Dasher and Comet are getting better

Question
QUESTION: Hi Lynda. Dasher and Comet are getting better. It was the oxygen oops. I don't think they were getting enough oxygen and the water is cloudy again and I only cleaned not long ago. Thank you so much for your advice. One of the fry are not swimming or eating. The other catfish are fine but he just has this one fin that looks like it has been bitten of and I don't know what it is.
Danielle.

ANSWER: Hi Danielle,
It could be fungus on the fry.  Put a little Methlyene Blue in the water to prevent fungus.  
Goldfish need lots of oxygen.  Cloudy water is a sign of bad bacteria in your water.  Check your ammonia level, and your nitrates.  Change your Carbon, do water changes, and see that they get enough oxygen.  Never fill your aquarium to the top.  Leave a space so that the water from the filter splashes into the the water.  What kind of filter do you have?
It would be a good idea to add an airstone.
Lynda

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Lynda. I did what you said with the fry and now the fry is recovering and he looks alot better today than he did yesterday. I can tell you exactlywhat kind of filter I have. My filter was made by a company called stingray. It looks like a stingray too. It is one of those fislters that sticks to the side of the tank under the water slightly. It's a good filter. I think thats where I went wrong. This morning I found that I had accidently filled the tank to the top, sorry. It was an accident honest. I took some of the water out. What should I do about the cloudy water. My filter is one of those quiet fister that vibrates a bit when it is on. I have an air stone. Dasher is better. I can tell because he is back to splashing me again and Comet is swimming normally and eating so he is on the mend thank goodness. The fry are being very cheeky lately. They are very active and playful aren't they? My goldfish have never seen a filter before because at the pet shop the filters were hidden so people or fish couldn't see them and they came into my tank and started playing with the fister and eating it. I always tell them that the filter isn't for eating and it probably won't taste very nice. Comet and Dasher have made a huge improvement from what they were a few days ago.
Danielle. You know I love my goldfish don't you?

ANSWER: Hi Danielle,
Cloudy water could be many things.  Have you checked for ammonia and nitrates?  It is usually caused by bad bacteria.  If you have ammonia or nitrates, do water changes everyday of 10%, change your carbon, and it should come back to normal.  Always syphon your water from the bottom of the tank as food gets stuck in the gravel, and we both know how messy Goldfish can be!!   When water gets cloudy, it take a long time for it to come back to normal, sometimes 2 weeks and longer, so don't get discouraged.  Sometimes medication does this too, and a water change, and new carbon solve the problem.
I'm happy that the fry are doing well.  Your friend will be proud of you when she sees them.
I know how much you love your little friends, and know you take good care of them.  My daughter has a goldfish, and he is 7 years old, and sometimes I wonder...She doesn't look after him like she should, and the fish is healthy, and happy, go figure..lol  Every time I go to see her, I change his water, and clean his tank, I think she counts on me to look after him, but she doesn't want me to take him home.  She loves him, but I guess the hours she works, she can't always do the water changes.  He's a happy fish.  We tried to introduce him to other goldfish, but it looks like he would rather be alone...he doesn't accept other fish.  They all have their character, some good like yours, some bad like hers..lol
Have a nice week-end, and take care.
Lynda


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Lynda. Your telling me, my goldfish are very messy. I didn't know your daughter has a goldfish. Does she like fish too? My fish have lovely personalities. I got Goldie for my cousin because she asked me to buy her one for her birthday. As you know he passed away but she didn't mind and she wanted to call him Goldie anyway. I promised her I will get her a goldfish. When my computer stops freezing so much I will send you a new picture of the fish but I want to get the water back to normal first so that you can see them a bit better. My mum and sister want to get me another goldfish. The thing with me is that when I lose any of my fish I have to have another fish because if I don't get another fish I will never get over losing the fish I have lost, which in this case is Rudolph. The kids at college are saying it's my fault for losing Rudolph again but it wasn't. You know that don't you? It was an accident that wasn't meant to happen. They are making me feel bad. It's the same people as when Willy, Keiko and Lunar died. I feel like me and you have known each other for years wiith the amount of fish problems I have had but I only found you in November and I'm glad I found you when I did. Alot of what you told me about goldfish I didn't even know so you are teaching me about them so thank you so much. When I lost Rudolph my sister said "it's just a fish." I stuck up for him though. I told her they are not just fish but pets and they need to be looked after and they do have feelings. Thank you for everything you have done for me and my fish and the fry.
Danielle.

Answer
Hi Danielle,
Thank you so much for the compliment.  I do love fish, and try my best to help.  Sometimes they die for reasons we will never know.  I love my fish too, and you know, this may sound silly, but I am positive that my Cichlids know the ten commandments!!  When they couple up, they never cheat, look after their young, and always spawn with the same partner.  I have some that have followed their partner into death.  I am very attached to all my fish, and yes, I am a fish nut...lol  I will always have fish.  My first fish were Goldfish, when I was very young, and I loved them too.  I have never tried to breed them.  Maybe one day I will.  
Don't let these people hurt you with their words.  They will understand one day, hopefully.  If they don't, it's their loss.  Having bred so many fish, I have seen things that I thought would never be.  I have a betta that looks after his young for a long time.  I have another one who spawns with the same female, and accepts her in the spawn which is something that is said to be impossible...so you see, anything can happen, and they give you so much happiness, and help you understand them...but this takes time!
Take care, and have a nice week-end.
Lynda