Im so worried about my goldfish!

Question
ok I have two goldfish, two butterfly koi, and one algea eater. they get along quite well but one of the goldfish (the larger one) has wounds when we bought it. for the first week it was doing fine but then it started going to the surface and get oxygen, then it would swim down, and start floating up. It would realease the bubbles in it mouth and be able to swim normally. I don't know if it was playing or if it was sick at that point. so now small, white, salt-like things are growing on it's wound and body. I don't know what it is and I'm so worried! please help me! this is my first time buying fish. would it get better or would it just die? please help!

Answer
Hi Satoe;

What size tank are the fish in?
How big are the fish?
How long has the tank been set up with fish in it?
How often are water changes made?
How much water is replaced at a time?
What kind of filtration does it have?
How often is the filter cleaned?

Make a 25% water change in your tank to help the sick fish feel better. Anytime a fish goes to the top "for oxygen" it means something is wrong with the fish or with the water. Goldfish should be getting all their oxygen through their gills while under the water. The only fish that need to take breaths of air like that are bettas and other fish in that family like gouramis.

If the fish has salt-specks, it may be ick. It is a parasite and there are remedies at the local fish store for that. It is very common in stressed fish. A product called Melafix and some aquarium salt are both a good thing to use along with the ick medicine. They also help the fish heal from the other problems. They are very therapeutic and the salt also weakens the ick parasites.  While you are at the fish store, take a sample of your water to test it so we can see what could be going on. Have them test the following; pH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate. Don't let them tell you "it's okay" or "it's not okay". We need actual numbers.

Let me know about the questions and the water tests as soon as you can......

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins