Gill Disese?

Question
Hi Karen, I'm wondering if you could help me. I have 4 small goldfish. I noticed this morning that they all have Ick. I also noticed that on one of the fish has a blood red patch on its gill that covers half of it gill. On the other gill its a light pink color, almost like it going to get to the the stage where it will be the same color as the other gill. I've spent a lot of time trying to diagnose this problem on the net but not having much joy. Whatever it is, can I treat the problem at the same time as I treat the Ick?

Answer
Hi Shamin,
Sorry to hear that.

The blood red patch could be from skin irritation or poor water quality. What I would do is immediately treat the ick problem and it should help the red-patch problem.

I would-
*Do a 50% first (vacuum gravel well to remove detritus that can render medication ingredients inaffective)

*Start a ick medication right away (Quick cure is a common medication used to treat ick and is usually quite effective.)

*Add aquarium salt to the water (predissolve it first in a cup of water and add portions of it at intervals to avoiding shocking the fish with one big dose at one time) Salt helps deter parasites greatly.

*Keep aeration at its best in the tank

*Change 50% of the water everyday. Simply re-dose the quick cure and add back the correct portion of salt according to only however much water you are replacing.

Keep with this treatment for at least 12 days or so. Even if the spots dissappear. I know this is against most medication instructions but it is vital for treatment to be extended because otherwise the ich can disappear but really be in their "reproduction stage" where they will multiply in great numbers to attack with even greater force.

There is also a different method for treating ich that doesn't involve medication at all.

Instead (after a big water change) carefully raising the temperature to about 88-90F is very effective at killing off the parasites (while this may seem extremely warm---goldfish are adaptable creatures and should be able to handle this high temp as long as they have extra aeration)
In addition to this- Aquarium salt can be added at about 1 teaspoon per gallon.
Treatment should continue for 21 days at least.

However, heavy infestations will require a medication.

Best of luck, I hope this helps!
Karen~