several of goldfish have died in a few days. they have white film on their bodies, what could be the cause?

Answer 1

They probably have a fungal disease. You need to act quickly before they all die.
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/disease.html

Answer 2

You don't need to heat a goldfish's tank. Goldfish thrive in temps ranging from 65-75 degrees and most do best in the 70-72 range. Oxygen dissipates as water temps increase. Goldies have adapted to living in cool to cold water where oxygen is abundant. Keeping a tank too warm limits the available oxygen and this can weaken and stress your fish leaving them more susceptible to disease. Using a heater is ok as long as you keep it set on 70-72 and it has a thermostat so that it will automatically regulate and not over heat your tank. I think what may have happened is that your tank may have been a bit too warm which depleted the oxygen levels and your fish became stressed and weakened. Hopefully, you only have those two goldfish in that tank? 20 gallons is the bare minimum size for two fancy goldfish. Any additional fish will overstock your tank and create more problems with regards to keeping your water healthy. Have you been testing for ammonia, nitrites and pH? These are all extremely important parameters to monitor in a goldfish tank because goldies are very, very messy. You were correct to perform a water change. I would recommend doing another and testing your water for ammonia especially. If you don’t have the test kits, take a sample of water to your local pet store and they will test it for you. You should also make sure you have test kits for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH. Liquid tests are most accurate and that’s what I recommend using. While you’re at the local fish store, purchase a GOOD anti-bacterial. I personally prefer API Tri-sulfa, but something comparable will do. You are going to be treating for fin rot (frayed fins/red streaks - secondary infection spurred on by bad water and ich) Follow the instructions on the bottle. You will need to remove any charcoal from your filter. Charcoal seriously limits the effectiveness of most anti-bacterial and fungal medications. You will be treating both fish, so don’t worry about an isolation tank right now. There are medicated foods, but don’t use these. Unfortunately, your fish are a bit beyond this type of treatment. Don’t feed your fish for the first two days of treatment (and don’t use the Ich medication while using the anti-biotic) This will reduce the waste your fish create while treating for the disease. Goldfish can easily go 3-5 days without food so don’t worry…. They’ll be fine. I apologize for such a long-winded answer, but with all you have going on I wanted to try and cover all the bases. Feel free to e-mail me with any additional questions. GOOD LUCK!!

Answer 3

YOU NEED TO CHANGE THE CONTAINER THAT THEY ARE IN, CHANGE THE WATER OR BETTER YET, CONSULT SOMEONE IN A FISH/PET STORE ABOUT YOUR ISSUE - THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO HELP!
PS- YOUR PUMP MIGHT ALSO BE CONNECTED IMPROPERLY OR YOUR FILTER MAY ALSO NEED TO BE REPLACED.

Answer 4

this is definitely a fungal infection and needs to be treated asap !! unfortunately, now the entire aquarium/pond is infected. if treated right away the fish have a very good chance of recovery. however, every three days continue to treat the water for the fungal infection, otherwise the infection will just reoccur on the fish! Use only half the dosage when treating every three days. you can buy anti fungal cures at the pet store.

Answer 5

Contact whomever you purchased the goldfish from to speak with them about their condition. It sounds like a fungal infection; however, they often acquire that film post-mortem (after death). Any cleansers used to clean their tank or bowl may have trace amounts left behind on the gravel or pebbles. The water used to replenish a tank or bowl should either be left out overnight so that the chlorine may dissipate or drops of a chlorine counter-agent should be used in water when cleaning their bowl or just changing the water. If you haven't changed the water, that too, could be a problem causing them to die. Find a reputable resource in the Pet Store or Veterinarian who specializes in fish or aquatic pets.

Answer 6

if any of the other fish have this film take them out and put them in a hospital tank. Consult an aquatics shop as they will be able to help determine what the fish have. You will have to treat the healthy as well as the sick fish. Good luckx

Answer 7

Whats your Ph? I have heard of fish getting white film over their bodies then dieing when there has been a drastic drop in Ph. It could also be some sort of disease too though.

Answer 8

Your fish do not have ick-this is white spots(hence the common name of the disease, white spot)over the body. It is either velvet or a fungal infection, both of which can be treated with an over the counter treatment.
DO NOT MOVE YOUR FISH-this will only stress them out and either make the situation worse, or kill them. The second worse thing you can do is to clean everything in your tank and scrub it. Over time you grow filtering bacteria in the gravel and filter, and scrubbing everything clean will kill all this off and you will in effect be left with a new tank and all the initial problems this entails.

Answer 9

This could be velvet disease. Get the fish out of the water,into a large enough container of clean water, drain off the old water and very thoroughly clean the tank. The remedy is made by Interpet, and will include a leaflet telling you exactly how much to use, and what to do about infected fish, but if fish have already died you need to be very quick with the remedy. Your vet will also have a solution for this. Good luck; my fish are 17 years old, and I gather many of the fishy diseases are caused by poor water quality. Fish are literally swimming in their own urine, and if their water is not cleaned out often enough, this acts like acid and allows bacteria to invade their bodies. Good luck with this; I hate it when fish die, they are so beautiful

Answer 10

fungas,change water and buy some medicine from an aquatic centre. Ive had that trouble and tried 6 teaspoons of normal table salt and it cured them+its cheaper.

Answer 11

Sounds like white spot. You can get treatment for the tank, but sounds like it's too late. Isolate the ones who are alive and treat them. It's quite common in fish and spreads quickly too.
Sorry about your fish!