Fish Health
Most of the conditions that fish suffer from are usually as a direct result of being kept in poor water conditions. The dedicated aquarist will endevour to keep their water as clean as possible by doing weekly water changes. This is not just a suggestion, its a necessity. Unfortunately, some of the fish we buy come to us in poor condition, or already carrying bacteria. Most of these ailments are reversible through a frequent water change regime.
If you maintain good water quality, keep the right kind of fish together, feed good quality food and monitor all your water properties you will rarely have any problems. A few common sense precautions when you purchase new fish can save you a lot of trouble.
A few things to observe:
- Are the fish active?
- Are they eating?
- Are there any scars, spots or open wounds?
- Are the gills nice and pink?
- Are the fins wide open, not clamped close to the body?
All of these and more should be closely looked at before you buy any fish and never buy a fish that does not look or act right and "cure" it at home! One last important thing, check out the stores filtration system. If the system is a central one be sure to check out all the tanks for signs of parasites as many are free swimming at some point in their lives, and they could move freely from tank to tank.
Once you decide to purchase the fish a few more precautions should be taken in order to keep risk at a minimum.
- Slowly acclimate the fish to your tank water.
- Use an antibiotic dip if you can.
- Ideally have a quarantine tank set up.
- Isolate the fish for two weeks in the quarantine tank.
- Keep a close eye on the fish once it's in your tank.
- Prevention is better than intervention.
These are basic common sense guidelines that can save your fish, plants and money if properly followed. If you find yourself confronted with one of these ailments or some other not described here, please email me and I will do my best to identify the problem and diagnose the cure.
Water Quality Issues
Ammonia Poisoning
Cause.
If too much organic waste is present and the load becomes to much for the bacteria to handle, the ammonia concentration in the tank will rise. If the pH is above seven ammonium turns into deadly ammonia and poisoning takes place.
Symptoms
The gills of the fish turn a lilac color and they hang sluggishly just below the water surface, panting.
Treatment
Find the cause of the organic waste and remove, do a large water change and slowly bring the the pH down below seven if required.
Carbon Dioxide Poisoning
Causes
Too much CO2 fertilization.
Symptoms
Apathy, restless swimming and panting.
Treatment
Strong aeration, water change and never fertilize with co2 at night.
Nitrite / Nitrate Poisoning.
Causes
Heavy organic load or pollution and not doing enough water changes. Also check water supply, some are high in Nitrates to begin with.
Symptoms
Colors of the fish become more intense or really bright, panting, and hanging just below the water surface.
Treatment
Find cause of organic pollution and change water to bring down levels.
Poisoning from Tap Water
Causes
Tap water varies from area to area and may contain Chlorine, Copper, fertilizer and other pollutants.
Treatment
Test the water before using and filter with something like the Tap Water Purifier or use water run through an reverse osmosis filter.
Diseases and Parasites
Gas bubble disease
Gas Bubble Disease is caused by a sudden dramatic change in gas pressure in the aquarium. This can happen by changing too much water at one time or by adding cold water to the fish tank. Gas bubbles form in the fins and skin of the fish. The bubbles look like blisters and are very easy to see. The skin will crackle if you run your finger across it. If not treated in time, gas bubbles in the bloodstream will kill the fish. The treatment is to add a lot of aeration to the aquarium. Lights should be left off to minimize stress. If you see a lot of bubbles that have already popped, consider adding a general antibiotic to guard against secondary infection.
Bacterial Fin Rot
Cause
Bacteria, usually only present in poor environmental conditions.
Symptoms
Frayed fins. Often shortened, with or without a white rim around them.
Treatment
Any good antibiotic available through the pet shop, check for water conditions.
Dropsy
Cause
Bacteria.
Symptoms
Fish is bloated with scales standing out edgewise like a pine cone.
Treatment
Causes Kidney damage, treat with a medication for internal infections.
Hexamita or hole in the head disease
Cause
Parasitic, Hexamita is a single cell parasite that most often infects Discus, Oscars, Angelfish and The Gouramies.
Symptoms
Loss of appetite, uneven swimming, colors become more intense and pin sized or larger holes appear in the head region.
Treatment
Depends on the stage of the disease, early stages with only small holes can be helped with the addition of vitamins and the addition of aquarium salt. Later stages you can try a commercially available treatment. It is usually fatal.
Gill and skin Flukes.
Cause
Parasitic
Symptoms
Protruding gill covers, with violent and frequent swallowing motions, panting and scratching.
Treatment
Formalin bath outside of aquarium, or commercially available cure from pet shop, use caution in aquaria containing invertebrates. Use a secondary antibiotic to help with healing.
Ichthyophtirius or ICK (Whitespot)
Cause
Parasitic, probably the most common affliction seen by hobbyist.
Symptoms
Small white pustulates that look like grains of salt covering the body and fins. The spots are uniform in size. The fish will "scratch" on anything and breathe rapidly. ICK is light sensitive and can be easily seen when your light is first turned on.
Treatment
Although very common it can be cured quite easily if caught early. The most common medication is Anti White Spot Plus. This medication is very effective and should clear up the problem within a week or so. There are many brands available.
Velvet
Cause
Parasitic. Single cell parasite that attacks around open wounds and then spreads to the gills.
Symptoms
Yellow brown or gray looking dusting on the body area. Most noticeably around the Dorsal fin area. Fish are panting and scratching.
Treatment
Any commercially available medication.
Pop-eye
Cause
Unknown, but possibly fish tuberculosis, bacterial infection or even over saturation of dissolved oxygen.
Symptoms
Eye or Eyes protrude from their sockets.
Treatment
Difficult due to its unknown cause, general antibiotic.
Hemmorahagic Septicemia
Cause
Bacterial, common in the Live-bearers and Goldfish. Generally caused by prolonged exposure to poor water quality.
Symptoms
Blood-Red streaks on the fins close to the body, without any signs of skin damage.
Treatment
Any of the antibiotic treatments, like Octozin. Regular 20 to 30 percent water changes will keep the problem from re-occurring.
If you can't identify the cause of your fish's ilness or are unsure about treating it, you can email me with pictures or information about the symptoms.