article: Fish Infections

Fish Infections

While not all of your fish are going to be susceptible to every type of infection, it is important that you check the majority of your fish a few times a year so you are more likely able to keep them from dying from these infections. Infections can affect how your fish swim, eat, and even breed so the affects of the infections in fish can be wide ranging.

Treatments for infections vary from the type of infection to the type of fish and to what the infection is. If you are not sure what type of infection your fish has, taking a photograph of your fish, or taking the fish with you to the pet store, to the ag center or to the fish breeder will be important as sometimes words do not express the differences well.

Cottonwood is a disease that will strike various types of fish, leaving them with a creamy colored fluffy thickness over their body and sometimes over their fins. From the name Cottonwood, you can imagine what this creamy fluffy thickness would look like over a portion of your fish body. Giving your fish a salt bath is just one of the general treatments that are used for this disease. A salt bath about 3 percent is what is most often recommended. Other treatments include treatment of the entire pond, so checking your entire fish stock may be needed for proper treatment of this disease.

Fish TB is a very noticeable disease once you gather all the information about your fish. If your fish are not eating, if their fins seem to be ‘coming apart’ looking a little frayed, of if areas of the scales seem to be raised on the body of the fish, your fish could be suffering from Fish TB. There is actually very little you can do for these fish, although you might want to obtain some antibiotics from your local supplier if you are finding many of your fish in this condition. It is important to wear gloves when treating fish that are sick, and especially with this disease. This disease will rarely be cured in your fish unless you have caught the symptoms very early.

Another type of disease that you should be aware of in fish is Dropsy. Dropsy is actually a bacteria problem, a disease that there is no cure for. The fish that has Dropsy has a very swollen stomach, a belly that looked very much like it is full of air. The scales on the body of the fish are also going to look raised in a way that makes the fish look as if the scales are going to fall off. To prevent this disease from spreading even further through your water garden, disposing of the affected fish will be necessary. You should always be wearing gloves when handling fish that are sick with this disease.

Fish that are healthy will swim before and after your handling, they will be full of energy. You will notice fish that are healthy are going to eat regularly as you put food in the water garden. When disposing of fish, you need to keep from throwing them in the yard surrounding your home, where animals can be drawn to them. Ask your local ag center, pet dealer or fish breeder what are the best methods for disposing of fish, they might even like to have the fish to study them!