Suey and Jay are both right.
The fish are basically pond fish and need biiiiiig tanks.
At the moment their waste is poisoning their water because it's such a small tank so they are suffocating.
They will die in that small tank sooner rather than later. . Like suey says get a bigger container-either a tank or a storage box for now and move the fish and the filter.
You have to have a filter because that is what processes all the waste. I'm guessing the one that came with the tank you have is not going to be powerful enough but it's better than nothing for now.

The shops that sell fish and tanks like this are terrible and it causes so many problems.
But if you're quick, you might be able to save the fish.

And yes. It's definately a toxin problem, and part of the reason you have seen no change is because the tank is so small as soon as you put fresh water in it will be polluted again.
Even in a bigger tank you'll not see improvements for a good week if not more.

how do i treat the brown spots/burns on its lower fin then?? just gotta wait it out? thats not fatal right? if so, i shall just focus on the toxin problem and ignore its browness.

i am planning on getting a slightly bigger tank, perhaps 40x20x20?? perhaps taller... 40x20x whatever height. i know its still not the most ideal.. but i live in a very small apartment.. i dont got a pond for it.. X__X

wait, i need to bring up the water temperature? the guy at the pet store told me to bring it up and keep the temp at 28 degrees... is that right? if so, i shall go back to get that heater

i am going to change water very often from now on...
sigh.. but i dont think keeping the filter on is a good idea since my fish will get pushed around and bumped into "walls" by the current!!!!!! i'll keep it on when i m at home when i can keep an eye on it... but when sleeping or out.. i shut it off for now.... so it wont give my goldie too much shock....

but it took my fishies 5 months to get sick from the toxin?? O___O i've had them since august!!
so how much longer til goldie gets well... or is there no hope of getting well??? break it to me.. i want to be prepared!

thank you guys... i really appreciate it.. sigh am i too dumb to grasp this entire fish keeping thing?! GOSH

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The browness is caused by the toxins - the nitrite is affecting the blood's ability to carry oxygen which makes the blood look brown rather than a healthy red. Sort out the toxins and it should go away.

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Good that you want to get a bigger tank but you're right - it's not ideal by any means As has been said, the type of fish you have needs a tank of a minimum of four feet really to be any sort of long term home. Forget the goldfish in a bowl myth - it doesn't work. Know anyone else with a pond?

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No - goldies are coldwater, they need temps of 20-22. The guy at the pet store knows nothing if that's the sort of advice he's giving, ignore him!

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Good on the water changes but you MUST keep the filter on, did you read the article about the nitrogen cycle I linked? Here it is again, have a read, it will explain - you must keep the filter on to keep the good bacteria alive - the bacteria live in the filter and help detox the fish's waste.

Article on nitrogen cycle:
http://www.fishkeeping.co.uk/articles ... hless-cycling-article.htm

Your fish is only being bumped around because he feels very unwell and doesn't have the strength to swim properly. A healthy goldie can swim against a very strong current and will even actively seek one out to play in it. Sort the water, leave the filter on and he'll feel better.

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All I can say is you were lucky he's lasted this long. Sorry if that sounds harsh but that's the truth. He may get well if you can sort out the water but at the end of the day they need a proper home which they do not currently have. Goldies are tough but they are not that tough.

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Of course you are not too dumb. But you do need to read the articles we have linked for you, sit back, take a deep breath and decide if really and truly you can provide a suitable home for some fish that should live upwards of 15 years.

I appreciate this is all a bit of a shocker for you - most people really think the goldfish bowl thing really does work but it doesn't, sadly there is some terrible advice out there still which really doesn't help people who are new to fishkeeping. I'm sorry your foray into fish is turning out like this

Don't be afraid to ask questions, we are here to help

OH DEAR! i totally took that pet store guy's advice into buying two bottles of stuffs. one bottle is like some sort of vitamin water for my fish with would help them get stronger or something... another is to purify the water, getting rid of some nitrate and ammonia (i think its these two.)

well i turned on the filter..
but.. i find my fish stuck to its the pump... as in its too weak to swim away from the pump, thus being stuck to it!!! LIKE OMG... freaks me out so much! next time it happens, i am gonne take a pic and upload it. but as soon as i turn it off, it'd weakly wiggle back onto the rocks.... i guess. sigh
should i still keep the filter on over night... where my fish might be stuck for hours?!!!

great news, at least i feel that its getting better!
maybe its just me.. but it seems to be able to swim a bit now.. instead of just sitting on the rocks all the time. it wiggles a bit and float around around a bit .. =) cool huh! i m so happy. i am going to change an inch of water before i head to bed tonight... thanks a lot everyone!! *HUGS*

here.. the horrifying scene of my weak fish totally stuck against the water pump... being SUCKEDDD by it...
is it really still a good idea to keep the filter running when i am not around watching???

ALSO... i added warm water to the tank.. i tested it with my fingers and i am pretty sure the tank temperate rose a bit too.
except the water cools down pretty quickly (20 min or so?) ... so do i have to keep on doing it to keep the temperate higher than room temp? or is a few times a day enough?

i add about 20% of warm water (about 30-40 degrees i assume), and when its poured in, i feel slight change in the overall tank temperature, but not a lot (about 2-3 degrees i assume?) is that good enough?

What type of filter are you using? Does it contain any filter medium such as foam or other content. Looking at your photos the filter doesn't look right. Can you please tell us what make and type it is. The inlet looks a little big for the size of tank.

ya it has a black sponge and a white sponge which i change weekly alternatively.

they are usually real soiled when i changed them.... so ya. the white one often changes into a greyish colour!!

anyways. bad filter? but i swearrrr the guy told me to get this one... 5 months ago.. sigh. why would those peeps at the pet store mess with my fishies like that?! thats really unethical!!

any advice on the water temperature??
cause once i go to sleep, i wont be there to add warm water anymore... so.. ya...... should i go get that heater? but its quite pricy... sigh


oh i forgot to mention, from the most recent picture of my weak fish being stuck, the brown stuffs on its fins is really noticable! poor baby

OK. Do not change the filter medium at all it never needs changing. It is in that foam that all your good bacteria is living. The foam never needs throwing away unless it looses its form and starts falling apart. When you do a water change clean the foam in the water that you have taken from the tank and replace the foam into the filter housing. NEVER wash the foam or anything else from the tank under tap water, this will only add to your problems. I still would like to know the make and model of the filter you have in the tank please.

DO NOT adjust the temperature and NO, DO NOT put a heater in the tank, as has been mentioned by Suey2, this is bad advice from the pet shop, goldfish are coldwater species and do not need the warm water. Warm water will just make your problems worse. Room temperature is fine. Do not waste your money buying a heater, put the money towrds buying a bigger tank.

I would advise you to stop going to the pet shop you have been going to and source out a decent local fish shop that specialise in Fishkeeping. Stores like pets at home and some others are there solely to make a profit and generally do not care about the welfare of the fish, although there are a few exceptions around.

Your first course of action would be to get a much bigger tank with the correct filtration for that tank and get rid of the stuff you have now. If you can get somebody with the correct equipment to look after your fish whilst your new system cycles for at least 6 weeks and then place your fish back in the new tank. I know it all sounds rather harsh but that is what is required at the moment. Please read the following articles, these have been posted before by Suey2 and others but are required reading.

1. A Beginners Guide

2. Fishless Tank Cycling

3. Goldfish Size, Life Expetancy & Tank Recomendations

Sorry you've been given bad advice from your lfs, we've all been there before. To be honest, it looks like the poor fishy has suffered from fin rot, as they look shredded quite close to the body. The brown bits are probably secondary sores from the fin rot. This is almost certainly caused by poor water quality, and with such a small tank as yours its going to be almost impossible to sort out the water quality. So in my opinion, the most urgent things you can do for your fish asap are to get the biggest tank you can, the bigger the better, they'll soon grow into it. Also, you need the liquid API test kit. In a tank your size, you'll be forever doing water changes as the small volume of water just won't be able to dilute the toxins produced by the fish. The filter builds up bacteria to process the toxins into less harmful bacteria, you must read up on the nitrogen cycle to give a better understanding on this, then you'll know how important and urgent it is to get your fish a much bigger home. Good luck and keep asking questions.

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Can you tell us exactly what the bottles are called? One of them might be a water conditioner - if so you need to use this every time you change some water to make the fresh tap water safe to put in the tank.

Rachy mentions finrot - TBH I'd be more inclined to think it is the tissue dying from where the brown patches were due to a lack of oxygen in the blood. Could also be due to being damaged by being sucked against the filter and the fish isn't renewing the damaged tissue as it isn't strong enough. There are not really any other signs around the fins of 'finrot' as such Either way, it's down to water quality.