Fish Stress

Fish Stress is the Number 1 cause of problems in fish keeping!

The same way humans stress over different situations in life, is the same way fish stress over situations in their life, and I think that that have a lot more reasons to stress than we have; being that they are held captive in glass boxes for our entertainment instead of  living free in the rivers and lakes where they belong! However, there are many ways to relieve stress for your fish and to make your fish enjoy being with you!

 

 

click each link below

 



 

CAUSES OF STRESS

 

 

 

SIGNS OF STRESS

 

 

PREVENTION OF STRESS

 

 

Fin Rot Disease

Signs: Signs of fin rot include torn fins, ripped, no fins.

Threat Level: Can kill fish and spread to other fish.

Causes: Cause of fin rot include: stress and poor water quality.

Cures: To cure fin rot, the are several things that you can do! Firstly, assure that you tank has clean water; and that the stress level is low! You can treat fin rot with salt treatments, which I recommend as first treatment, and then if needed you may use fish medications!

Prevention: To prevent fin rot, basically maintain you tank! Make sure that you tank has good filtration, clean water, no excessive feeding, no bullying, and just is a stress free environment for your fish!

Pop Eye Disease

Signs: Appears as a swollen eye, eye coming out of head!

Threat Level: Don't always lead to death, but can lead to blind, or loss of eye!

Causes: Causes of pop eye are improper water quality, bulling, and stress.

Cures: When Curing pop eye, first make sure that your have good water quality with clean, ammonia free water! Pop eye can be treated with Epsom salt, 2 teaspoons per gallon. If caused by bullying, its best to separate bullied fish, then treat!

Prevention: To prevent pop eye, simply keep clean water. Also reduce bulling in your tank as much as possible!

Bloat Disease

Signs: Signs of bloat include swollen stomach, heavy breathing, slow movement, laying still and lack of appetite!

Threat Level: Bloat is a disease that can kill that individual fish so it can be very serious!

Causes: Bloat is basically fish constipation! Caused by a different reasons; stress being the most common. Other causes can be improper diet, and improper water quality!

Cures: Bloat disease have a number of treatments. I recommend going with the natural treatments, which is Epsom salt. I use Epsom salt to cure my fish infected with bloat and see results the very next day!  Its best to use 2 teaspoons per gallon when using Epsom salt! Another good natural treatment is tinned pea's that have been proved to help with bloated fish.
         The other option for curing bloat disease is medicated treatments. However I would only  recommend this after trying natural treatments because it is more of a risk with the affects on your fish, also its less expensive!

Prevention: To prevent bloat, its best to keep your fish in a stress free tank. Make sure that there is minimum bulling and your tank, keep your tank clean and comfortable for your fish as well. Also make sure your fish is on a stable. appropriate  diet!

Ich Disease (White Spot Diseases)

Common Names: Ich disease, ich disease, white spot disease

Signs:  Signs that your tank has been infected with the ick disease are: tiny white spots on fish fins and body; fish scratching or rubbing against rocks or other aquarium ornaments.


Threat Level: Ick has a very high threat level because it is very contagious. One fish being affected can quickly lead to every fish in your tank affected, which can than lead to every fish in your tank or most dying.

Causes: Ick is often caused by introducing a new fish to your tank that has the parasite, which eventually spreads. It can also be caused by high levels of stress  in a tank.
Cures: Curing ich disease takes patience and diligence! You have 2 options for curing ich, natural treatment of medicated; I always prefer natural treatment because its less stress for the fish and the over all aquarium.
       For natural treatment of ich, the first thing to do is raise the temperature of your tank to 82F -86F degrees. This speeds the live stage of ich and cause the parasite to detach from your fish and now are free swimming. The next thing to do is to add aquarium salt to your tank, 3teaspoons per gallon, which kills the parasite. 24 hours later, preform a 50 percent water change. Repeat the salt treatment again, followed by another water change! Continue treating your tank after a week of not seeing disease!
       For medicated treatment, its best to raise the temperature as well. Follow the directions given by the medication carefully. Be sure to do frequent water changes. Don't end treatment until a week after disease leaves!
Prevention: To prevent ich disease, it is very important to observe every fish before adding it into your tank. Pay attention and make sure you don't see any signs of ich on a fish before getting it. Also before adding new fish into main tank is best to keep them separated in a smaller tank so that you can watch for signs of disease. Also try to keep stress level to a minimum.

Fish Diseases

          In Every hobby, there are ups and downs. In fish keeping, one of the major downs is diseases! When your fish catches a disease, it’s very miserable to watch them.  However there are many ways to prevent diseases including keeping up with your tank maintenance routine! Some common diseases are listed below:

 

Ick/Ich (White Spot Disease) : Ick disease, also known as Ich and White Spot Disease is a disease that appears on fish as tiny white spots on fish fins and body.  Ich is a parasite that attaches to your fish. Ich enters into your aquarium from new additions to that tank that have the disease, or from high levels of stress.  Symptoms of ick include tiny white spots on fish and fish rubbing and scratching.

More Info

 

Bloat: Bloat is a disease where your fish appears to have a swollen stomach. Bloat comes from high levels of stress and improper feeding.  Symptoms of bloat include bloated stomach and excessive breathing.

More Info

 

Popeye: Pop eye is a disease where your fish’s eyes appear swollen! Causes of pop eye are bad water quality and stress. Symptoms include swollen eye of fish!

More Info

 

Fin Rot: Fin rot appears on your fish as the fins of your fish torn or ripped and rotting. Causes of fin rot are aggression, overcrowded conditions and stress. Symptoms include fins turning white, fins torn, or fins rotting!  

More Info

 

Hole in Head: Disease that appears as a hole in fish’s head. Caused from bad water quality and improper diet. Symptoms include hole in fishes head or dark mark on fish.
More Info