ick is this white stuff that grows on the fish. its a fungus & it'll kill the fish. A huge % of goldfish die with in the first week.

If ur fish has only 1 tail fin (kinda looks like a "C" shape, then its prob a Commet. they r feeder fish & don't live long if left in a bowl. They r usually imbreed (its really hard to prevent this) & kept in tiny tanks/bags for long periods of time & r sick when they arrive at the store.

If the fish dies with in the first few weeks, its more then likely NOT ur fault. & fancy goldfish die early too because they're all screwed up (I some how don't think the fance goldfish r natural, I think they r man created, like pure dog breeds).

I had Captian Red for about 7-10 years, I really forget but he was super OLD!!! He would have lived longer if my stupid neighbour didn't kill him. He was about the size of my fist & he was a fancy goldfish. He had a butterfly tail (its 2 "C" shaped fins on 1 tail), he was sooooo fat& he was multi coloured, but mostly a rusty red colour. I have a crappy photo of him, but I'm not sure where it is right now.