# Fish disease?/new tank syndrome



## danibu (Mar 3, 2011)

I'm very new to keeping aquariums. I got some feeder goldfish and some fan tail goldfish at walmart for a school project and no surprise the person I thought could take them couldn't and walmart wouldn't take them back. A friend in my class gave me a very small 1.5ish gallon tank to keep them until I went and got a bigger one the next day (22 goldfish: 20 being feeders and 2 fantail in a one gal!! eek!) so I think I have a 7-10 gal tank now, that I got as a starter set with an aqua tech 5-15 water filter and just basic natural color gravel and fake plants and a hidey log because I read on here that those kinds of things help lower stress.(yes i rinsed everything before I added them.)

I first got them on Monday. They spent half of the day in the 1.5 gal and I lost a couple then to uncountable reasons. I transferred them the next day when I got the larger tank. a couple more passed from I'm guessing not having cycled the tank like I should have but didn't know about then, and a few got what I considered to be Ich. Ich was the only fish disease that I knew about and so I treated for it with some stuff called malachite green that a pet store an hour away gave me and more still died. I then noticed on some of the remaining fish that the white stuff I thought had been Ich (and may very well still be Ich, that's why I'm asking!) was less like salt and more like a white mold? or fluff? But it was every where! Not just on their mouths, or fins but on their bodies too, and even floating around but still attached to their fins. Like cob webs almost. I can't get any pics to turn out and I got some fizz tabs to treat multiple illnesses but I haven't added it yet until I get some opinions off here.

So far, I have used that malachite green stuff for ich, jungle brand water conditioner/de-chlourinator, melafix fish first aid fin restorer and illness fighter, and correct PH fizz tabs that say they lower the toxicity of the ammonia. I do have some testing strips that test for ammonia but they don't give accurate numbers really. I tested for ammonia just a few minutes ago and the strip was a little darker than 3.0 but not dark enough to be a 6.0. (huge gap?) so I'd say it.s about at 4.0 which is measured as dangerous on the box. (again, did not cycle) I also have some five in one strips that test for nitrate, nitrite, hardness, alkalinity, and ph. these readings are nitrate: safe or 20 mg/L, nitrite:stress or 1.0 mg/L, Hardness: hard, Alkalinity: between moderate and ideal or about 100ppms, and neutral ph or a reading of 7.2.

I also wanted to know that in case the worst happens and I do loose my last fish, should I let the ammonia cycle continue? Or should I clean out all of the water and start over because of the mystery disease? Also, can you pre-treat for disease in case I don't need to change the water so that fluffy white stuff doesn't get on any other fish/ does fish disease even work that way? and should I be careful not to mix fish meds? I am also wondering if there could possible be too much turbulation in the tank caused by the filter water fall, plus a five inch bubble stone? My fish has eaten very little if at all in the last three days and is very skiddish some times but not always and mainly hangs out on the bottom in a corner or in the hidey log.

Now, five days later, I have one fish left . One fantail goldfish persists and I would really love to keep him/her/bingo alive!! Please help!!


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## danibu (Mar 3, 2011)

Up date: Literally just after I posted this thread my fish started floating/fluttering aimlessly and is now resting against one of the kelp plants. I think he/she bingo is on the way out...


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## chronoboy (Jan 17, 2011)

you where doomed when you said walmart fish, sorry bud, but they where most likly sick and dieing when you got them, on top of the fact that you should only have a few goldfish in a 10g and they will soon outgrow it and need to be moved, another thing to remember amonia should be at zero. and with that many goldfish you will need to do frequent water changes.


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## chronoboy (Jan 17, 2011)

and another thing, im no doctor but i even know mixing too many meds can be a bad thing, and if your talking about those walmart fizz tabs i wouldnt use them, just my thought i tried them out years ago with no luck, but most walmart petmeds are junk anyways and i wouldnt recommend them, hartzs for cats and dogs is the worst and can kill your pets. http://www.hartzvictims.org/


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## danibu (Mar 3, 2011)

I had heard that walmart had bad fish. There is only one pet store within an hour of here too. I really want to get some good fish after this. Where are some good places to order healthy affordable fish online? Can you even get live fish in the mail? I'd prefer to here from people who have ordered fish and what kinds of experiences they've had with that. Again, if this fish doesn't make it, and I do want to get more fish, should I empty out this tank and start over?


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Ammonia over 1ppm can be deadly. Likely the fish got their gills burned in the 1.5 tank and were doomed by poisoning. Since they likely did bring home disease from wal-mart, I would bleach the tank after the last one dies, then dry it completely before starting over.


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## sbetsy (Apr 6, 2010)

The white stuff you described could have been a fungus or bacteria? Maybe something that melafix or pimafix could have handled. But who knows? I'm sorry you had such a bad experience.


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## chronoboy (Jan 17, 2011)

ya and dont let the fish death detour you from fish keeping lots of people makes lots of mistakes when they first start the hobby, years down the road i still made mistakes do to bad info from petstores and not anough research and care of my tank, anyways i would deff do a good cleaning on the tank, next i wouldnt get fish from walmart might be worth the trip to a better petstore, and i just did my first online fish order and was very pleased with the outcome ordered 22 fish and recieved 22 healthy fish its been 3 days since i got them and they seem to be fine and healthy besides they wouldnt eat flakes so i contacted the breeder and found out that they where spoiled and only fed beefheart and brineshrimp, so i went out today and got a package of both.


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## danibu (Mar 3, 2011)

I go to two different towns quite frequently that may have fish. Both towns are an hour away. Usually don't stores give you the fish in a bag? And can a fish last that long drive home in a bag? I'm considering ordering some in the mail, but I kind of like picking the idea of picking them out. Does anyone know if fish from petsmart are okay? And any tips on fish car travel?


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## hXcChic22 (Dec 26, 2009)

Don't worry, fish will be fine for much longer than an hour in bags. Just try not to hit the brakes really hard and send the bags flying into the floor and your fish will be ok. And if your weather is extreme (cold or hot) make sure you adjust your car temp to accommodate and don't leave them in the car without it running for long, as a small amount of water changes temperature very quickly. 
Some people say big box stores are horrible. I disagree. There are bad eggs everywhere, both local and big box, and the best thing to do is use your own judgement. Only pick healthy-looking fish, don't get fish from a tank where any disease is evident, and make sure you keep the receipts just in case.


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## chronoboy (Jan 17, 2011)

i buy from pets barn somtimes and use a mom and pops LFS for most fish purchases, pet barn is great for stuff for my cat and dogs, and i do admit that thier fish tanks look clean and healthy fish way overcrowded but thier not ment to be in those tanks long, so if you cant find any other petstore dont be affraid to check out a petsmart as hxcchic said its all in the staff and how well thier trained not all chain petstores suck most but not all, but i have not yet seen a walmart that treats thier fish right.


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## funlad3 (Oct 9, 2010)

MY PetSmart is absolutely great! They had some cichlid fry in of their tanks. Other PetSmarts suck. Heck, we even have a good SW PETLAND here! It's crazy! (Not that I would ever buy anything from them! :evil:

Point being, play it by ear. If you see nothing but healthy fish and helpful store people, your golden.

Good luck and welcome to fish forums!


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## chronoboy (Jan 17, 2011)

ya when i was at pets barn a few weeks ago they had a pair of cichlid that ended up pairing up and having a bunch of fry, and when i was thier a guy came in and bought the pair and the second they pulled them out the other cichlids ate the babies up in minutes, it was kinda sad cause a couple little kids where watching and this little girl looked like she was about too cry seeing that.


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