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M-M-M-MY SHUBUNKIN

Don’t think it’s some kind of parasite. I have a number of the goldies I’m looking after from a relatives pond with very similar lumps and bumps. They have cleared up a bit after 12 months in a warm tank but some still have them. I think lymphocystitis.
I have goldies and shubunkin in there (all long fin) and whilst they were outside for years through winters of -3 to -6 , now they are spending winters at 70 and summers at 78.
They fair perfectly ok with no ill effects and live quite happily alongside a couple of grow on koi, a team of bristlenose, two gymnogeophagus rhabdotus, an albino black shark and a couple of gibbiceps as long as the oxygen content is high, so plenty of turn over, airstones and splashing water. And of course it goes without saying , a huge pond style box filter!

Shubs are just as hardy and tolerant of both hot and cold as goldfish, or at least the ones here are.

Still on the lookout for a couple of true Bristol blue shubunkin. They are my fave just cos of the colour and the fin shapes. But I do hold my hand up, I keep the fancy goldfish too, including black moors, but nothing too weird, just various varieties of oranda.
Knew a guy who kept them outdoors through milder winters but I wouldn’t recommend it.

Since I have closed ten or so tropical tanks down in the colder half of the fish house I have found myself repurposing a few to goldfish tanks, then falling soft and heating them to 70 (as much for the bristlenose as the fancies) which I know sort of defeats the object!
 
Don’t think it’s some kind of parasite. I have a number of the goldies I’m looking after from a relatives pond with very similar lumps and bumps. They have cleared up a bit after 12 months in a warm tank but some still have them. I think lymphocystitis.
I have goldies and shubunkin in there (all long fin) and whilst they were outside for years through winters of -3 to -6 , now they are spending winters at 70 and summers at 78.
They fair perfectly ok with no ill effects and live quite happily alongside a couple of grow on koi, a team of bristlenose, two gymnogeophagus rhabdotus, an albino black shark and a couple of gibbiceps as long as the oxygen content is high, so plenty of turn over, airstones and splashing water. And of course it goes without saying , a huge pond style box filter!

Shubs are just as hardy and tolerant of both hot and cold as goldfish, or at least the ones here are.

Still on the lookout for a couple of true Bristol blue shubunkin. They are my fave just cos of the colour and the fin shapes. But I do hold my hand up, I keep the fancy goldfish too, including black moors, but nothing too weird, just various varieties of oranda.
Knew a guy who kept them outdoors through milder winters but I wouldn’t recommend it.

Since I have closed ten or so tropical tanks down in the colder half of the fish house I have found myself repurposing a few to goldfish tanks, then falling soft and heating them to 70 (as much for the bristlenose as the fancies) which I know sort of defeats the object!

Thanks for this, I've been curious about what a "warm" temp for treating this might be. I set a heater to 75 before I left for work today, is this warm enough for this kind of wait and see approach?

Plan to blast em with 3lbs/100g salt tomorrow unless maybe not a good idea or unnecessary? I suppose further evolution of the problem would differentiate between lymphocystitis or parasites. I hate to bring in chemicals if not absolutely necessary, but if it's best I suppose I could go ahead with the dimillin soon as Thursday when it arrives.
 
With the salt or chemicals it really does depend on what it is. I’d love to say I was sure but I’m not and as such if it were lymphocystis then I’m not sure anything would be the right thing.
I’ve read it’s contagious, can hybernate, but yet I’d expect things to get worse and not better in that case and them all end up with it. That hasn’t happened with mine, if anything the warmth and decent water seems to have stopped it in its tracks and even reversed it in the worst cases. And no other fish “became” infected. Not sure of course what will happen when these fish do go back to pond life, as I see that as a much more stressful existence, and that’s supposed to be a contributor too. Not sure the salt could harm anything, they should be resilient to that approach at least but I also can’t say I tried it, mainly due to the other fish in there too.
 
The more I look into it, I'm really leaning into goldfish herpesvirus aka carp pox. Seems to be a common problem in colder times of the year for all carp type fish. Most of what I'm reading points to raising temperature so we'll see if 75 for awhile does the trick. I suppose it has gotten cool in my basement this winter, but the water can't be much cooler than 60-65F on average.
 
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