Gold Fish has swelled up and scales are standing out.

[Les May]

We have a new large out door pond, two of the recently purchased large (white and orange) gold fish have swelled up out of proportion and the largest one has its scales sticking out. What is the problem and is there a cure?

[kevkoi]

Looks like your goldfishes have a bad case of Dropsy. It's most likely a bacterial dropsy infection, and while there are many 'experimentataive' ways of treating this disease, none I have tried have been successful over the long term. Some ppl suggest adding epsom salt (ENO) to the water. There are propriety meds for internal bacterial problems u can try, but the best chance seems to be daily injection of an antibiotic like amikacin. This would have to be obtained from a vet, and very few vets would treat a fish. If u've exausted all avenues, it would be humane to put the fish down. I use an overdose of clove oil (can get from the pharmacy).

The underlying problem to dropsy is most likely hygiene. Is your pond running on a filter? Has the pond been cycled properly and what are the ammonia and nitrite readings? These can contribute to diseases in the fish.