Introduction

If you are an Aquarist like me or are striving to be one, you need to be aware of five of the most common diseases we face with our fish. No matter how well you keep your aquarium, your fish may come down with one of these diseases.

You need to be able to recognize it, the cause of the disease and how to cure it.

Cause Of Diseases

Fish live in a world of bacteria that is harmful to their health.

Fish are just like humans who are also in contact with bacteria and when the human’s defenses are down, they become vulnerable to disease. Fish are the same way.

When a fish’s body defenses are reduced they become vulnerable to disease. Your fish can become defenseless when:

1. They become stress – This is the most common cause of disease in aquarium fish. Abrupt temperature changes, pH changes in your water or any other abrupt changes in water conditions or their environment can stress your fish.

2. Dirty water – Like humans, if you live in an excessive dirty environment, you are more likely to come down with a sickness.

3. Injury – If your fish become injured they are likely to develop a disease.

Five Common Diseases

Five of the most common diseases you will encounter in your fish aquarium are:

1. Ick Or White Spot Disease – This is a tiny parasite that feeds off the body of your fish. It is easily recognized by tiny white spots on the gills and also on body of you fish. It needs to be addressed immediately upon discovery since it is easily spread and leads to death of your fish. Your fish pet store carries medicine you can use to cure this disease.

2. Fin Rot – This is caused by bacteria and will usually infect fish that are injured. You can recognize this by the fin of the infected fish will start to turn white on the edges and the fin becomes frayed. To cure this disease, thoroughly clean your aquarium by scrubbing the sides and changing the water. Also put in medication designed to cure fin rot.

3. Gill Disease – This is caused by dirty water and can be detected by your fish rapidly moving their fins and going no where fast. They are also having difficulty breathing. To cure this change the water and ensure you do not have chlorine in the aquarium since chlorine can irritate the gills of your fish.

4. Fungal Infection – This is usually a secondary infection that occurs when your fish is already ill. It is recognized by a white growth on the body of your fish. To cure this use an anti-fungal medicine.

5. Velvet – This is recognized by your fish acquiring gold dust that starts at the gill and then gradually spreads across the body. This disease is caused by a parasite in your aquarium. To cure this change the water and scrub everything in your aquarium. There are also some medicines you can obtain at your fish pet store. Follow the directions carefully since it can be fatal to your fish.