Tropical Freshwater Aquarium Fish Common Diseases
One problem that many aquarium keepers experience at one point is tropical freshwater aquarium fish common diseases. How do aquarium keepers acquire fish diseases? It’s surprisingly easy even for the most careful aquarist. Fish diseases are brought into the tank when new fish are added or exchanged from one aquarium to another, through decorations that are switched from one tank to another and through using some live plants. This is why decorations should be thoroughly cleaned before reusing and new fish should be kept in isolation from the rest of the tank population until they are deemed disease free. One diseased fish can quickly infect the entire tank.
There are many diseases among fish but the top nine are: Fin Rot, Anchor Worms, White Spot Disease and its cousin, Marine White Spot Disease, skin or gill flatworms (also called flukes), and Hole in the Head Disease.
Fin Rot is an infection that will make the fins of a fish take on a ragged look due to the rotting away of the fin. Fin Rot is caused by bacteria but the bacteria is usually introduced into the tank due to poor water changing habits, giving the fish too much food or stressing the fish. Remember that when a fish environment is not good for them, it does cause stress to the fish.
Anchor Worms are worms that will cling to the head of the fish-even embedding its own head into the skin of the fish. Do not try to pull off the worms as this will not be effective since the worms can break off and you won’t get it all.
White Spot Disease and its cousin Marine White Spot Disease are caused by a parasite. This parasite is also known as Ick or Ich due to the abbreviation of the scientific name Ichthyophthirius multifilis. You can tell the fish has this disease if you see white spots on the fish, or the fish is breathing hard or seems to scratch itself against objects in the aquarium.
If your fish has skin or gill flukes then it has a parasite. They are sometimes called flatworms and either is correct. These can be very deadly to a fish because these parasites cause infected, abnormal changes in the fish tissue and skin.
Hole in the Head Disease is caused by an organism that lives and usually remains within the intestine in fish. The problem occurs when the organism is expelled into the water through fish feces. Once this happens, the organism begins to eat the fish skin. The organism is first spotted when a tiny sore starts on the head of the fish. It’s called Hole in the Head Disease because the tiny sore blooms until it is a huge hole. Poor water quality can contribute to this disease. Many diseases can be prevented simply by maintaining good maintenance.
