Sunday, July 18, 2010

How to Keep Fish From Jumping Out of a Fish Tank

By Melanie Marten

How to Keep Fish From Jumping Out of a Fish Tank

Keeping fish in a fish tank in your home is a great decision for those who want an easy to care for pet that makes limited demands on your attention and time. Of course, there are important things to learn before getting a fish tank: health concerns, feeding, water parameters, and fish diseases. One thing many new aquarists often do not consider, however, is how to keep their fish safe by preventing them from jumping out of the fish tank.

No one wants to come home from work to find their pet fish gasping on the hardwood. No one wants to wonder where their fish went and find them a month later dried to a husk behind the cabinet. So, how do you keep fish from jumping out of a fish tank?

Keep Fish From Jumping out of a Fish Tank - Types of Fish

There are certain types of popular aquarium fish that jump out of fish tanks more than others. Any fish that is torpedo shapes, like comet goldfish, have more of a propensity for jumping. Types of fish that are natural insect eaters also jump a lot. The hatchetfish is famous for flying out of fish tanks as well.

If you want to keep fish from jumping out of the fish tank, choose fish that are less likely to do this. Smaller and less powerful fish will have a harder time jumping out of a small tank. Buy fish that fit the tank you intend to house them in.

Keep Fish From Jumping out of a Fish Tank - Tank Lids and Covers

The easiest way of keeping fish from jumping out of fish tanks is to buy an aquarium lid or cover that fits well on your fish tank. Most modern fish tanks come with plastic lids or hoods where the lighting fixture sits. These often have holes for the heater cord and filter to sit in. Make sure these holes are small to discourage jumping fish.

You can also purchase glass cover lids that fit exactly in your fish tank. These go under the plastic hood assemblies and make it impossible for the fish to jump. You can also use screens or netting to stop jumping fish.

Keep Fish From Jumping out of a Fish Tank - Obstacles

If you do not want a lid for your fish tank, you can still keep fish from jumping out of a fish tank by using obstacles. Floating plants can reduce this, as can decor items that take up horizontal space inside the tank. These items will prevent the fish from building enough speed for a jump out of the fish tank. They will also provide a feeling of security as your fish can hide in the plant of decoration. Keep your fish safe and in the tank and you can enjoy them for years.

Friday, July 16, 2010

Appropriate Koi Treatment Methods

By James Field
  • Appropriate Koi Treatment Methods
  • Koi Treatment Options and Solutions
Maintaining a koi pond does not only mean feeding the fish but includes as well properly treating them when they catch diseases. Koi fish infected with a disease can easily contaminate the water and also affect the health of other fish. It is important that koi owners immediately treat those that are ailing.

Proper Ways of Treating Koi

There are a number of ways of administering treatment to koi with health problems. Mostly, the type and appropriate treatment will depend on specific health problems. Some known methods of koi treatment are:

1) adding chemicals to the pond. This is perhaps the most convenient way of treating the fish.

2) here is what is known as tropical treatment. This is the kind of treatment required when the koi has open wounds.

3) in cases when the fish has systemic bacterial infections, you can administer and inject the correct antibiotic.

Important Considerations in Koi Treatment

Some of the more important considerations in koi treatment are symptoms, and the integrity of the biological filter system of the koi pond. Observing symptoms is especially important. You have to observe the symptoms since appropriate medication will depend on the kind of symptoms exhibited by the fish.

The owner must also conduct a water pH test since some symptoms are more or less similar to those shown by fish in poor water conditions. They should also pay attention to the effects of these chemicals on the biological filter system in deciding the kind of treatment. Some of these chemicals can damage the filtration system.

Sometimes you'll need to add medication directly to the pond. This in effect will treat all the fish in the pond, including those that do not require it. Undue introduction of chemicals in the pond will cause damage to the biological filter system. It can also cause ammonia levels to rise, depending on the type of the chemical being used.

When chemicals are put in the pond, it is important that you do not feed the fish while the chemicals are still present in the water. You can also start cleansing the pond of the chemicals by changing water as often as possible.

In most of the cases, chemicals can deoxygenate the water. Hence, additional aeration may be needed in order to safeguard the overall conditions of the pond.

There is also a treatment system known as a "dip". This is done by putting the fish in a small bowl containing chemical treatment, for short period of time. This treatment is particularly effective in dealing with new koi afflicted with an ailment. Before placing the koi in the pond, you must ensure that it is free from parasites and other illnesses.

Koi and the Isolation Box

Another great way of treating koi with poor health conditions is putting it in an isolation box. An infected koi can infect other koi in the pond. To avoid this infection, take out the ailing fish and put it in the isolation box. By putting it in quarantine, the others are spared from exposure to the infection.

To isolate the koi fish, you will need to:

• Get an isolation box. A separate aquarium or a fish bowl will do.

• Clean and disinfect the box in order to avoid further injury to your fish.

• Apply chemicals or make appropriate treatment to the koi fish.

• Oxygenate the water to make the fish comfortable.

• Avoid feeding the fish during treatment.

• Ascertain that the fish has completely recovered before putting it in the pond again.

Appropriate Koi Treatment Methods, Koi Treatment Options and Solutions Article Source : Ezinearticle

Common Aquarium Fish Diseases

By Sampson Zelder
  • Common Aquarium Fish Diseases
  • Most Common Gold Fish Diseases and Treatment
  • Common Fish Diseases - Prevention is the Best Cure
More aquarium fish are killed by disease than any other cause. Unfortunately this affliction could be easily avoided as it's usually cause by poor water quality. Poor water quality can be caused by too many fish in one tank, lack of maintenance of your fish tank aquariums or overfeeding your fish.

In some instances, you may also introduce disease into your aquarium by putting a new fish to an existing tank that has a pre-existing disease from the store. You should always be sure to inspect all fish in a store aquarium for signs of illness before you buy any. Even if the fish you want to buy looks healthy, if there is evidence of other disease in the aquarium, avoid buying from that tank.

Common Aquarium Fish Diseases:

Fin Rot

Fin rot is caused by bacteria within the tank and can actually rot your fish's fins away. An injured fish is most susceptible to fin rot as bacteria then has a chance to infect the wound. Stressed fish are more likely to develop bacterial problems as their immune systems are already compromised, however healthy fish are usually able to fend off infection by bacteria.

White Spot

White spot is easily diagnosed by visible little white spots on your fish. White spot, or Ichtyopthirius, is a tiny parasite that clings to your fish's scales and feeds off the soft tissue beneath. Once you have white spot in your aquarium, the rest of your fish may quickly become afflicted too.

Hole In The Head

This ominous-sounding aquarium disease can actually create little pits in your fish's head. These can look like little dents or dots and is thought to be caused by water that is too high in nitrates. If you notice any pitting or tiny dimples in your fish, then you should immediately test your water levels for nitrate levels. If you find the levels are higher than they should be, then you need to change your water.

Fungus

Fungal infection is often misdiagnosed in aquarium fish as bacterial infection, so be sure you look carefully at the symptoms your fish is displaying. An injured fish is most susceptible to developing fungal infections. In aquarium fish, a fungus growth at or around an injury should appear a little like fluffy white cotton. If you notice fungus on any of your fish, you should change the water at once and monitor that fish closely.

While most aquarium fish diseases can be controlled by keeping your water clean and changing it regularly, it's still important to be sure you don't buy fish with pre-existing disease from the store. You should also be careful not to put too many fish into one tank. Fish live naturally in carefully balanced ecological conditions so you need to be sure you keep the temperature right for your fish. Maintain your aquarium regularly and your fish should be able to enjoy long happy lives.

Article Source : Ezinearticle

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Thursday, July 15, 2010

Fish Fungus Treatment

Treatment: Fish Fungus

Tea-tree oil is sometimes promoted as a less toxic antifungal medication. While it can work up to a point, tea-tree oil medication is inconsistent in effectiveness and may not be strong enough to treat severe fungal infections. Tea-tree oil is best considered as a preventative or precautionary measure — something to be used in situations where the fish are not yet sick, but they could be physically damaged because of fin nipping, fighting or handling.

Salt is not a reliable antifungal medication at the doses suitable for use with most community fish, though raising the salinity will help keep fungal infections at bay in tanks with livebearers and brackish fish. Even so, this therapeutic effect should be viewed within the context of providing these fish with better environmental conditions, in particular their needs for a basic pH, moderate to high levels of hardness and a level of salinity appropriate to the species in question.

Fish Fungus Prevention

Prevention : Fish Fungus

Fungus is easily prevented. Avoiding injuries to your fish is essential, and this means minimizing handling and taking care not to mix specimens that might damage one another. Water quality should be monitored carefully, with particular regard to specific needs of livebearers and brackish species.

Cleanliness is an essential part of aquarium maintenance, and removing organic matter from the tank, particularly uneaten food and dead animals, is critical. Sifting the substrate gently to remove organic matter during weekly water changes is also important. The cleaner the aquarium, the less problematic fungus is likely to be.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Betta Splenden Velvet Disease Treatment

Betta Splenden Velvet Disease Treatment

Velvet is another pesky little parasite. If you always add aquarium salt to your betta’s water (1 teaspoon of aquarium salt per 2 1/2 Gal of water) and one drop of Aquarisol per gal, your betta will probably never get velvet. It is very contagious, but bettas will fully recover if treated promptly.

Velvet is hard to spot, but can be best spotted with a flashlight. Shine the light on the betta’s body: if it looks like it is covered with a fine gold or rust mist, then it has velvet. A betta with velvet will act sick, so look for clamped fins, scratching against rocks/gravel/tank, loss of appetite, loss of color etc

Velvet is a parasite. Because velvet is very contagious, it is preferable to treat the whole tank when one fish is found to have it.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Ammonia Poisoning

Ammonia Poisoning

As the name suggests, this disease is caused when the amount of ammonia in the water increases. The level of ammonia should be zero as even a little increase in it can cause poisoning in fish. The symptom of ammonia poisoning is that the gills of the fish appear red or inflamed and they try to come out of the water for air. Ammonia poisoning can be treated by changing the water and using chemical neutralizer to reduce the level of ammonia.

Marine Ich

Marine Ich

Marine ich is the most common saltwater fish diseases which is caused by a protozoan named Cryptocaryon irritans. This disease is very easy to recognize as the symptoms include white spots on the skin, gills and eyes of the fish.

The other signs include trouble in breathing and cloudy eyes. Stress and lack of maintenance is the main cause of Marine ich in fish. One should remember that Marine ich is fatal and even contagious. Therefore, if you notice these symptoms in any fish, you should immediately quarantine it.

Medications containing copper are effective in treating Marine ich at an early age. Marine velvet, another saltwater fish disease, is similar to Marine ich. The symptoms are however different as in case of Marine velvet, the spots are smaller, and even darker than those in case of Marine Ich. However, the treatment for treating both the diseases is similar.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Percula Clownfish Anemone Disease

Percula Clownfish Anemone Disease

The tankraised clowns can be more resistant to aquarium diseases like Oodinium that can affect clownfish and other tank residents. Ocellaris Clownfish will typically bond with Long-tentacled, Carpet, or Bubble-tip Anemones, though tankraised fish may not bond immediately with host anemones.

Tanks with insufficient light and insufficient anemone feeding will often see them wither away after a few months. They prefer saltwater higher in specific gravity. Aim for water in the 1.023 - 1.025 range.

Beware that anemones that are dying are believed to release toxins into the water that can harm or even kill tank inhabitants.

Misbar Ocellaris Clownfish, Naked Ocellaris Clownfish, Misbar Black Ocellaris Clownfish, Black Ocellaris Clownfish

Diamond Goby, Orange Spotted Sleeper Goby

Diamond Goby, Orange Spotted Sleeper Goby

These orange spotted sleeper gobies have a good reputation as being very hardy and disease resistant. Always use a quarantine tank for a few weeks at least. if you have a functioning deep sand bed (for nitrate reduction) you will not want to keep these gobies. They will disturb deep sand beds by sifting the sand.

Swordtail Diseases and Treatments


Swordtail Diseases and Treatments

Swordtails are hardy and resilient fish, which are not prone to any particular diseases, although in softer water or bad conditions they can occasionally suffer from white spot or fungus. Either of these is easily treatable with remedies from the aquarium shop, and should serve as a warning sign to increase cleanliness and check water conditions more often. Salt can be used for preventing and curing some diseases, but beware if trying this. Swordtails bred in high salt (sometimes half the salt percentage of the sea) tend to have little resistance to diseases and can die when put into normal fish aquariums.

Black Molly Disease


Black Molly Disease

Flexibacter is a genus of bacteria consisting of some seventeen strains (or species), known for their yellow hue. The unfortunate problem with this disease is that the infected fish rapidly becomes ill and stops eating, especially if it has “Mouth Fungus”, therefore, treating with medicated food may not be an option.
The specific conditions and stressors identified as setting up the right conditions for a Flexibacter infection are:

1. Sudden increases in water temperature
2. Overstocking
3. Infrequent water changes
4. Low water oxygen (O2) content
5. Elevated nitrite levels
6. Uneaten food in the tank, which supports growth of Flexibacter

The treatment of Flexibacter is best accomplished by feeding medicated food, containing oxytetracycline, tetracycline or kanamycin. Other antibiotic-laced foods may contain antibiotics, to which Flexibacter is resistant, such as ormetoprim and sulfadimethoxine, so, substitutes are not acceptable.