sick comet goldfish

Question
QUESTION: Hi Nicole!
I wrote in a few days ago regarding a sick fish. I now would like some more advice, please! We have 2 comet goldfish in a 30 gal. tank. One, Vanilla, has Dropsy. I have been treating with Maracyn 2 for 3 days, with no luck. We have a Bio-wheel filter (50 gal) and an Air Pump.
We have a heater which keeps water at about 75. We have 2 airstones. He is not responding at all. What else can I do? Water quality seems fine. Been feeding him mashed peas, along with plants in tank (anakerus). Can I use Tetracycline Geltek medicated fish food (gel) along with the Maracyn 2? Please help! This is a family fish we have had for 3 years. I feel so badly for him. Will these meds hurt the healthy fish?  Thanks so much for all of your help. Please let me know what I can do for him.
Sincerely, Julie
ANSWER: Good afternoon Julie,

While dropsical conditions (swelling of the abdomen) can be treated and may be due to a number of factors, some as mild as constipation - what we call dropsy, fluid retention due to organ failure, is generally not treatable and does not respond well to medication. Most fishes with the tell-tale "pinecone" or "pineapple" scales, scales that jut out from the body, are beyond hope. Is this what Vanilla has? If so, I would discontinue all meds and just administer Epsom salt for relief of symptoms. If the scales are not protruding from the body, write back and let me know because this is not "dropsy" but one of the other reasons for bloating.

While Maracyn 2 is a milder medication, it is still best to treat in a hospital tank, since all meds have an effect on the nitrifying bacteria. Test your water and make sure you are not registering ammonia or nitrites at all. If you are, it's time for a 50% water change - and a discontinuation of the medication. Since your other comet doesn't have anything wrong with him, there is no reason to dose the tank itself.

This is what I would do. Gradually lower the temperature in the tank, comets actually prefer temperatures in the high 60s. I would let the temperature drop to 70 degrees at the rate of 1 degree per hour. You may have read that elevated temperatures help with dropsy, but this is not the case for a coldwater goldfish. Also, medication lowers the dissolved oxygen content in the water - fortunately you are using airstones - but the oxygen content in 75 degree water is considerably lower than it is in 70 degree water.

Discontinue the Maracyn 2. Use the gel medication if you so desire, however unless this is an internal bacterial infection and not what we call dropsy (water retention due to organ failure) it's unlikely to help. However it won't hurt, if it's instead an internal bacterial infection, although Tetracycline wouldn't have been my first choice.

The diet sounds more or less fine, besides just Anacharis aka Elodea, try some duckweed if you can get your hands on it. Here's a list of aquatic plants that goldfishes like:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/gldfshmalnut.htm

I would also feed a high quality goldfish flake such as Nutrafin or Hikari brand, and also a Spirulina flake. Commercial flake or pellet foods should be fed once a day every other day. Also, expand the vegetables offered:
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/Goldfishs%20Diet.html
There's a list of suitable vegetables towards the bottom.

At the rate of 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons (6 tablespoons total) add Epsom salts, pre-dissolved in warm water, to the aquarium between today and tomorrow. So today, add 3 tablespoons and tomorrow add another 3 tablespoons. I also recommend you perform 30% water changes daily to give your fishes the cleanest water possible. This will make the affected fish more comfortable and will benefit both.

I hope that helps, check out these two websites for more information on goldfishes of all kinds:
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com
http://www.goldfishparadise.com

Take care, I hope the best for Vanilla.
Nicole

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

QUESTION: Hi Nicole,
I really appreciate your in depth answer and concern. Yes, Vanilla has the scales that are sticking out....his little eyes are also "bulging" and he looks extremely uncomfortable. I feel so badly for him, as well as, my little boys. I have truly tried my hardest to help him, and if I could take him to a vet, I would. Do vets generally help fish, and would they be able to treat an advanced case like this? Also, I unplugged the heater, and I will discontinue the meds. Our water is becoming very cloudy, so you can barely see the fish. Is this normal with using Maracyn 2?  Also, is it okay to use aquarium salt, or is Epsom salt different? Is it fatal at this point for him, or is there a tiny bit of hope? I just feel so awful watching him suffer like this. He comes to the side of the tank and just looks at me, like he is saying, please help me! Goldfish definitely have their personalities!
Thank you for answering all of my questions, and I sincerely appreciate your advice.

Julie

Answer
Hi again Julie,

I'm sorry, but I can't honestly say that there is hope here. The only times that dropsy can be "cured" by medication is when it is not actually dropsy. Let me explain. Dropsy is a symptom, not really a disease. Dropsical conditions are merely bloating of the abdomen. Folks will sometimes rush out to buy medication that "treats dropsy" (such as Clout) but actually, they are just marketing on the misconception that people have about what dropsy really is. Malawi bloat, a disease common in African cichlids due to inappropriate diet, could be mistaken as dropsy by an inexperienced fishkeeper. The well-meaning fishkeeper runs out and buys medication for dropsy, when actually an internal infection is what is troubling the fish. The proper treatment would be Metronidazole medicated flakes and a lifetime change in diet - no regular feedings of bloodworms, beef heart, and other "meaty" foods. The symptoms that are associated with dropsy are actually just the symptoms of organ/renal failure. For this reason, a vet could not help here, just as a vet could not help a dog or a cat with organ/renal failure.

Sorry to say, medication was not needed in the first place. I'm truly sorry if you read on the back of the package that this medication was effective in "treating dropsy" but that just isn't so. Dropsical conditions? Maybe, but not dropsy as we know it. Read more about it here:
http://www.fishjunkies.com/Diseases/dropsy.php
http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/hddropsy.htm

Unfortunately, the medication was less than useless. The beneficial bacteria has been affected, and now ammonia and/or nitrite levels are registering. You're experiencing the equivalent of "New Tank Syndrome" even though your aquarium isn't new. What you need to do to save your other comet is restore the beneficial bacteria to your aquarium:
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/qa/f/faq0015.htm
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/waterconditions/a/cloudywater.htm
This will tell you about clearing cloudy water.

For the fishes' immediate comfort and safety, do 30-50% water changes daily to dilute the toxins present. Change the filter media, or rinse it if you are using reusable media. Remember that ammonia and nitrite must always be at 0 ppm - either of these levels, if detectable, are toxic to fish. The easiest way to restore the beneficial bacteria to your aquarium would be to add the refrigerated product BioSpira by Marineland. No other cycling product will work instantly and no other cycling product will be effective, here.

Aquarium salt will actually hurt Vanilla, so don't use it. Aquarium salt regulates osmotic balance (the intake and output of salts, a way oversimplified explanation) and will encourage absorption, you definitely don't want to employ aquarium salt in this case. Epsom salt is the only salt that will do, but Vanilla sounds as if he is too far gone. Epsom salt would only be a palliative measure to ease his suffering, so my recommendation would be euthanasia.

The best way to euthanize a fish is using clove oil. Since Vanilla is probably a big fish, you will need to use considerably more clove oil than I ever have used at once. I use a 3.7 mL vial (or 1/8 of a fl oz.) - I suggest you use the entire vial. You can get clove oil from the pharmacy window, behind the counter, just ask. You can also get Epsom salts at the pharmacy. What you do is you take the fish out and put it in a container of its own water, pre-mixed with clove oil. Use enough water to surround the entire fish, enough for a superficial bath. The thrashing should stop in a few moments and the fish will appear lifeless, but actually it is only anesthetized. Put the fish in the freezer and remove in after about an hour or so.

I'm sorry, I don't usually recommend euthanasia, but it does sound as though Vanilla is suffering. Try a site such as http://www.pet-loss.net/ to help you and your children deal with the loss of your pet. All the best to you and yours, my condolences to you during this difficult time.

Nicole