• Ich (Ichthyophthiriasis)

Symptoms: White, small, salt granule type bumps on the fish's body and fins.

Treatment: Ich can be treated in a variety of different ways. There are many medications that take care of Ich pretty quickly. Raising the temperate and adding some aquarium salt might also be a suggestion. I've had great success with a product called Clout, although you must be careful with which fish you use it on. Formalin has also been known to take care of it, but it must be used in small doses. Doing small, partial water changes will also help dillute the parasites in the water.

Extra Information: Ich refers to tiny little capsules of protozoans which break open and release parasites into the water. You can only destroy them after the sacks have broken open, and the higher the temperature, the faster the lifecycle of the parasite is. If the temperature's higher, you have a much better chance of knocking the parasite out with medicine within a few days.

• Popeye (Corneybacteriosis)

Symptoms: Bulging eyes.

Treatment: There are many medicines to treat this, and keeping your water clean (good water change once a week for two months usually works for me) can help this situation. Penicillin has worked for some of my customers, and I've read that tetracycline works well also.

Extra Information: Either from poor water quality, or overcrowding, the head of the fish swells, pushing the eyes outward. This is where popeye came from. Like state above, if you fish catch this, medicate and clean your water often.

• External Bacteria Infection

Symptoms: It's hard to diagnose an external bacteria infection, but usally red streaks or spots along the fish is a good sign of this illness. Bloating can also be a sign, along with a film on the fish's skin. They are usually grey or white, and are often treated as fungal infections. Most of the time, however, they are external bacteria infections.

Treatment: There are many different products sold at your lfs which will clear this up for you, some popular ones being penicillin and tetracycline. Adding salt can also help.

Extra Information: Becareful when diagnosing your fish with reguards to a bacterial infection. It's usually very hard to tell signs of this disease, unless you see the red streaks on the fish's body.

• Ammonia Poisoning

Symptoms: Fish may gasp for air at the surface and will have very red gills. The high ammonia makes them bleed.

Treatment: It's best to do you researching before adding fish to a new tank and to make sure it's properly established. This ailment is impossible to cure, but can easily be prevented. Make sure you do regular water changes, going through the gravel and cleaning under decorations. If the ammonia spikes for some reason, there are many chemicals that can help bring it down. It's to my experience that Prime, works well at creating a buffer, if not helping detoxify some of the ammonia. A product called Organic Digester also works very well. You'll probably only find this at your lfs, so ask someone that works there if they can order it. Clean water is the only treatment for this illness. Adding gravel from another existing clean tank can help get the beneficial bacteria back up also, to help get rid of the ammonia.

Extra Information: I see this happen on a daily basis with customers that come in with sick of dead fish. There is a good chance that your fish will catch ammonia poisoning if you put them in a brand new tank. New tank syndrome is the leading cause of this disease. Always cycle your tank before adding fish.

• Black Spot (Diplopstomiasis)

Symptoms: Black spots or patches on the body.

Treatment: There are many medicines available to treat this at your lfs.

Extra Information: Piranhas and Silver Dollars usually catch this very easily, but it should be fairly easy to treat.

• Velvet

Symptoms: Small white, powdery spots on the fish. Scratching, and almost a goldish hue to the fish when in a bright, white light.

Treatment: There are many medications available for velvet at your lfs.

Extra Information: This parasite is very similar to ich and treated almost the same way. Raising the temperature and adding some salt can also help.

• Gill Flukes

Symptoms: This is a parasite that lives in the gills of a fish. The gills may become swollen or turn red. The fish might start to breathe heavy and the fish's activity may go down.

Treatment: Add some salt if you can and raise the temperature. Tetracyclin is a great way to treat this disease along with many other products out on the market.

• Fungal Infection

Symptoms: Cottony, white patches or growths on the fish's mouth or fins. This is also common around open wounds.

Treatment: There are many medications sold at your lfs to treat the infection. PimaFix has worked very well for me in the past.

Extra Information: This is a brutal disease that usually affects fish that have been chewed on by other fish. Poor water quality with high ammonia/nitrite can also help. Make sure you make a good distinguish between a fungal and external bacterial infection.

• Internal Bacteria Infection

Symptoms: Dropsy, the most common internal bacteria infection, results in bloating and swelling in the abdomen area. The scales can pop out also due to the swelling.

Treatment: There are many medications that you can purchase at your lfs. Getting your water very clean and having ammonia/nitrite at 0 can help also. Treat for a internal bacteria infection.

Extra Information: Dropsy is one of the most common signs of an internal bacteria infection. Easiest way to diagnose is to see the popping scales.

• Cataracts/Cloudy Eye

Symptoms: White or gray patch on the eyes of the infected fish. These are little fungal growths on the eyes.

Treatment: Eye Fungex by Aquatronics is the best produc and recommended by lots of others. If not, just tell your lfs the situation and they should have something for you.

Extra Information: It's my strong opinion that this easily caused by very high ammonia/nitrite.

• Fin and Tail Rot

Symptoms: This disease attacks the fish's fins. A bacterial infection will leave a red edge around the rotted fin, but a fungal infection will leave a white puffy line around the rotted area. If left untreated, the fin will completely disinigrate.

Treatment:There are a lot of different medications out there that can treat fin rot. PimaFix is a good one!