I certainly didn't expect so much excitement from my new pond so soon.
I am in the middle (I think) of a goldfish emergency. I noticed the
three goldfish this afternoon "gasping" and eating bubbles, also one
of them tailstandsing in the middle of the Hornwort. I am on my way to
get an O2 test kit now. But wait ! there's more. I tested the water
again to see if anything had changed from my test just a few days ago.
Chlorine and copper were zero, and the nitrates and nitrites were also
low. What had changed from the first reading was that the PH had
increased (It was about 7.2), to a little beyond the higher end of
what goldfish like. Also the alkalinity was up, though not
outrageously so.

While taking the test something else happened, that really got my
heart beating. On of our three goldfish started having what looked
like swim bladder problems. It was floating on its side. I removed all
of the fish from the pond.
When I did so I noticed what looked like small worms/larvae in the
water of one of the containers I had just placed the fish in. I placed
each in a seperate container. There were not many, just one larger one
and a couple of small ones. They have dark heads and a red color, and
the tips seem fanned or forked. They stay near the bottom of the tank.
The large one them is about 1/4 inch.

The fish do not have sore looking areas, and they seem to be doing
well now in the different tank. No longer gasping, and they are
swimming fine. Recently, we have also had some trouble with a feral
cat. It has been climbing onto some pots(digging up many of my
starting plants in the process) that are around the water garden, and
knocking dirt into the pond. Gold this cause the water change?

Advise Please!

Thank you