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Goldfish loosing color

By | 2019-06-24T20:13:28-05:00 June 24th, 2019|Categories: Goldfish Koi Chat|

Hi everyone, Hope you all are well. It's been a few weeks since I dropped in. One of my bug eyed goldfish was pure black. Over the past few months it's loosing color and turning golden color. Is this normal? I think the name of the breed is fantail. The other one just like it doesn't seem to be changing. Do you think one could be a female and one a male? I hope so. Maybe I'll get lucky

Cyling new tank

By | 2019-05-26T06:18:19-05:00 May 19th, 2019|Categories: Goldfish Koi Maintenance|

I thought I would make a post under goldfish maintenance, because the fish are doing great after being poisoned by ammonia. I was making some pretty big mistakes with my fish by cleaning the entire tank instead of doing water changes. This either kept the cycle from forming or broke it. The fish were poisoned. It was time to get a decent size tank for them, so now they're living like rock stars in a 40 gallon and loving every minute of it. I also added a pond pump. Will add a second once its cycled, but right now its in the cycling bucket Every day I'm removing about 20% of the tank water with a gravel vac and putting it in the bucket with the cycling pump. This is keeping ammonia levels low in the fish tank. So far they've reached .5 ppm, but the cycling bucket is closer to 5.ppm. My question is, should I start testing for nitrites yet? I haven't been using water treatment in the cycling bucket. I hope this is right, but what would be the need. I'm using the single dose Venus recommended in the fish tank with every water change One of the fish has a lot of black on the fins, top and tail, but the other one seems to have made it through without being hurt. I've just finished the second round of aloe remedy which seems to have helped. At least they seem to be happy and eating a lot of food. I'm curious as to how long before the burn marks fade or will they be there forever? Guess it doesn't matter because they blend well. If you didn't know the fish, you wouldn't know it had been burned Thanks again for all the help

Lone Fish

By | 2019-05-15T19:31:12-05:00 May 15th, 2019|Categories: Goldfish Koi Chat|

I'm amazed by how well Fanny is doing alone in my 50 gal tank. This is the first time in her life (of 8 years) she's been alone and she's active and going about her usual business of picking at the algae scrubber, swimming all over the tank and riding the jets like she hasn't noticed. And she's GROWING! She gets all the food! I don't plan to leave her in there alone forever, but it's nice to see her happy while I figure out what I'm doing.

Refurbished Pumps

By | 2019-05-17T05:20:41-05:00 May 2nd, 2019|Categories: Goldfish Koi Maintenance|

Venus, where did we buy those refurbished 100 gal/hr pumps? I looked on ebay and Amazon and didn't see them. I need two for my tanks and one for my outside fountain/birdbath. I also want to send the seller the 2-3 I have that no longer work, so they can be refurbished rather than tossed. I'm going to set up my old 20 long next to my 50 gal to age my freshwater in and want to put a pump in it. I'll age the water, buffer it and let the pump fill the 50 gal during water changes. If I have a sick fish and need to QT, I can borrow it for them temporarily, maybe, haven't quite decided yet. I'm excited!

Algae

By | 2019-04-28T19:32:35-05:00 April 28th, 2019|Categories: Goldfish Koi Maintenance|

Hi Venus, I caught the goldfish eating algae. It's back, too. Like a vengeance. Some spots are brown some are green. I looked to see if it actually got some and it sure did. Fishes are doing great, thanks to your support. I always try to tell people about the pump. Nobody seems to bite, or be interested. I feel like it's a key component. The toads did not get their glory. I drained the pond. It was just about time to lay eggs so I just had to nip it in the bud. Feel bad cuz I know they like it, but too many babies jumping around for months while we tip toe. For the algae, should I just leave it on the back wall and side and keep the front clear? Does algae put out anything bad? or change water conditions? Should I get some plants. Was reading that Elodea and Anacharis are good ones. I've pretty much given up on flakes because I think it's constipates them. Was feeding peas for a week straight until my all orange one stopped swimming funky, like swim bladder problems. She is blind, or prob just can't see well, so she always goes to the top for food and gulps a lot of air. Started happening after her eyesight went. I think it's in one eye only. Looks silvery inside the pupil. I dunk my food and swoosh my hand around, so eventually she goes to the bottom looking for food. She will eat out of my pinched fingers when i feed peas though. This always seems to clear up the swim pattern like floats coming on. I think I'll only use the food as a treat. But I need more food ideas. Any suggestions? Thank you!

Story of Babies

By | 2019-04-19T19:22:22-05:00 April 19th, 2019|Categories: Goldfish Koi Chat|

In Dec 2018 one of my fancy goldfish started be having oddly, she was struggling to keep upright, she would float with her tail up but only towards the end of the day, then sleep at pretty much 90' in the night. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5q6LIFSpU9s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rt68pEJd5B8 She was also being chased by the two males who had white spots on their gills, so guess this was mating behaviour. After a time this all stopped and the female fish got back to normal, so didn't think more about it. Then a few march I noticed a tiny baby fish in my tank! So the much have mated. I didn't see the eggs. It's a very heavily planed tank. and I guess most of the eggs/fry were eaten. But luckly one survived. I got a net enclose and put the baby in there to protect in. Then a couple of day later I spotted a second baby. I looked round but really couldn't see any more. After a week or so in the net I set the babeis up with a new 90l tank. Video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6hOIwWnOyk Since then the have been growing quite a it, but still retain their silver colour. Here is a video a month later: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jrm0ArKOp1w I'm waiting to see what happens when they get their colour. Mum is a schubunkin and the dad could either be an orange pearlscale. or a red and white ryukin. I'm guesing from their shape so far that the ryukin is dad.

FORUM blog

By | 2019-04-10T18:46:46-05:00 April 10th, 2019|Categories: Default Category|

gfe FORUM blog for members only Buy the book gfe FORUM blog for members is a place to chat, get advice or help with your goldfish or Koi. Create a post pertaining to goldfish and or Koi. Write about an issue you're having and get help from our members and gfe admin. Tell us about your own experiences, and start a discussion Goldfish forum Our response time is sometimes fast; sometimes slow. If you have a goldfish or Koi 911, and need help asap, call our Hotline or help yourself by clicking on this link  Diagnose symptoms Everyone loves seeing photos of fish, however, if your fish has an issue, a picture speaks a thousand words. Feel free to read and comment on other member's posts. Feel free to offer your opinion or your encouragement. Tell us your stories, ask questions or just chat. Content is irrelevant as long as it pertains to fish. Create your own post by filling out the form found on categories listed below. Create your post in a word program if it's lengthy. This assures you won't lose it before you've finished writing. Cut and paste into form. Be sure to give your post a title Goldfish forum To upload photo click on 'Choose image' in white box below text box. This will lead you to the files on your computer. After selecting an image, click open to upload. Want to show a video? upload to YouTube, create video, then select, copy and paste link into your post. Be sure to click on 'Submit post' to complete the task. Click on the title of your post to open and view. If you need more help, read here Upload photos Select your preferred category from below      Goldfish Koi Maintenance           ♦          Goldfish Koi Chat           ♦           Goldfish Koi Health Issues Thanks for joining us

Nitrogen Cycle

By | 2020-08-05T11:54:15-05:00 April 10th, 2019|Categories: Goldfish Koi Maintenance|

Nitrogen cycle explained in depth STEP 2 Buy the Book Nitrogen cycle explained covers the event from beginning to end. The cycle is vital to the well being of our fish, and if you don't understand it, your fish are at risk of being poisoned. Goldfish produce a tremendous amount of waste which converts to ammonia in a very short time. Ammonia is extremely toxic to goldfish, but thankfully, beneficial bacteria guard the front lines, soldiers with a cause. Friendly bugs have a voracious appetite for ammonia. The smallest amount of ammonia can quickly poison goldfish. This toxin must be removed by means of a freshwater change and converted with water treatment unless beneficial bacteria are present Ammonia is the first toxin to convert in the nitrogen cycle Nitrites, the second toxin to convert in the nitrogen cycle, is also toxic to goldfish. Nitrites are being produced by one type of beneficial bacteria as another type forms to feed on it, converting it into nitrates. Closely related, both toxins are created by living organisms Healthy fish live in healthy water Nitrates are the third and final toxin to form in the nitrogen cycle. This toxin can only be removed from the water by means of a partial water change or by using water treatment, however, a thick lining of algae on the side of your tank will also share in the responsibility of removing the gentle giant. Algae forms naturally in a cycled tank or pond, making for an almost perfect ecosystem Creating a perfect union, the friendly bugs will keep growing in numbers, matching the amount of waste created Beneficial bacteria The life span of a friendly bacterium is 2 to 4 months, taking 10 ro 12 hours to reproduce. Friendly bugs require ammonia created from waste that contain enzymes as their food source. Only waste produced by living creatures contain enzymes. We refer to this ammonia as ionized Enzymes the building blocks of life Nitrates in tap water Nitrate the gentle giant We think of the nitrogen cycle as being complete when only nitrates are present, but in a natural body of water, little if any nitrates would be measurable. This is because other microorganisms called diatoms appear when nitrates are present, feeding on the so called final toxin in the nitrogen cycle Nitrogen cycle explained These diatoms are what we call algae; the living plant. Algae is a very important part of the cycle, feeding on nitrates, reducing levels. Nitrates provide a valuable food source for fish, who then in turn make waste that converts to ammonia, starting the cycle again. The circle of aqua life Algae the living plant Plants absorb Co2 (carbon dioxide) from water freeing it for oxygen to enter, although, the same plant releases Co2 at night. Thankfully, being diurnal, goldfish sleep in the dark of night. It's a myth that plants produce oxygen What are friendly bugs? There are two kinds of bacteria in a goldfish tank or pond; the beneficial and the harmful. Bad bugs are everywhere just waiting for an opportunity to multiply. Good [...]

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