Goldfish Health Management
Part I

by Bill & Cheryl Sanders, K.A.W.
First published in "Tank Topics", Greater Akron Aquarium Society, Dec 1999/Jan 2000
Aquarticles

As we near the new millennium, many are concerned about Y2K issues. Let's instead focus our attentions on the advanced practices for the management of our Goldfish and Koi. Although this article is dedicated to Goldfish & Koi, many of the principles can he applied to tropical fish. Please research before applying any principles to your tropical fish.

We would suggest that the most important instrument in Goldfish health management is the microscope. This, along with knowing the typical behavior of your goldfish, will give you a reasonably accurate diagnosis and guide you in delivering the required treatments.

At the first sign of any behavioral changes in your fish, we recommend the following steps be taken:
- Microscopic examinations of body and gill scrapes for the detection of parasites.
- Initiate appropriate treatment dependent on results of the microscopic examinations.

A good resource for identifying the various parasites is Koi Health and Disease, Beginner to Advanced Life Saving Technology, by Erik L. Johnson, D.V.M.. This is an excellent reference that we use regularly.

A critical piece of information to know is that salt will kill 80% of all parasites. This is helpful to know if you suspect a problem with parasites and do not have a microscope to determine what type. A .3% salt solution (3 tsp/gal) for 14-17 days will kill most parasites. We normally keep our fish in a .1% (1 tsp/gal) salt solution. There is less stress on the fish should we have to increase to a .3% solution. Should you use a .3% solution, it is a good idea to increase aeration in the water, as initially fish may suffer a slight impairment of gill function due to increased slime production. Once the salt treatment has run its course, you need to gradually reduce to a .1% solution. The kill list for .3% salt solution is impressive: Trichodina, costia, chilodenella, epistylus, ichthyophthirius and glossatella.

There are two groups of parasites that salt is ineffective against, the crustacean parasites, and Argulus (fish lice) and lernea (anchor worm). These are very difficult to eradicate due to elongated life cycle. Recommendations for treatment of crustacean parasites include Dimlin (which is now very difficult to obtain due to government restrictions), and potassium permanganate, which can cause a serious health hazard to humans. Recent recommendations by Erik Johnson, D.V.M., has been the use of the "Program" flea tabs. We have employed this method and found it to be very successful and cost effective. One tab treats from 10-1,000 gallons. You do not see the toxic effects that other treatments have shown with the fish.

The treatment plan is as follows:
- Place one tab in a cup of water to dissolve and add to the aquarium water. Leave tablet in for 2 weeks.
- 20% or more water change is done after 2 weeks of treatment, then add the medication again.
- 20% or more water change in 2 weeks and the treatment is completed.

The other group of parasites resistant to salt are your trematodes or flukes. These parasites are perhaps the most common afflicting goldfish and the most difficult to eliminate. Unfortunately, the treatment for flukes is very stressful to the fish.

There are two schools of thought on the treatment of Flukes. One is that this is a very common affliction with goldfish and that the goldfish is accustomed to the flukes. Therefore, there is no need to treat. The second school of thought, and one which we are very strongly in support of, is that flukes are carriers of bacterial diseases and with the many resistant strains of bacteria which are often transmitted by these parasites, it is wise to eliminate any potential threat to your fish. There are generally two treatments for flukes. One being potassium permanganate, which is used by individuals dealing with large volumes of water (such as ponds), which makes potassium permanganate more cost effective for them. Many hobbyists, including ourselves, utilize fluke tabs. It is very important when treating ornamental goldfish to disregard the instructions accompanying the fluke tabs, because these instructions were developed for koi which are much more resilient and can withstand the stressful regime. The following is our method for treating our goldfish for flukes.

Day 1 - use 1 tab. per every 10 gallons of water
Day 2 - perform a 50% water change
Day 3 & 4 - do nothing
Day 5 - use 1 tab. per every 10 gallons of water
Day 6 - perform a 50% water change
Day 7 & 8 - do nothing
Day 9 - use 1 tab. per 10 gallons of water
Day 10 - perform a 50% water change. Treatment completed.

Please note, the treatment plan covers a 10 day period. This is to better insure the elimination of all trematodes, adult and larva.

We recommend, once treatment for parasites is completed, to perform gill and body scrapes every 2 days for 3 scrapes, to confirm that all parasites have been removed. After recognition and treatment of parasites has been completed, it is important to monitor closely for any signs of bacterial infections.

(Go to Part II)