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Recognizing a Sick Fish
It is very important that any diseased
fish be recognized as soon as possible, the earlier a sick fish is
noticed, more is its chances of recovery. The common signs of a diseased
fish are:
 | Quicker and deeper movement of the gill cover could indicate
oxygen depletion, anemia , parasites on the gills or poisoning. |
| Fish rubbing themselves against objects in the aquarium indicate
skin irritation, Which could be caused by parasites |
| Frayed fins of the fish can be due Fin rot disease. |
| Specks, dots or lumps also signal diseases like ICH etc. |
| Swollen abdomen, bulging scales, bulging eyes can indicate fluid
accumulation due to oedema (Dropsy). |
More details about diseases and there treatment can be enquired
at the
Aquarium_club. Diseases can be caused by Bacteria, Virus,
Parasites or Fungus. |
A Short, But Important Article On Bacteria
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Bacteria are small singled
celled organisms. Some bacteria are beneficial (like the nitrifying
bacteria in the filter) while others can cause disease.
Hans Christian Gram,
a Danish bacteriologist, divided bacteria into two kinds:
- Gram -Positive Bacteria
- Gram-Negative Bacteria
The disease causing bacteria can be from either of the above group.
And the nitrifying bacteria are Gram-Negative.
To kill bacteria we need Antibiotics. There are three types of
Antibiotics:
- Broad Spectrum: This one is effective against both types of
bacteria.
- Antibiotic for gram-positive bacteria.
- Antibiotic for gram-negative bacteria.
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Treatment Of A Disease Fish
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Here are some points on which
I would like to stress before you start the treatment of your Fish.
- Always try to treat your sick fish in a separate hospital tank,
even if you are treating against a gram-positive infection, because it
will prevent the disease from spreading to the other tank mates.
- Be Careful Specially when treating Scale less fish and snails as
they are very sensitive to many medicines and copper containing
compounds.
- Please complete the course of the antibiotics (at least for 7
days) and don't stop the process in between even if the fish appear to
be recovered. To Prevent bacterial mutations resulting in a drug
resistant stain of bacteria.
The best approach in treatment of a fish is first to confirm the
disease from which the fish is suffering. As many diseases may have
similar symptoms, so it is best to find out the pathogen by using a
microscope (CLICK HERE to read the procedure). But as most of us don't
have a microscope, we will just try to treat the disease from the
symptoms.
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Parasitic Diseases
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Ichthyophthirius (ICH) White
spots appear on all over the fish body. It is highly infectious and
will spread to other fish very fast. The Parasite causing ICH is
always present in water but effects the fish only when they are
weakened by stress. The stress could be due to bad water quality,
addition of some aggressive fish to the tank etc. Before you start the
treatment you should find the cause of stress and remove it
immediatly. Treatment involves raising the tank temp. to 28oC
and daily water changes of at least 1/3 rd tank volume. Formalin
can be used at 15mg/L but remember formalin removes oxygen from the
water so one has to be very careful when using formalin.
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