Terri here is the pic of the goldfish

[Cinnamon]

Terri here is the pic of Mom's Goldfish. It isn't ich. I shot without a flash and it blurred a little. But you can see. It looks like white skin. Heiko said he thought it was old age. Mom has had the fish awhile now. All the other minnows look healthy.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/pamth@sbcglobal.net/detail?.dir=/1a35&.dnm=d57b.jpg&.src=ph

[Terri]

Hi Cin, well you're right, that's not ICH. Blurred pic but it looks to me to be loss of colouring(pigment) or even scales? Have you posted this over at KV too? Anyways, this happens, not uncommon for goldifsh to dull or loose pigment... could be age or could be diet.

[Jackie Ramo]

Looks like lost scales, in the picture anyway. Did you test the water?

[Cinnamon]

Jackie I am going to take my test kit over in the am when I go feed them and get the mail. That is usually around 10:30 am after the mail runs. I will post the results.

Terri I did post it at KV and got some reactions over there. One person was really scolding me about "my" fish. I posted to read all the post as it was NOT my fish. And I do have everything to take care of my fish! :roll:

There was a couple of mentions about it's tail. I will try to get a better pic in the am as well. I will go over with everything haha.

[Terri]

Yeah I read that reply...
I looked at the fins, again blurry pic, but I don't see what they seem to. The pecs looked fine, the tail fin, well that could be because the skin in clear at the tips... I dunno, you tell me ;-) Over all it looked like a healthy goldfish with some loss of pigment/scales. Now if it's loss of scales you'd want to figure out why? Scales just don't fall out...

[Cinnamon]

Terri this one had always been healthy! It has survived the odds. I will try to get a better pic this morning also. When I turn the flash off my camera it is easy to blurr. I forgot about it last night. So today I will try to get a better one. It has a good appetite also. My FIL wanted to bring all those minnows and put them in my pond! I SAID NO WAY! Geeze. I explained I want koi not minnows :lol: Although a couple of them over there are looking like bass !rofl

[Busy B]

How old is the fish?

[Cinnamon]

Busy B I would guess the fish to be between 4 and 5 yrs. It was the last Wally World fish she bought.

I went over and tested the water and took another pic with a flash this time. it didn't blur but the flash sure lit up the white! I took my glasses too so I could get a good look! :lol: The scales are there. They are just white.

PH 7
Ammonia 0
Nitrite <0.3
Nitrate 100
O2 5

On the Nitrite that is the lowest my card shows. I have a Tetra Test kit.

[Terri]

Any NitrIte reading is a bad reading... and the NitrAte is high. Did you do a water change while there? O2 saturation isn't bad but could be higher... 7 is where we aim. Five years isn't old for a goldfish, they can live well into the teens even 20's with good care.

So this GF is changing/loosing colour, it's not all that uncommon - what's the reason? Could be just a natural occurance, some go completely white after a few years.. but your MIL might want to look at it's diet(more variety, veggie etc) and pay more attention to the waterQ.

[Jackie Ramo]

I agree with a water change to lower the nitrates and probably other things not covered in our test kits. The fish looks healthy enough if one didn't see the white spots.

Terri my nitrites test kit says the same at the lowest colour 0 - 0.3, doesn't mean it is there its just what the card says.

[Cinnamon]

Jackie we must be using the same test kit! Is it Tetra? I thought the Nitrates were high. It was the darkest on that card. It only went to 100. I about freaked. I didn't do a water change while I was over there yet. I can go back over there and do it. Complete change? They are on well water so no chlorine in the water. She only feeds those goldfish flakes she gets from Wally World. I have been telling them about the broccoli and oranges. My FIL told me NOT to feed his fish like I feed mine. He said no oranges :lol: The first day I went over there I saw the rind of a tiny slice of orange in there !rofl Maybe if I keep talking something will rub off one day. The minnows are healthy also. This GF has a good appetite and swims around and is anxious for food when they see me. The minnows almost jump out the tank when I open the lid :lol: She has had them jump out before.

[Jackie Ramo]

I'd not do a complete change, after all the fish are used to this water. But I'd change some out every day so they can get used to the new water, be sure to test the well water before adding it. 25% change should be good.

[Cinnamon]

Jackie will do first thing in the am! Thanks!

[Jackie Ramo]

Don't for get to slip them a couple of oranges :wave:

[Busy B]

We've had a lucky winter and the power hasn't been off...until yesterday...DD was at work and asked me to check on her fish...I never go up there!! KIDS!!!!!! Messy, messy...anyway...I don't know how many fantails this girl has but she has 5 tanks. Checking them out, they look the same as your fish. Some scales lose their pigment.

Wouldn't suggest flakes either...leads to swim bladder problems. Use sinking pellets, just don't overfeed.(tends to foul the water ) Her fish eat better than we do *roll eyes*. She feeds Hikari goldfish, and they get peas on a regular basis and she has clips in the tank to hold zuccini...With regular water changes that fish will live to a ripe old age.

[Dayleen]

Cinnamon,

It could be the natural colour change they go through....it could also be that the fish lost those scales at some point and they grew back in without the orange pigment. I see this all the time with Goldies. Doesn't look like anything i would worry about if everything else is testing okay and the fish seems happy.