Although some tropical fish diseases can be quite common, there are preventable measures you can take to ensure your fishes are healthy and happy.

Most times fishes suffer from minor ailments or infections that are results of poor tank water management, or even the presence of parasites in the tank.

Here are some precautions you can take to prevent your fishes from catching any illnesses:

• Carefully inspect your fish’s skin for unusual spots or swelling.

• Gradually allow your fish to adjust to the tank water by isolating the fish for up to two weeks in a quarantine tank. This period provides time for the fish to adapt from the tank water at the shop to the tank water at your home.

• Make sure you keep the tank water temperature at a stable level that is suitable for your species of fish. The pH of the water should also be at a suitable level for your species. Ask the shop what are suitable levels for your species of fish.

• Regularly change the water in the tank. This allows you to limit the amount of ammonia, nitrate, and carbon dioxide in the tank, as well as to filter out as much waste as you can.

• Filter as much chlorine as you can out of the water you place into the tank. This may get tiresome to do, but is essential to maintaining healthy water for your fishes.

• Try not to stress the fishes, as like humans, when fishes become more stressed they become more susceptible to illness. Don’t put too many bright lights near the tank.

• Don’t overfeed your fishes. It’s tempting to just feed your fishes as soon as you get them just to make sure they work. But this can lead to health problems, and also any food that is left uneaten becomes more waste around the tank, which again may cause problems for the fish’s health.

• Don’t mix-and-match fishes that are inappropriate. For example, don’t buy goldfishes to complement your tropical fishes; although they may gradually adapt to each other, goldfishes require water temperatures below about 18C, whereas tropical fishes usually live in temperatures in the mid-20C. Make sure the fishes are suitable to be mixed if you want different species in the same tank.

Prevention is always better than intervention when it comes to tropical fish diseases, in fact, with diseases of any kind.

If you want to learn more about ways you can prevent tropical fish diseases, and receive other advice on caring for your fishes, have a look at Katy’s Tropical Fish.

If prevention doesn’t get the job done, then you need to know how to treat and overcome tropical fish diseases.

Some diseases are quite common and are easy to cure. In fact, they may be easier to prevent, which would be even better and save a lot more hassle! It might take something simple like filtering the water, or removing organic waste.

Unfortunately, other diseases may cause internal damage and require medication or even a trip to the vet.

Here are a few common tropical fish diseases:

Ammonia Poisoning:

You will notice your fish turning a red-lilac color and usually just floating below the surface panting for air.

To overcome this you need to understand the cycling process of a new tank, and the appropriate pH levels that are required to minimize organic waste in the tank.

Although ammonia poisoning is relatively easy to treat, high pH levels may become problematic for the fish.

Cataracts:

Yep, fishes actually do get cataracts as well. You need to ensure that both the ammonia and nitrite levels remain within acceptable levels.

There are actually a number of treatments for cataracts, and since they are just fungal growths covering the eyes, aquarium fungicide usually does the trick.

Corneybacteriosis:

This is more commonly known as ‘bulging eyes’ because your fish usually looks like it’s got bulging eyes.

This is typically caused by swelling in the head, which pushes the eyes outwards, and is usually a result of overcrowding in the tank and poor water quality.

Dropsy:

If you notice your fish has bloated sides and stomach, and the scales are being forced outward, it may be a case of dropsy.

This isn’t actually a disease, but is in fact an internal bacterial infection. Unfortunately, if it is not treated properly it may cause kidney damage, so appropriate medication for internal infections is required.

Ichthyophthiriasis (or just Ich):

They appear as small white spots covering the body, mainly on the fins, and is probably one of the most common tropical fish diseases.

This can be treated with most over-the-counter medication made specifically for Ich, such as Maracyn Two or Super Ich. However, you will also need to carefully watch the temperature of the water in addition to providing medication in order to completely overcome the problem.

These are just some of the common tropical fish diseases but there are more out there that you will need to know about. In most cases to treat such diseases, you will simply need to check the quality of the water, and provide appropriate medication where necessary.

If you want to learn more about caring for your tropical fishes checkout Katy’s Tropical Fish.

Tropical fish diseases are not difficult to prevent or to overcome; you just need to know what to look for and what to do.