Help With Dropsy!

[klt.pugharbor]

I was wondering what you recommend doing for a fish that has dropsy. While I know that dropsy is a symptom rather than a disease, I don't know what to do in terms of treatment. He has a stressful level of nitrate in the tank, but the tankmate is fine. I am lowering the nitrate level now and trying to figure out what's wrong!
Here are some photos. What do we do? Bring him by, add salt (we did!), buy medication?
Thanks!

(I know that this usually means he has always had something that has been repressed then surges up again, but don't know what. He looks to be in his final hour. HELP!)

Here are the links for the images.

http/tinypic.com/r/f9pk3m/6
http/tinypic.com/r/6i66vp/6
http/tinypic.com/r/2nrd4rt/6

 

[klt.pugharbor]

Please please PLEASE reply! We don't know what to do, and we need help! We see people are reeading it. (KrystaK)?

 

[KrystaK]

Some more information is needed.
How big is the tank? How long has it been running? How many other and what types of other fish are there in the tank? What sort of filter do you have?
If the nitrates are high do a water change (About 30-50% immeadietly to lower the levels, don't use chemicals as the reading will spike back up when the chemicals ware off)

Medication only works about half the time, and even then it does best when you catch the disease early, this is a little late for medication.

Dropsy is usually caused by a bacterial infection in the kidneys or other part of the body which causes a fluid build up in the body cavity.
It's one of the hardest symptoms to treat. Try bathing the fish in salt, either aquarium salt or unscented epsome salt (Put him in a smaller tank and add twice the normal amoung ot aquarium salt. Do this for 15 minute periods, twice a day. it may draw some of the fluids from his body - as fluid build up is what causes the scales to pop out)

 

[klt.pugharbor]

Some more information is needed.
How big is the tank? How long has it been running? How many other and what types of other fish are there in the tank? What sort of filter do you have?
If the nitrates are high do a water change (About 30-50% immeadietly to lower the levels, don't use chemicals as the reading will spike back up when the chemicals ware off)

Medication only works about half the time, and even then it does best when you catch the disease early, this is a little late for medication.

Dropsy is usually caused by a bacterial infection in the kidneys or other part of the body which causes a fluid build up in the body cavity.
It's one of the hardest symptoms to treat. Try bathing the fish in salt, either aquarium salt or unscented epsome salt (Put him in a smaller tank and add twice the normal amoung ot aquarium salt. Do this for 15 minute periods, twice a day. it may draw some of the fluids from his body - as fluid build up is what causes the scales to pop out)

Thanks!
Ok, It's an Aquean filter, just carbon in it (I heard I should do that to treat Dropsy), one other identical goldfish who is healthy, 72 temp.

 

[KrystaK]

Looking more closely at the pictures I notice the fish has small white spots on his fins, it may be the early stages of Ich, in which case, aquarium salt is your friend (Aquarium salt is everybody's friend)
Add it to the tank and hike up the temperature if you can (For gold fish, a cold water fish, try and get it to about 75)
This will speed up the life cycle of the bacteria and cause them to dye off faster. You can add a treatment if you want, but as the fish is also suffering from dropsy I wouldn't.

Good luck, hope he pulls through