My 5 yo Pond Goldfish Are Dying

[hopeinal24]

I found one dead last week. One today in the same exact place in my small ornamental pond. The first one had two round lesions on its side but the one i found today didn't. They were both quite large. I feed them a balanced diet. Make sure i add dechlorinator when I add water which I haven't in a while due to lots of rain. Checked the ph today and it was fine. I'm so sad and upset. Hoping I can find out what is causing this before I lose all of them. Any help greatly appreciated.

 

[WaterGardener]

Sorry to hear about your fish losses. Most fish problems are the result of water quality issues. So checking the water should always be the first step.

What was the pH? Do you also have tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and KH? If not, please get those, the liquid type not strips, and post the results here. That should give us an idea of what is going on with your pond.

 

[hopeinal24]

Thanks. The pH was 7.5. i just ordered a test kit for the other things from Amazon. It will be here Sunday. I'll post results as soon as I get them.

 

[GBBUDD]

pH CAN BE DIFFERENT READING AT DIFFERENT TIMES OF THE DAY. add rain to that equation and your ph can drop even further. another possibility is 5 year old fish start to find some size i wonder if lack of oxygen may have helped contribute to the problem

 

[WaterGardener]

Be sure you have a KH kit. It is usually not included with sets and has to be ordered separately. To me, KH is one of the most important tests to use, maybe even the most important.

 

[j.w]

@hopeinal24
How many fish in your small pond?

 

[Mmathis]

Hello and welcome!

As well as test results, how big is your pond, how many fish do you have, and what kind of filtration do you have? Is pond in direct sun? Good water movement is very important, especially since our temperatures are starting to rise.