Aquarium Fish Diseases 1As with any other type of animal diseases can be a problem with your tropical or salt water fish. The good news is many problems can be prevented before they take hold. Here is a discussion of common aquarium disease problems. You should become familiar with the cause of these diseases, this way you can prevent many of them before they have a chance to occur. AmmoniaAmmonia problems are actually quite common especially with new tanks. This is known as ammonia poisoning. Ammonia poisoning most commonly occurs in new aquariums, especially if you have immediately stocked the tank with lots of fish and/or live rock.
The desired level of ammonia is always zero. Although it is not uncommon to have trace amounts of ammonia in the water most of the time in a healthy Aquarium this will generally be harmless.
Although even small amounts of ammonia can still lead to problems if not noticed and treated. It is necessary to understand the nitrogen cycle for keeping your aquatic life in good health.
Normally the amount of ammonia present is accompanied by a rise in pH, as ammonia is a strong base. It is stabilized by alkaline water. It will usually cause damage to the gills of some fish at a level as small as .25 mg/ liter.
The fish that have ammonia poisoning will show some distinct symptoms. Fish that have contracted ammonia poisoning may appear darker in color and will some times be seen gasping for air at the surface.
They may also have red or bleeding gills. Ammonia poisoning can be prevented, but it cannot be cured. You will want to avoid adding many expensive fish to new tanks.
New tanks should sit for 24 weeks until the bacteria level is sufficient to handle the tank for, and then add a few inexpensive fish get the water acclimated to their waste.
You should purchase a good ammonia and nitrate test kit, and test the water often to be sure there's no ammonia build up. If your water filter uses charcoal, look for charcoal that will remove ammonia from water.
IchIch is the most common freshwater fish disease. It is also the most contagious of all diseases. Ich is identified by small white pimples concentrated on the fins and body of fish.
These pimples are actually sacks. In the few days, the sacks will break open and the parasites will fall into the aquarium gravel, where they multiply in great numbers. When they mature, they will attack the rest of the fish, which is what makes ich so contagious.
Treatment of fish that have contracteed ich can be difficult. There are however several medication and preventatives available including Super Ich by Aquatronics. Black spotBlack Spot most commonly occurs following the addition of new fish to the aquarium. All fish are susceptible, the silver dollar and Piranha especially so (Note - true piranha are illegal in the united states). Black spot is fairly easy to diagnose and treat. It will appear as small black specks on the body. There are a number of commercially available treatments and preventatives that can be used to treat infected fish. DropsyDropsy is not a disease. It is a sign of an internal bacterial infection. Most other bacterial infections will have been classified separately. The fish suffering from dropsy will have bulging sides and stomach, and scales may be forced outward. VelvetVelvet is a very common disease, which resembles Ich. The white pustules are much finer and are located mainly on the body. It is a little easier to cure sense the disease lifecycle is not as rapid as with Ich. It most commonly will occur after fish experience chilling or stress caused by transportation or poor water quality. There are many commercially available products to cure velvet.
This covers the most common fish diseases. See Aquarium Fish Diseases 2 for additional information about common disease associated with tropical and salt water fish. |
