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Aquarium Care Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds How To Water Treatments

How To Lower Nitrite Levels In Goldfish Aquariums and Garden Ponds?

You should really only notice nitrite levels being high in new aquariums or small garden ponds that have newly been set up. As I’ve mentioned before in other blog posts is that it takes time for the nitrogen cycle to start working. It can take up to 4 weeks to properly cycle a new fish tank.

If you are experiencing high levels of nitrite in your goldfish aquarium or pond what you will need to do is make sure your goldfish are not showing any signs of stress. You really need to carefully observe your goldfish or any other types of fish you have in your aquarium. High levels of nitrite is extremely deadly! Nitrite can and will poison your fish and kill them quick.

Large Oranda Goldfish in Aquarium

If you do notice your goldfish are showing signs of stress you will need to lower your nitrite levels in your aquarium or garden pond. What you can do is perform a 25 – 30% water change immediately. This will reduce and dilute the presence of nitrite in your fish tank. After you do this I would also add aquarium salt to your aquarium right away. Aquarium salt will neutralize the toxicity of nitrite making it not harmful for your goldfish. Simply add 1 teaspoon of aquarium salt per every gallon of water. Lots of aquarium owners fail to realize is that aquarium salt helps fish in many ways and helps heal fish. All aquarium and pond owners should have on hand some aquarium or pond salt as you never know when you might need it.

Aquarium or Pond Salt Will Neutralize The Toxicity of Nitrite
If however your goldfish are not showing signs of stress and this is a newly set up aquarium or pond, just leave it! It will take some time for it to cycle and develop all the beneficial bacteria. Once the tank is cycled and there is an abundance of beneficial bacteria it will break down the nitrite forming nitrate which is relatively harmless to fish. During this time that your aquarium is being cycled make sure you regularly test your water quality for nitrite and record the readings. Recording the readings will show you if the nitrite is lowering. Always observe your fish and be ready to do an immediate water change if your goldfish are showing any signs of stress. High nitrite levels need to be taken very serious as it can quickly kill all your fish if you fail to act promptly.

Sincerely,

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

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Aquarium Care Goldfish Goldfish Care How To Testing Water Quality Water Treatments

How To Raise or Lower pH Levels in Goldfish Tanks and Aquariums?

Having an aquarium involves regular maintenance such as water quality tests and you should know how to raise or lower pH levels in fish tanks if need be. Overtime your pH in your aquarium will lower and you will need to raise it depending on the type of fish you have. Certain species of fish like the water more of a acidic pH while others like the pH to be more alkaline. Aquarium owners should test their water quality at least once a week not only for pH but for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

Sometimes your water will get cloudy in your fish tank and you will know right off the bat that something is wrong. There are also times where the water is crystal clear and the water chemistry is at seriously dangerous levels for fishkeeping. You can’t tell just by looking at the water. I know it would be nice if we could, but we can’t. If you notice your goldfish showing signs of stress, testing the water quality should be the first thing you do. The more goldfish you have in your aquarium, the more waste is produced which will lower the pH if you don’t keep up with regular water changes.

Goldfish Tank, Aquarium With Large Goldfish and Koi

How To Raise pH Levels In Fish Tanks or Aquariums?

Sodium Bicarbonate ( Baking Soda ) Is Used To Raise pH Levels In Fish Tanks, Aquariums and PondsIf you notice that your pH is low or acidic after testing your water quality you will need to raise your pH. In order to do so you will need to have some sodium bicarbonate also known as baking soda on hand. This is the regular stuff you buy right from your grocery store. Simply add 1 teaspoon of baking soda per 10 gallons of water. It’s always best to not change the pH too drastically as it can stress out the fish even more. If your pH was off quite a bit do it on a gradual basis until your reach the recommended pH based on the species of fish you have in your aquarium. Neutral pH is what you should be looking to have for goldfish tanks.

How To Lower pH Levels In Fish Tanks or Aquariums?

Sodium Biphosphate Is Used To Lower pH Levels in Fish Tanks, Aquariums or Ponds
In order to lower pH levels you will need to buy some sodium biphosphate which you can buy right from your local pet store or online as well. To lower the pH simply add 1 teaspoon of sodium biphosphate per 10 gallons of water. More is not better when your dealing with changing water quality for fish. My rule of thumb is put less then re-test to see what the reading is and then add more if need be to get it within the acceptable pH range.

If you keep up with performing regular water changes, aquarium maintenance such as cleaning of the aquarium gravel and filters you shouldn’t have an issue with pH. If you do however you will now know how to lower and raise pH levels in your aquarium so that your goldfish can live a long healthy life.

Sincerely,

Jamie Boyle
The Goldfish Guy

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Aquarium Care Goldfish Goldfish Care How To Testing Water Quality Water Treatments

How To Lower Ammonia Levels In Goldfish Tanks, Aquariums or Fish Ponds?

Sooner or later new aquarium owners will face high levels of ammonia in their goldfish tank or fish pond and you will need to know how to lower or reduce ammonia levels. When new aquariums are set up many people will often see high levels of ammonia but this is because the fish tank is not properly cycled yet. It takes some time for all the beneficial bacteria to start working. A lot of the time even though the ammonia levels are high you can just leave it and it will slowly lower.

The biggest thing that you need to do when you notice high levels of ammonia in your aquarium or fish pond is to observe your fish. Are they acting normal, normal behaviour, are they sluggish. not eating etc.. High levels of ammonia will kill your goldfish and if you notice any signs of stress or any goldfish that has died you need to take action right away.

Don't Be Fooled! Clear Water Can Still Have High Levels of Ammonia

Here are several things you can do to lower or reduce the ammonia level:
1. Perform an immediate water change. Changing some of the water in your fish tank or pond will reduce or dilute the ammonia. After changing the water, test it to see the new results and keep a record of the reading.

2. You can always add some Ammo-Lock by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals. This works great as it locks up ammonia in a non-toxic form. Whenever you happen to see a lot of fish die this is a great emergency fish product. This will reduce fish stress and help save your fish.

3. Add beneficial bacteria to your aquarium or pond. The beneficial bacteria is what breaks fish waste, ammonia and keeps your nitrogen cycle working properly. After every water change always add some beneficial bacteria.

If your looking to know how to adjust, lower, or reduce ammonia levels in fish tanks, aquariums or ponds you should first know what causes ammonia levels to increase. Knowing what causes it, is the first step in preventing ammonia levels from increasing in fish tanks or ponds.

The #1 rule in fishkeeping is to never overcrowd your fish tank or pond or it’s inevitable that you will soon face high levels of ammonia and possibly lose all your fish. Take proper care of your fish and you will have great success with your hobby.

If you have any questions concerning ammonia levels and how to deal with lowering or reducing it please feel free to comment.

Sincerely,

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

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Goldfish Goldfish Care

How Long Can A Goldfish Survive Out Of Water From Their Aquarium or Pond?

Many people have been emailing me wondering how long can a goldfish survive out of water before dying? To be honest it depends on the strength of your goldfish. Some goldfish can tolerate more things then others while weaker fish will perish. As the saying goes “Only The Strong Survive”. How long a goldfish can survive out of water depends on its overall health and will to live.

To give you some sort of answer on this, I would say anything over 30 minutes and you will be lucky. There was one time that we had a large koi in our aquarium about 10 years ago now and my mother came home to find out that the koi had jumped out of the aquarium onto the floor which was carpet at the time. Goldfish Jumped Out Of Water - How Long Can A Goldfish Survive Out Of Water?It is estimated that the koi was there between 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours. It looked pretty dry and we were not sure if it would survive. We placed the koi back into the aquarium and it floated to the bottom on its side. Then all of a sudden its gills started moving. Within 5 to 10 minutes it started swimming around like nothing ever happened. It was one of my favourite koi at the time and I was happy it survived.

Koi Sleeping From Anesthetic For Artifical Breeding

You see some fish are simply able to handle more then others. While some goldfish may only survive 30 minutes out of water max, others may be able to tolerate longer. Some species of fish are able to breath air as it’s one of their unique capabilities that enable them to survive in low oxygen levels and droughts. If you ever watched the show River Monsters, Jeremy Wade, extreme angler, talks about how certain river fish are able to breath air due to low oxygen levels which enable them to survive. Some fish like catfish and eels are able to live a long time out of water. If you’ve never watched his show before, it’s quite interesting to see the different varieties of River Monsters that could be lurking in your waters. I was quite shocked to learn about Bull Sharks being in Rivers found in New Jersey some have been reported. Bull sharks are able to live in freshwater and salt water. It’s a show that I definitely suggest taking the time to watch!

River Monsters - Jeremy Wade Congo

Back to the question at hand, it really all depends. I am not going to test this out and risk the life of a goldfish but from looking across the Internet as well many have reported that their goldfish has survived out of water from anywhere from 20 minutes to 1 1/2 hours. If your taking care of your goldfish good and feed high quality fish food and are generally healthy it may just survive long periods of time out of water. My suggestion to you all is keep your goldfish in water then we don’t have to wonder how long your goldfish can live for.

Sincerely,

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

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Breeding Goldfish Goldfish Goldfish Care

How Many Eggs Does A Female Goldfish Lay During Breeding Season?

When goldfish begin breeding or spawning a large female goldfish can lay up to 10,000 eggs. How many eggs that you can save rest on your experience in breeding goldfish. One thing that all pond and aquarium owners should know is that despite the fact that the female goldfish has laid 10,000 eggs or so many of these will not survive.

There are many factors that contribute to the loss of many of the goldfish eggs. If your looking at breeding goldfish and having some success at it you should do as much research on spawning as you can.

Goldfish Breeding and Spawning Pond For Raising Baby Goldfish
Breeding goldfish is exciting especially waiting to see the result of some 10,000 eggs that the female goldfish has spawned. I hope you have some room for in your pond or aquarium as if you do things right you’ll have too many goldfish that you can handle.

Sincerely,

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

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Goldfish Goldfish Care

Do Cats Eat Goldfish? How To Stop Cats From Eating Goldfish?

Do cats eat goldfish? Yes! If you ever had a goldfish in a bowl and had a house cat for a pet then you’ve probably lost your dear old goldfish to your little furry friend.

This question was emailed to me yesterday when their goldfish went missing from their fish tank with no signs of the fish. They informed me they had a cat for a pet for years but never had this happen. Cats get curious and if your taking care of a goldfish in a bowl or fish tank and it’s left uncovered then there’s a chance that your little baby goldfish could become lunch for your pet.

Cats Eat Goldfish!Cover Your Goldfish Bowl or Tank

What goldfish owners should do which is very simple on how to stop or prevent cats from eating goldfish is by keeping their tank covered. This is the only way that you will stop your cat from eating your goldfish. Even if your cat doesn’t eat your fish it will most likely injure your goldfish or possibly kill it.

Do Cats Eat Goldfish? How To Protect Goldfish From Cats?At my wife’s parents they have cats and they often catch squirrels, mice and even birds which sometimes they do eat and others times they catch them and play with it. Your goldfish tank should be covered to prevent this from happening.

If you leave your fish tank, bowl or pond uncovered you might soon be without your pet goldfish. Goldfish have many predators and cats are just one other animal that you need to look out for.

For more information on goldfish predators and how to prevent your fish from being eatenvisit this link:

How To Protect Your Goldfish From Pond Predators

How To Protect Goldfish and Pond Fish From Herons

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Aquarium Care Garden Ponds Goldfish Goldfish Care

Why Are My Goldfish Gasping or Gulping For Air At Top of Pond or Aquarium?

Are your goldfish gasping or gulping for air at the surface of the water in your pond or aquarium? If so your goldfish could be suffering from lack of oxygen or a variety of different reasons. What you need to do is find out why your goldfish are gasping for air. Ask yourself, do your goldfish look sick, are they scratching themselves, is your pond or aquarium water too warm, have they recently been sick. Your the goldfish doctor and it’s your job to find the answer as to why your goldfish are gasping for air.

Goldfish most commonly are seen gasping for air at the surface of the water when there is a lack of oxygen in your pond, aquarium or goldfish bowl. When the water is to warm there is less oxygen available. What you need to do is perform a 25% water change immediately so that you can increase the oxygen available by aerating your pond or aquarium. For ponds a good technique is to turn your garden hose on spraying water directly in to the pond adding oxygen to the water.

Another reason why goldfish are seen gasping or gulping for air is due to damaged gills caused by either parasites or not using water conditioner when doing water changes. When you don’t use water conditioner the chlorine causes damage to the gills making it harder for goldfish to process oxygen from the water. It is very important to use water conditioner each and every time you do maintenance on your pond or aquarium.

Another good suggestion for you to do is test your water quality right away. Your water chemistry could be off the scale causing your goldfish to start gulping for air. If your ammonia spikes it can burn the gills of the fish much like chlorine will if you don’t use water conditioner. When you see fish gasping for air test your water quality immediately.

To help avoid fish mortalities due to lack of oxygen goldfish owners should add air pump to their aquarium or pond. This will help provide more oxygen for your pond or aquarium fish. To stop goldfish from gasping or gulping for air at the surface of the water it is recommended you follow all the above advice. Lack of oxygen can kill your goldfish or cause them to start gasping or gulping for air.

Sincerely,

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

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Garden Ponds Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Ponds How To

How To Take Care of Goldfish In A Garden Pond?

Many home owners often dream of having a garden pond but are often unsure on how to take care of goldfish. Taking care of goldfish in a garden pond is easy! With a little bit of research, you’ll be a pond expert in no time. A lot of people who have fish ponds in their backyards often have had an aquarium in their life sometime before. The fact is that taking care of goldfish in a pond is so much easier and I’m going to show you how.

Now that your garden pond is in place you will need to add your goldfish to your newly built pond. You can either buy goldfish online or as most of you do is go down to your local pet store to buy your new pet. Taking care of goldfish starts right here at the pet shop. Taking Care of Goldfish In A Garden PondRemember you want to buy healthy goldfish and don’t want to bring home some other guests as well. Never buy goldfish from a tank that has dead fish, cloudy or if you see fish scratching themselves on the aquarium gravel. These are signs that something is wrong. Take your time, look around and ask questions at the pet store if you have any. They should be able to answer all your fish, pond and aquarium questions.

Now that you’ve just bought your new goldfish you will need to introduce them to your pond. What you do now is float the bag in the water for about 10 – 15 minutes so that the water can customize. Once the time is up what you will then do is make sure you add a couple of cups of pond water into the bag so that the water chemistry can mix together. Every little thing you do minimizes the stress on the goldfish. Now that you’ve done that and waited a few minutes now you can release your goldfish into the pond. In order to do this you will need a fish net. Never introduce the water from the pet store into your garden pond as it could contain parasites. Always use a fish net to catch the goldfish and then place them in the fish pond.

Introducing Goldfish To A Garden Pond

Your goldfish should be swimming around in the new pond and looking quite happy. Don’t worry if the goldfish goes right to the bottom of the pond and you don’t see them for a few days as this is common. Remember this pond is new to him and it could take a few days for your goldfish to get use to its new environment. After a day or two you should see your goldfish quite regularly. Sometimes you can even feed your goldfish right after placing them in your new garden pond.

Goldfish Feeding In Garden Pond

What you should feed goldfish all depends on the time of year and the temperature of the water. Remember goldfish hibernate come winter and when this happens their digestive system begins to slow down too. In early spring and fall goldfish should be fed a lighter food such as a wheat germ based fish food. This is light and easy for them to digest. This should be fed to goldfish down to 45 degrees Fahrenheit. It is very important to know what the temperature of your pond is to be able to provide the best possible care for your goldfish. In the summer months you are able to feed goldfish a higher protein diet as they are more active and require better nutrition.

Your probably wondering about now is how much food do I feed goldfish in a pond. The answer is quite simple, only feed your goldfish what they can eat within 2 minutes. When the goldfish are feeding you should start to see them get sluggish or uninterested in the food. Always discard what they cannot consume within 2 minutes or this can foul your water. You can feed your goldfish in the pond once a day in cooler weather and in the summer months you can feed them a couple of times a day. Remember don’t worry if you ever miss feeding your goldfish as there is literally tons of food in the pond for them. They can feed on all the live insects, mosquito larvae and more. Your goldfish will never starve in a pond.

Pond Netting Helps Keep Goldfish Safe From Predators

For maintenance for your garden pond you should clean your pond filter from time to time. Whenever you notice that the water volume from your pond pump has slowed down it’s time to clean your filter. You should also test your water quality once a week to make sure all is well.

Attraction Red Hardy Water Lilies

If you have water lilies in your goldfish pond you will have to discard any decaying lily pads as they appear. What you want to do is try and stop as much leaves and debris from going to the bottom of the pond. If there is to much organic matter such as fish waste, leaves and debris this can cause a perfect breeding ground for parasites and fish diseases to occur. Try and eliminate as much as you can. What many pond owners do come fall is place a pond net over their ponds to stop leaves from going into the water. This pond net also stops pond predators from getting access to your goldfish in your pond. Depending on where you live wildlife is bound to come near your pond sooner or later whether its herons, raccoons, kingfishers or eagles they will come to your pond looking for a snack. Look for other great ways at protecting pond fish from predators.

Garden Pond With Waterfall

You’ve just read about how to take care of goldfish in a garden pond and I’m sure you will have more pond questions as they arise. Throughout the years you will learn more about ponds and have other questions. I urge you all to ask any garden pond questions here so you will be able to take care of your goldfish and know what to do when problems occur. Enjoy your new garden pond and I wish you all best of luck 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”

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Garden Ponds Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Diseases Goldfish Parasites

Do Goldfish Float To The Top Of Fish Tank When They Die?

When goldfish die in your aquarium they do indeed float to the top of the water. Do goldfish float to the top right away? No. You’ll usually find a goldfish that has died lying at the bottom of your fish tank. If you leave goldfish that died in your fish tank for a long period of time they will float to the top due to the body decomposing producing gas internally.

Dead Goldfish Float To Top of The Water In AquariumsWhenever you notice a dead goldfish in your aquarium remove them right away. If you don’t this can cause poor water quality and your other goldfish could get sick with fish diseases and parasites. Remove any dead goldfish in your aquarium right away to keep your fish tank healthy and disease free.

Test Your Water Quality In Aquariums Often - Water Test Kits Will Save Your Fish Life

****If you ever find any dead goldfish in your aquarium investigate and find out why they died. These are your warning signs that something is wrong. If you don’t react and have other goldfish in your tank they could be in danger of dying. Test your water quality in your aquarium right away to prevent any other deaths from occurring. One dead goldfish could mean more. ****

Sincerely,

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

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Cloudy Eye Goldfish Goldfish Care Goldfish Diseases

Goldfish Help – Cloudy Eye

Jamie:

I stumbled upon your goldfish blog while looking for assistance to determine what, if anything, is wrong with one of our goldfish, which live in an outdoor pond. After going outside to feed them this afternoon, I noticed the right eye on the smaller fish was a blue-ish-cream color, almost a cloud-like color. I did not see any noticeable sign of swelling or
evidence the eye was protruding outward, both of which I have seen mentioned elsewhere concerning infection/disease. Though by no means am I a goldfish expert, I knew this condition was a new development and likely an abnormal one indicating an infection or disease or what have you.

I have done some research into it, but having limited knowledge about goldfish, and therefore am a bit reluctant to read a description of an ailment and decide, “That must be it.”

Goldfish With Cloudy Eye

Goldfish
Cloudy Eye

That said, I came across your goldfish blog and decided to snap a few photos of said eye with the hopes that you could ascertain what, if anything, is causing this and how to treat it. Attached are three photos of the aforementioned eye. Photos are not as clear as they could be owing to having the auto focus on, which can be thrown off by the water…so if need be, I can snap additional photos (I have a Canon EOS 20D, so taking clearer photos is not a problem if need be.).

Thank you for your help,

Joseph