What's your opinion - Is this Dropsy??

A top down view of this fish shows protruding scales, However, when I take it out of the water..... she just seems to be obese.... Tell me it is not dropsy.... I've kept Goldfish for 40 years & never had a case of dropsy in them before.... this one is (about) 17 years old & I'd hate to have to chuck her out.

 

In the case of Dropsy, the eyes normally also bulge out, and the fish will either float or sink, and will have difficulty in swimming. If your fish is suffering these symptoms, then yes, it may very well have dropsy.

Otherwise, the fish might be heavily pregnant.

If it does turn out to be dropsy, don't worry. As far as I know, it is not contagious. You can either leave it to live it out, but this prolongs suffering. The fish will either die of organ malfunction or starvation. You can also try to euthanize it - sever the spine just behind the head, or overdose clove oil (or a similar tranquilizer) to put into a deep sleep, from which point it will die.