I hurt my gold fish with the siphon

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priscila_isa@hotmail.com - 06 Jul 2006 05:01 GMT

My husband was sucking the water from the aquarium when i called him to
turn around and look to the computer, well ... 10 seconds of
distraction and one of the curious fish got sucked by the siphon!! he
was bigger than it and just had his side been sucked and stucked on the
end of it. He is round and fat on the size of golf ball, he is a pearl
scale, the cuttest thing. We get desperate trying to release him...and
we finally did all the scales on his side was hanging like a loose
skin!! He lost all the scales on his side, and just the skin is
there...very sad!! I was horrified and we love the little bastard we
want to save him somehow. We put some salt and some melafix, he is
doing fine...like nothing happen, but i guess is because he cant see
himself! We are afraid he may wounded himselg internally or other fish
may atack him or he may get infected...we are also having trouble
keeping the amonia down, we changed the filterm the water, we put some
amcquel and some stress zime to build biological filtration, we change
30 % of water 2 X every week. But the amonia still is high. And now we
have a wounded fish... one of his fins was hurted too. Ther is almost
no blood, jusr micro red dots here and there, but we want to avoid
infections. All the other levels of the acquarium is fine, just the
amonia still reads high, and one of the fishes sometimes stay down on
the botton. We have pictures if anyone want to see it...Please help us
with advice and telling any experiences like that. is a 30 gallon with
5 fishes. We hope he makes trought the night it just happened. :(

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dr-solo@wi.rr.xx.com - 06 Jul 2006 05:25 GMT

http://weloveteaching.com/puregold/disease/treatment/trtmnt.htm#TUB_TO_TUB
use the tub to tub method, stick with salt @ 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons, this will
stimulate the slime coat that is the best protection. Use rock salt with no
additives. dont use melafix. dont use other additives other than dechlor or novaqua.

http://weloveteaching.com/puregold/care/care3.htm#PEARL
get rid of the GRAVEL and cover the siphon with a nylon sock.
Gravel is not recommended for keeping goldfish.
1. Gravel is the leading cause of sudden death when gravel gets stuck in their
throat.
2. Food drifts down into gravel and rots. Goldfish will sift and work thru the
gravel looking for food. Rotting food is toxic for goldfish.
3. Gravel creates "dead" spots where anaerobic bacteria thrive and secrete toxic
gases.
4. Organic compounds contribute to the waste in the tank, driving up nitrate levels.
High organic loads in gravel can easily equal the waste output of an extra fish for
two which drastically lowers the "carrying capacity" of the tank (1 gf per 10
gallons).
5. Organic compounds are acidic and can lower the pH to the point that it kills off
the biobugs. The nitrite converting bacteria are the first to die, which causes a
nitrous acid spike. This will cause a sudden crash that kills the entire biofilter.
Unlike cycling, where the keeper knows and is checking for wastes and changing water,
sudden crashes are not detected until the fish are showing severe symptoms.
6. It is more work to clean gravel and do water changes. Any gravel or rocks on the
bottom require a bell of some kinds to suck up debris that gets caught under the
items. In a bare bottom tank, the circulation of the water in the tank means all the
crud and wastes are sucked out by the filter intake. There is no siphoning required.
7. Fish can be sucked up into a siphon bell and be maimed or killed every time the
gravel is cleaned. When there is no gravel to clean, a nylon sockie can be put over
the siphon and even fry wont get sucked out with the waste water.
http://weloveteaching.com/puregold/care/care.htm

>My husband was sucking the water from the aquarium when i called him to
>turn around and look to the computer, well ... 10 seconds of
[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>with advice and telling any experiences like that. is a 30 gallon with
>5 fishes. We hope he makes trought the night it just happened. :(

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priscila_isa@hotmail.com - 07 Jul 2006 00:17 GMT

Thank you very much for answering so fast! I really appreciet it. A
question that I have is how often should we put the sault? Once or
more?
We changed him to a tank hospital, with spring water, no gravel and
some salt...because we saw some blood spot on his other side, and we
are concerned. He looks fine, doing his normal activities and all but
there is little red dots all over his body, now.
Other question is, why the melafix is no good for him? They said it is
natural and rapairs open wounds and regrowth demaged tissue. Sorry to
ask about it, is because we nought because someone recomended to us.

Thanks,

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priscila_isa@hotmail.com - 07 Jul 2006 04:27 GMT

Some more news about the fish,,,he cant eat, seems like it. He swalow
the food and them spits up, and he keeps trying, but he cant keep the
food in.

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priscila_isa@hotmail.com - 07 Jul 2006 04:29 GMT

He cant eat...he eats the food and them spits up, like he cant keep the
food in, but he keeps trying! What could that be? Is he hurt
internally? He doesnt seem sad or that he is sufering.

Reply to this Message

Koi-Lo - 07 Jul 2006 15:05 GMT

> He cant eat...he eats the food and them spits up, like he cant keep the
> food in, but he keeps trying! What could that be? Is he hurt
> internally? He doesnt seem sad or that he is sufering.

===========================
Have you checked the ammonia in his hospital tank? Make sure it's at zero
or change it.

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Aquariums since 1952.
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dr-solo@wi.rr.xx.com - 08 Jul 2006 13:48 GMT

usually this means his throat is closed, only reason I know is columnaris, a
bacteria. but ask Jo Ann. She might know why. Ingrid

>He cant eat...he eats the food and them spits up, like he cant keep the
>food in, but he keeps trying! What could that be? Is he hurt
>internally? He doesnt seem sad or that he is sufering.

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priscila_isa@hotmail.com - 12 Jul 2006 05:19 GMT

Thank your for your tips Ingrid!! The Fish is eating and seems to be
doing fine now. It is still recovering its skin pretty slowly. . We
took off the gravels...but their ammonia was still high. Them we wanted
to put one more filter so we decided to get the under gravel filter,
because a lot of their poop was showing in the bottom, we had to clean
everyday, so we put the gravel back, under gravel filter and power
head, to suck their waste and run air trough the gravel (we also have
big gravels so they cant swallow it). it is a interesting system. I
will let you know how it works, and if it works. If it doesn't I
will remove the gravel again...I like the system without the gravels
because you can see how much they eat, and they can eat all without
losing in the gravel but it looks really odd without the gravel...so
we are hopping the under gravel system works.

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dr-solo@wi.rr.xx.com - 08 Jul 2006 13:47 GMT

call Jo Ann Burke, the Goldfish Guru. She REALLY knows about pearlscales.
251-649-4790.

melafix can heal over a wound with bacteria inside. it is also harsh on the gills of
fish. Ingrid

>Thank you very much for answering so fast! I really appreciet it. A
>question that I have is how often should we put the sault? Once or
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>
>Thanks,

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dr-solo@wi.rr.com - 13 Jul 2006 17:52 GMT

first, if you are seeing a lot of poops you are overfeeding the fish. it is
essential to buy the highest quality GF food you can find and keep it frozen. high
quality foods have something like krill or fish in first couple ingredients and VERY
LITTLE grains, like corn or wheat.
second, if you put in big airstones about an inch off the bottom of the tank the
water will circulate bottom to top and the big filter will suck all that stuff up. I
recommend something like a whisper filter, one rated for a 40 gallon tank put on a 20
gallon tank, an 80-100 rated for a 40 gallon tank, or, (2) 40 gallon whispers.
undergravel filters have problems. the crud really builds up.
here are all the reasons not to have gravel for goldfish. and in ponds gravel is
rarely used.
http://weloveteaching.com/puregold/care/care1.htm#GRAVEL

You wrote:

>Thank your for your tips Ingrid!! The Fish is eating and seems to be
>doing fine now. It is still recovering its skin pretty slowly. . We
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
>losing in the gravel but it looks really odd without the gravel...so
>we are hopping the under gravel system works.

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Pet Forum / Aquaria / Goldfish / July 2006

I hurt my gold fish with the siphon