Month: September 2011

Categories
Aquarium Care Aquarium Plants Goldfish Goldfish Care

Adding Aquarium Plants – Live Aquatic Plants For Goldfish Tank Beneficial

If you decide to add aquarium plants to your goldfish tank there are many benefits to it. Live aquatic plants can help keep your fish tank healthy and safe for fish. Water plants are very beneficial as they help filter the water in your aquarium by reducing nitrates in your fish tank which is a plant fertilizer. Aquarium plants also helps reduce algae in your fish tank as well.

Do you really need to add aquarium plants to your goldfish tank?No but it will definitely help reduce aquarium maintenance, keep your fish tank healthy and help keep the water crystal clear. Live aquarium plants also add oxygen to the water during the day and goldfish can eat some plant leaves which they will enjoy.

Beautiful Aquarium Fish Tank With Live Aquatic Plants!

If your thinking of adding aquarium plants to your goldfish tank you should think of it strongly. There are many benefits to live aquatic plants versus artificial aquarium plants. Using live aquarium plants your fish tank will look amazing and create a natural looking environment for your goldfish!

Other Related Posts:

Can I Put Live Aquarium Plants In My Goldfish Tank?
Adding Aquarium Plants – Live Aquatic Plants For Goldfish Tank Beneficial
Goldfish Aquarium – Should I Add Real or Artificial Aquatic Plants To Fish Tank?

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

Categories
Feeding Fish Feeding Goldfish Garden Ponds Goldfish Goldfish Care

Check Pond Water Temperature When Feeding Goldfish In Fall

It’s September now and are you checking the water temperature of the pond when feeding your goldfish? You need to start checking the temperature as you should be now feeding your pond fish a wheat germ based food as it’s easy to digest. You need to stop feeding your goldfish a high protein food like you did in the summer. If you don’t this could lead to goldfish health problems, diseases or illnesses.

Once you start noticing colder nights and the leaves changing colours you know that the pond water temperature is changing. I know that last few nights here have been colder so I went to check the water temperature in our ponds today and it’s 62 degrees fahrenheit or 16.67 degrees Celsius. We even have a risk of frost tonight that will lower the water temperature in the pond.

You should stop feeding your goldfish when the water hits 55 degrees. When you see your goldfish slowing down or not as active as normal, you know they are getting ready for hibernation. You must pay attention to the water temperature as what you do could impact the health of your goldfish.

Have you checked your water temperature in your goldfish pond yet? If not please do! Feeding goldfish in the fall is different then summer.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

Categories
Goldfish Goldfish Care

Goldfish Tips When Buying & Selecting Goldfish At Pet Stores – What To Look For

When buying goldfish from pet stores there are somethings you should do to ensure you are buying healthy goldfish when selecting fish at pet shops. You should first buy fish from pet stores that are known for their quality, variety and service. Buying goldfish from clean pet stores and great service are a good way at making an excellent purchase when buying goldfish.

There are always thing people should look out for before buying your goldfish from pet stores.

1. Make sure the pet store is clean, if not how well are the fish really being taken care of.

2. Never buy fish from a tank that has more then one dead fish. Dead fish are the first signs of whether or not there being taken care of well or something is wrong with the aquarium.

3. Look for any signs and symptoms of goldfish diseases or illnesses. Are they scratching on the aquarium bottom, are they sluggish, weak, bloody streaks in fins, torn fins, white spots ( ich ) or swimming erratically. If so don’t buy from these tanks, if you do you may just be bringing a headache home and infect your other goldfish at home if you have some.

4. Smell the water, the water should have no smell if it’s being taken care of properly. If there is a smell signals poor care for fish or something is going wrong with the aquarium water chemistry.

5. Avoid buying stunted fish and deformed fish. Everyone wants perfect looking fish for their aquarium and these fish may have trouble competing for food with others, they may be slower and then will develop razor back disease which is deterioration of the body due to malnutrition.

6. Never buy a goldfish from a tank that’s being treated, and they shouldn’t sell it to you either.

7. Ask all kinds of questions, if you have questions they should be able to answer them. If they don’t know, well how good are these goldfish really being taken care of.

Going into the pet store with a little knowledge is the first step in buying goldfish and making a good purchase from the pet store. Knowledge will help you in your goldfish hobby and save the headache of bringing home someone’s problem and saving some money in the meantime. Before buying goldfish make sure you do all the research you have to involved in golfish care, goldfish diseases and information, to know what your getting yourself into and know all the things needed in taking care of your new goldfish.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

Categories
Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Diseases Ich Fish Treatment Ich White Spot Disease

Goldfish Disease- White Spot Disease- Ich (Ichthyophthirius multifiliis)

Goldfish disease are very common in goldfish and one of the most common goldfish diseases is white spot disease or Ich as a short version of the scientific name Ichthyophthirius multifiliis. Ich is very common and usually occurs from either due to stressful situations like poor water conditions or a sudden chill. You can usually tell when goldfish diseases occurs as they become ill or sick by symptoms like either rapid breathing or scratching on the gravel in the aquarium can indicate signs of white spot disease or ich.

When you notice this behaviour in goldfish, look at your goldfish closely and you will probably see white spots or like small grains of salt on your goldfish. These white spots, goldfish disease, are the parasites which are feeding on the goldfish’s body fluid. White spot disease or Ich can spread quite rapidly on the goldfish if left untreated.

Here is a picture of blue catfish which is covered with ich. These look like grains of salt which are the ick parasite. You can see all the white spots or cysts that are all over their body in this photo. The blue catfish is also showing signs of stress as you can see by the clamped fins.

Blue Catfish Heavily Infested with Ich Commonly Known As White Spot Disease - Ick
Blue catfish heavily infested with ich commonly known as white spot disease, ick.

The first thing you need to understand is how the parasites life cycle operates when attacking the goldfish itself. Each cyst or white spot is the parasite which is feeding off of the goldfish. It has attached itself to them by swimming as a small microorganism. These parasites need to find a host or they die. Once the parasite finds the host (goldfish) it hooks onto the skin and begins feeding. When they first attach themselves they are too small to be seen by the eye. As these parasites feed you will then see them as small white spots usually within a day or two covered over the body of the goldfish. Once this happens these cysts or parasites break free from the goldfish and begins to reproduce very rapidly. This goldfish disease spreads quickly and proper goldfish care needs to be done right away.

 

The reproduction phase of these parasites is when it infects goldfish very quickly. As mentioned above each cysts or parasite breaks free from the goldfish, when this happens each cyst that breaks open contains about 500 new parasites for ever cyst. The numbers can become quite significant and can literally take over the goldfish’s body if left untreated. When these 500 new small microorganisms become free swimming they need to find a host. When they do the whole process begins all over again.

Controlling the population of these parasites can only be done when the life cycle of these parasites are in the free swimming stage. They can only be killed during this stage with proper chemical or ich medications. The best thing to do when treating your goldfish aquarium for ich diseases is to treat it for at least 10 days. By doing this it will ensure you totally destroy all parasites as each parasite may be in a different stage at the time of treatment. Remember ich can only be killed during the free swimming stage so make sure you treat minimum 10 days. Each cysts must break open to be exposed to the medication to eliminate these parasites.

Treating ich or white spot disease in goldfish needs to be taking care of right away as it’s a very aggressive disease that attacks goldfish. Begin treatment right away for excellent results.

Other Related Posts:

Categories
Aquarium Care Goldfish Goldfish Care How To

Goldfish Care- How To Take Care Of Your Goldfish

 Taking care of your goldfish is one of the most important things to do to providing your goldfish the proper care and a long healthy life. First thing to do when taking care of your goldfish when buying goldfish from pet stores is to make sure the tank has been set up in advance. When taking care of your goldfish or new pet make sure your the water in your goldfish aquarium has been treated with conditioner to remove the chlorine from the water and heavy metals. AquaPlus is a conditioner widely used by aquarium and goldfish hobbyist and distributed by Hagen and available at your local pets stores is used to help reduce and take care of the stress during transportation and makes the water safe for your goldfish.

Things you should do when taking care of your goldfish:

1. Never feed your goldfish more then they can eat in the first 2-5 minutes, discard any uneaten food as it will pollute the water in your aquarium.

2. Perform a 25% water change once a week to keep all water chemistry at proper levels and safe for goldfish. Add conditioner to remove chlorine and heavy metals.

3. Test your water with a test kit, testing PH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate. There are others you can test for but this is a great start at ensuring the proper care of the water chemistry at the beginning.

4.Clean your filters with luke warm water, as they hold beneficial bacteria that you don’t want to destroy. Add some Nutrifin Cycle to restore beneficial bacteria to keep the aquarium healthy for your goldfish.

5. Clean your the glass of the aquarium with either a brush, or a magnet scraper with you can buy at any local pet store. Keeping your aquarium clean for your goldfish at all times will reduce stress, illness and goldfish diseases.

Your goldfish need the proper care in order to reduce chance of illness and injury. Weekly maintenance and a keeping a close eye on your goldfish for any signs are a good way to enjoying your goldfish for many years. Take care of your goldfish, they’re relying on you.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

Categories
Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Diseases Goldfish Parasites

Goldfish Care – Types of Goldfish Diseases

Goldfish are susceptible to diseases and here I will discuss the different types of goldfish diseases that fish can develop. Goldfish usually develop diseases or sickness largely due to lack of maintenance on the aquarium. They sometimes can develop them due to injury they suffered by scraping off the protective slime coating that goldfish have on their skin.

Here are the different types of goldfish diseases and illness.

1. White spot disease or ich (Ichtyopthirius)
2. Velvet disease
3. Anchor Worm
4. Argulus
5. Fin and Tail Rot
6. Ulcers
7. Cloudy Eye
8. Mouth Rot
9. KHV Virus

Learn All You Can About Goldfish and How You Can Treat Common Goldfish Diseases & ParasitesThe good thing about all these common fish diseases that happen in goldfish is that they are easily cured with the proper medication and care. Next I will talk about each individual disease and how to properly cure them step by step. Proper goldfish care and action is essential in getting these goldfish back to health and getting the goldfish disease under control.

For more information on what types of medications you should use to treat goldfish diseases and where you can buy effective fish medication please visit Goldfish Medication Treatments For Illnesses and Diseases .

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

Categories
Feeding Goldfish Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds

What To Feed Your Goldfish?

Goldfish feeding is one of the best parts of your goldfish hobby, but most people often wonder what to feed their goldfish. There are tons of different goldfish food that people can buy at their local pet stores. Some food is better then others and each fish food has different benefits.

What I feed our goldfish is Laguna Goldfish Food which you can get at any pet store in either small, medium or large pellets depending on the size of your goldfish. Also it doesn’t hurt in giving your goldfish different food, lets be honest we wouldn’t like eating the same thing everyday, same goes for your fish. There are tons of dried fish food, like blood worms which contain high protein, daphnia and black mosquito larvae. Some come in dried form and others you can buy frozen. Goldfish food also comes in a variety of forms like sticks, pellets, flakes and even powder for small baby fry, which are small goldfish.

Feeding your goldfish different food will help keep your goldfish strong and healthy. By taking care of your goldfish with proper feeding with a good variety of food will help in preventing diseases and illness. Sometimes fish can get sick with poor feeding and can develop razor back disease which is a nutritional deficiency. Give them a variety of things goldfish or koi as well feed on pretty much anything. They will pick at and eat lettuce, strawberries, grapes and even brown bread which they can easily digest. Try it feed your goldfish some different food they will love it.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”

Categories
Feeding Goldfish Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds

How Much Fish Food Should I Feed My Goldfish?

How much food do you feed your goldfish is a very good question. There are a couple of different things we need to look at when determining how much food to feed them.

First of all when feeding your goldfish or koi for aquarium or ponds the general rule of thumb is they should be able to eat all the fish food within 2 minutes. If they eat all that before 2 minutes you can give them some more. You will see once you begin feeding them they will start losing interest in the food. When this happens it’s a good sign that there nice and full, if there is any left over uneaten fish food discard it right away or will foul your water if left in your aquarium or pond.

Feeding goldfish in the aquarium, you can feed them once everyday. Goldfish need exercise and in aquariums they really don’t have the luxury of say the space they would have in a pond. Goldfish can develop a fatty liver which can cause health problems with goldfish pretty much the same as humans. With this some people suggest feeding your goldfish every 2ND day in aquariums. It’s up to you just once a day or ever 2ND day, just make sure you don’t over do it as goldfish can sometimes eat and not really know when to stop.

Feeding goldfish in ponds is a little different. To be honest with you depending on the size of pond you have and how many fish you have in it you don’t really need to feed your fish. There is enough live food, bugs, insects and algae in the water that they will live just fine. But like most people we want to feed our goldfish in our ponds and see the grow. In the summer when the water is warmer you can actually feed them 2 or 3 times a day to get maximum growth or once a day is good as well. Remember in ponds goldfish or koi always have a supply of food whenever they need it in the water.

I am going make another post as I am going to talk later more about feeding your goldfish in ponds at different seasons like spring, summer and fall and what you should do.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy
“Helping Goldfish Owners With Advice, Fish Care and Fish Medication Treatments for Goldfish Diseases, Illnesses and Parasites”