Why did my fish Die?

Question

My mom and I just got fish last Sunday for a neew pond we made, we had 2 koy and 6 goldfish the fish person said these are the best type for a pond and they live all year round! We'll the next day one goldfish had died. And I was feeding them the same amont as the man the store had told me. One Thursday we cleaned the tank and made it better for them. Well that Friday the were all Died! ALL OF THEM!!! why did this happen?

Answer 1

1. Did you condition or age the water?
2. Is there enough room in the aquarium? The general rule is that you should have one inch of fish per gallon. Maybe less with goldfish too because they're so fat.
3.Don't ever listen to the fish "experts" at the store.
4.Did you overfeed? Goldfish requirevery little food to survive.
5.Was the bowl not clean?
6. Did the goldfish have any signs of fungus or parasites?

Sorry about your fish. RIP little goldfish. :(

Answer 2

First, do you have a pond or an aquarium? Koi cant be keep ed in aquariums, unless you good it. NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE. Gold fish need 2 gallons of water per 1 inch, but you could add about 3 more inches. Second, did you cycle your pond? Cycling ponds is very important. Third, the people that work in pet stores say there experience with the fish, not what to do with the fish.Fourth, are you sure there was no bacteria, parasites, mosquito's, or did you use SOAP on anything in the pond? Soap is the poison for fish and is never to be used with anything fishy. Fifth, the temperature, was it too cold out side? gold fish and koi can only last to 65 degrees F. Finally, I have HEAR that koi need at least 200 gallons of water. So if you made a contender pond, its not for koi. Also, make sure that your pond has a plastic liner at the side, dirt can cause many problems.SO add gravel if you have any and its best to get CULTURED gravel. Gravel will be your filter.

Answer 3

There are many potential reasons.

1) You may have gotten sick fish.

2) What is the weather like where you live? Koi or Goldfish living in a pet store where the water is probably room temperature (72 degrees Fahrenheit) may not adjust well to being put outside in a (50 degree pond). They do and can live all year round, but they need to adjust to the weather changes.

3) Your water quality may be poor. By a Ph test kit. If memory serves, Koi and Goldfish like a Ph of about 7.0-7.2 I'm not sure about hardness (which can also be a factor).

4) First you said pond, then you said tank. Which is it? If it is a pond...how many gallons do you have?

5) Did you dechlorinate the water? Chlorine kills fish.

6) You should always but "tester" fish (as in two or three) for an aquarium/pond first. These tester fish will not only let you know if your water quality is up to par, but also they help esablish the beneficial bacteria which will eat the ammonia (waste products) that your fish produce.

7) After you put in your tester fish, your water will get cloudy. DO NOT CLEAN IT. It's part of the process of making it inhabitable by your fish (benefical bacteria bloom, I think). Also when you clean a tank never take out more than 3/4 of the water..use a gravel vac (ask your pet store worker what this is and how to use it).

8) When your pond/tank is up and running and you start introducing more fish always put them in a quarrantine tank first. That way, if they're sick they won't pass the illness to your already established and happy fish.

Hope this helps.

Answer 4

How large is your pond and how long was it up and running with the filter prior to your Sunday purchase?

A pond works the same as an aquarium. It needs to cycle and build up good bacteria. Have or did you test your water? PH is going to be your largest concern here so you do want a kit and one for PH. (Rain water will lower the PH) I usually toss in some sea shells and it seems to work fine.

here is a good web page to understand what is going on in your pond:

http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/biologicalcycle/a/nitrogencycle.htm

Also, eventhough it is a pond, the rules for adding fish are the same. Gold fish wise, 1-2 fish no more for a week. For Koi, unless your pond is over 800 gallons, only 1 Koi per week. (unless they are really small) then 2 is ok.

This also goes for plants. Since you have koi, you really should have plants in the pond for them. Even floating hythis are great.

You really shouldn't have to "clean" a pond. Leaves in the fall to keep the nitrates from excelling in the spring. You do need to use dechlor / water conditioner in the water as well. EcoFix is a good pond starter and works well for keeping algae out.

I am sorry to hear about your fish, and if you need additional help feel free to email me.

Answer 5

What was the size of the tank where you were keeping the fish? It sounds to me as though you may have just set the tank up for your fish and put all eight in at the same time.

Goldfish and koi are very messy fish. They eat a lot and poop a lot. This causes ammonia to build up in the tank. Ammonia is toxic to fish, unless you tank has been cycled. In cycling, you build up a population of bacteria that convert the ammonia to nitrite (which is also toxic), then to nitrate, which your fish can live in when the concentrations aren't too high (best below 30 ppm or lower). The smaller of the tank, the faster the ammonia builds up. When a fish dies, this also releases ammonia. I think this is probably what happened to your fish. If you would try this again, I would recommend that you either cycle your tank (which can take up to two months) or get a test kit for ammonia and plan to do water changes, probably every 2-3 days depending on the size of the fish and the size of the tank. See the web page below for more on tank cycling.

Answer 6

Did you use a pre-molded pond ?
Did you fill the pond with a "rubber " hose or the regular one you use in the yard ?
Does the pond have a filter ?
Is the pond in full sun ?
Are you on city or well water ?
Did you add aquarium salt into the pond, allfreshwater, cold and warm water fish need this. ?
I know this sounds like alot of strange questions but they are inportant to a new pond and fish.

Answer 7

First of all, when you have a new system you can't throw a lot of fish in at once. The fish need to be properly acclimated, and the water dechlorinated. You need to introduce only a couple of fish at a time. Read up on nitrogen cycle, and get your water tested (free at the pet store, or buy your own kit). Also, make sure you have a proper filtration system set up. If your pond is outdoors, do some research on what type of fish work best in your climate. I am not sure goldfish are the hardiest little guys... also, expect some of your fish to get eaten if they are outdoors. Remove dead fish immediately to prevent others from getting sick.

Answer 8

4 gallon of water in accordance to inch of fish is the rule of thumb for installation a tank this facilitates area for them to locate there own territory and room to strengthen also en ought oxygen as they ex hail carbon witch continues to be in the water for alongside time actually have an lower than gravel filter out this makes pleasant micro organism to digest waste you ought firstly a twenty gallon tank in case you want to keep fish don't be fobbed off with cheep novelty tanks you ought to have a heater this keeps the water consistent tropicals like 80 to 80 3 tiers & gold fish dont concepts

Answer 9

well some fish have a temperature that the water has to be at. if the temp of the water is not right it will make them sick and they can die. if you get more fish just get a water thermomiter for the pond and make sure the water is at the right pH for that fish and check leavels of chemicals in the water.

Answer 10

you should look online how to take care of fish and koi should be the only ones in the pond not any other gold fish, and you need to know what there temputer is as well.