# goldfish-ammonia poisoning?



## brigitta (Jan 7, 2014)

I've had bettas for a while, and when I first started out I came here a lot to ask about a lot of things and always got good answers, so I thought I'd try here about this problem too, even though it's goldfish related. I don't know much about goldfish, but my sister has one and we just came back after a five day trip to find him in a not so good state. My first thought was ammonia poisoning, but I've never really dealt with that, so I just want to get other opinions.

Housing 
What size is your tank? 5 gallons (she plans to upgrade when she can)
What temperature is your tank? probably between sixty and seventy fahrenheit
Does your tank have a filter? yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? it's the kind that pours water through the top
Is your tank heated? no
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none

Maintenance 
How often do you perform a water change? once a week
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? ~15-20%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? the standard dechlorination stuff

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

Ammonia: .25
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 40
pH: 8.4
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? flayed tail fin, bleeding
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? the little guy's still swimming around okay
When did you start noticing the symptoms? we just got back today
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? she did a 40% water change
Does your fish have any history of being ill? no
How old is your fish (approximately)? she got him in december


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## CrazedHoosier (Mar 18, 2014)

Yep it seems like he has some ammonia poisoning. The chances of ammonia poisoning with a goldfish in a small tank with only one water change per week is pretty high. I would suggest changing the water about 25-50% every day. I would also suggest bringing that PH down a lot, to around 7.4. Also I would highly recommend a thermometer! It would help if you could get a picture of the whole tank too.


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## mart (Dec 18, 2013)

Methylene Blue is good for ammonia poisoning.


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## Sabina88 (Aug 24, 2013)

The type of goldfish your sister has is a commet. A 5 gallon is verry small and not a suitible size for any goldfish.
Commets are one of the long bodied goldfishes that you can find and get much larger then fancy goldfish. This is because fancy goldfishs bodies are verry compact. Fancy's tend to get around 6-8 inches while long bodied goldfish like commets, commens and shubunkins get anywhere from 8-12+ . Commets are techniqly consoderd pond fish but if kept in a aquarium they need a large tank. The general rule of thumb is 20 gallons of water for one fancy and 10 additional gallons for each additional fish. With long bodies the general rule of thumb is 50 gallons and 20 gallons for each additional fish. 
The other problum with small tanks is that a goldfish will emit growth stunting hormons which will cause your fish not to grow. It can also lead to an earlier passing of the fish. 
The reason why this goldie got amonia burn is most likely because your filter isnt able to romove all of the amonia it needs to. Goldfish need good filters because the produce so much amonia. In a 5 gallon even with your filter it sounds like amonia builds up fast. Untill you get a new tank for the goldfish I would do 50% water changes twice a week. 

As for the burns, keep your water clean, like Crazedhoosier said , a water change dailly will help remove the amonia jn the water. Also adding stress coat to the water when you do water changes will help your goldie heal.


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

Ph is in the high range, yet still acceptable for goldies. As long as it is stable, do not mess with it.


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## trilobite (May 18, 2011)

TBH most goldfish, especially comets, should be kept in a pond. Id tell her to give it to someone who has a massive tank or pond until she can properly house it.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Daily water changes are a must. With such a young fish a high protein diet is needed for best growth (a quality betta pellet works well), however such a diet can produce more waste as well. Reduced feedings can help, a floating plant such as duckweed or water sprite controls a lot of ammonia build up (though is also a tasty snack). The age of the fish and my guess that he's still really small (can't tell but appears that way in the photo) indicates that he is likely already stunted and may not reach his full size. A 20-30 gallon could house such a fish, if you don't later feel bad about lack of swimming space and lack of companions (lone goldfish often enjoy their reflections in mirrors.)


The high pH is fine for him, but high pH does make ammonia more toxic to fish. However changing it should not be a concern as is it a lot of hassle to do safely.


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