camperli · 05/01/2011 20:36

rinsed the filter in tap water and it seemed to have developed an air block which we spent 45 minutes clearing at 4am this morning!

Anyway, he seems much happier today. The filter is working much better - its the type with the black sponge so we are going to keep an eye on him for a few days and see how it goes.

Eaurouge - we will now be getting a test kit for the water!

Thank you so much for all your help both of you. i'll let you know how he is getting on.

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camperli · 10/01/2011 22:56

Hellloooo there -
Just to report that Frankie the fish is much restored after all the treatments. Red smudge has gone, filter is working much better than before (we think there must have been an air lock for longer than we realised). Frankie is swimming about enjoying the current and is generally more full of beans than any time since we've had him.
Thanks very much for all your help...