Dying goldfish - hemmorrhagic septicemia?
My pond is about 600 gallons (8'x10'x 18"-24" deep), in full sun 12+ hours/day with 75% plant cover. There are 3 small "waterfalls" each with a 12" drop and 2 spitters to oxygenate the water. I have a skimmer with a mechanical filter which I clean every 7 - 10 days, with an adjoining biological filter which I leave alone. I also do about 25% water changes at the same time. Water temperature has never exceeded 78 degrees. The water is clear. There is no gravel and only minimal debris at the bottom of the pond.
Since the spring start-up in late April and the subsequent cycling 3 weeks later, the weekly water parameters have remained very stable. Nitrites and nitrates have been basically 0, ph ranges between 7.0 and 7.5 (even when I checked for nocturnal crashing), GH and KH are acceptable at 100 and 240 respectively. There have been no pesticides etc. used in the yard.
I had 15 x 5" healthy, very active comets and shubunkins who have spawned once already (with a surprisingly high survival rate!) along with some trapdoor and apple snails, sometimes a visiting toad. To tame the fish, I fed some small and medium sized commercial floating pellets every other day along with some broken algae discs in the shallows. Unfortunately, three weeks ago, I picked up 3 smaller shubunkins and 5 little minnows at a well-known pet store. Two days later, one of the new shubunkins died without any untoward signs. Since then, I have lost 8 of my older fish and lots of the fry.
The only clues I have found are that the sick individual will just hover near the surface of the water, but not be gulping, about 12 hours before death. The skin and gills on some of the whiter fish appears to have a ruddy undertone, sometimes with a bluish bruising somewhere on the torso. There don't seem to be any lesions otherwise. The eyes are not clouded, the tails /fins are intact. Surprisingly, some fry still remain and the minnows and snails act totally fine.
I tried pimafix twice, two days apart and gave the fish some sperlina. I have considered salt but have not used it in a pond before. It is not practical to try and catch all the remaining fish for individual treatment and to treat the entire pond with tetracycline is cost-prohibitive. Nuts. I have reluctantly decided that whatever will be, will be but...
Does anyone have any further suggestions? I have never had a problem like this! When I bring the survivors inside later for the winter (assuming there are any), would treating them at that time be of any benefit? In the fall, should I drain the pond and disinfect the liner? Should I be cautious about restocking or introducing new fish next year? How common is this disease and what should I do in the future to prevent this kind of loss? Thanks for any help.
frogman4_gw
koilady
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frogman4_gw
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mike_il
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ichthius
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