my koi are dying there is a disease but I don't know what it is.?

Question

on one fish the scales got bloated and she lived for about 2 weeks. She turned on her side and then would swim and then lay and start turning on her side again. Another fish quit eating and then got white spots that looked like lint and it sort of looked like a hole developing on him. He didn't eat for 2 weeks and laid on the bottom of the pond. He died yesterday. Also their eyes look really weird.

I have had the pond salted and cleaned.So far we have lost around 8 fish to this disease. We didn't know that they had anything because some of the smaller ones got caught in the filter. Since cleaning the pond only 2 have died. Some one told us there is a disease that gets on a fish and when it dies it travels to another and so on. Any one have ideas on that. It seems to be what's happening. One dies and then another gets it and dies. Thanks

Answer 1

You say the scales got bloated? Sounds to me like dropsy:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FAQ%20Pix/GoldfishDropsy.jpg
http://thegab.org/Articles/images/GoldfishIllnessDropsy.jpg

Dropsy pushes the scales up and gives the fish a pinecone-like apearance. It also makes them swim 'wonky'. Dropsy itself is not a disease, but a manifestation of something wrong. It could stem from poor quality in the water, or from a virus or bacterial infection. It is almost always fatal, even with treatment. The original problem needs to be addressed (water quality [ammonia / nitrites / nitrates], temperature, temperature shock, alkalinity, hardness, etc)

The white spots sound like ich (http://www.koivet.com/images/gfich.gif) or velvet, both of which are parasites the burrow under the fish's skin and feed off blood and tissue. The white spot you see is a little cyst that develops around the parasites - the fish's attempt to stop the cyst from progressing. The fish detach themselves when they are full, float around for a while then attach to a plant or to gravel, and then release thousands of new parasites.

They have ich- and velvet- specific meds at your fish store, but frankly I don't like using ich meds as they cause more problem than they solve. I don't know how big your pond is, but the best method to kill ich is to use AQUARIUM salt. Use one tablespoon per 5 gallons (be sure to disolve in a cup of pond water before pouring it in - raw salt will burn your fish's gills). If you can, increase the temperature to 75F (this will increase the lifecycle of the Ich parasites, thus killing them faster - they are only killable after they have multiplied but before they attach to a fish).

Good luck! Your infected fish may die, but with a salt treatment, and a good water cleaning, you should be able to eradicate the Ich parasites.

If you need more help, go to fishforums.com

Answer 2

It is really hard to treat a pond, and I wouldn't treat any fish, especially pond fish, until you know what you are treating them for. Right now I would add some freshwater aquarium salt to the water. If you know how many gallons your pond holds, add 1 cup of salt for every 80 gallons of water. This will reduce stress on the fish, and depending on the disease, it could help cure them. And, salt won't mess with your pond chemistry, kill your plants, or kill your biological filter, like some fish medications. Then, after you've added the salt, search for a web site on fish diseases and try to diagnose your fish. If you are sure you have figured out what is wrong with them, then treat them according to the web site. No one can diagnose your fish but you, and sometimes you can't even do it because very different fish diseases can manifest themselves in the same ways.

Answer 3

The bloated one had something called dropsy, while there are other symptoms bloating is probably the most common. It is treatable but don't wait too long. The other sounded like it either had fish lice or a fungal infection. The hole could have been an ulcer.

Answer 4

Sounds like Ich. But I've heard a of a hole in the head disease too. Petstores normally have medication for ich. If it all possibly, the fish that's being treated should be isolated from the healthier fish.

Answer 5

Could be Ick---call your nursery or pet store and get some drops and their opinion.

Good luck!