If a fish or coral in your saltwater aquarium contracts a disease, it is essential that you are able to identify this right away and quarantine any infected livestock, or you will quickly have an epidemic on your hands which will be distressing. Of course, not all diseases will be fatal to your livestock, and most are treatable. But, to prevent all of your livestock from perishing, you must act quickly. Here are some tips to help.

One of the more common conditions among fish when you first create your aquarium is called delayed mortality syndrome, or DMS. DMS occurs to a fish when new environmental conditions are thrust upon it like changes in temperature, oxygen level, or chemicals in different water then what they were transferred from, so all of your fish will be susceptible when first introduced into your tank. This condition is not the problem in and of itself, as it is not contagious and only serves to weaken the immune system of the fish.

It is important that when a fish seems to exhibit symptoms of a disease that your first step is to check all of your water factors such as ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, alkalinity, and anything else that, if at the wrong level, might harm the fish rather than provide a safe environment. If you have any doubt at all, change the water. If the problem was your levels instead of an actual disease, then you will see a change in your livestock�fs behavior shortly after the water change.

However, if it is not the environment and your livestock does have a disease, then one of the best resources for identification and cure is the Disease Aquarium Identification Guide. Of course, if you can get your fish to a veterinarian you may get a quicker, more professional diagnosis. But if you can�ft, then the DAIG is your best bet for identification and cure.

If your environmental conditions are right, and you have changed the saltwater in your tank, then your fish are ill with either a disease or a parasite infection, and now you need to move onto the diagnosis phase by either seeing the veterinarian or using the DAIG. You know your fish and what they normally do in their little fishy lives. So if one or many of them start acting abnormally, start working to figure out the problem immediately. Here is a list of common symptoms that are indicators that your fish is not well.

�œ Scratching

�œ Rapid shallow breathing

�œ Hyperactivity

�œ Twitching

�œ Reduced appetite

�œ Clamped or enlarged fins

�œ Faded colors

�œ Hanging out near the top of the tank

�œ Cloudy eyes

�œ Little red dots lining the body

�œ Hides more than usual or becomes listless in behavior

Obvious signs of parasites are if your fish has lesions, is swollen, generates white patches or has stringy white feces.

Most diseases are curable as long as they are identified in the early stages. There are medicines available. Seawater livestock can get sick, get parasites, or will react adversely in conditions that are unfavorable. By understanding what conditions your fish may contract, you will greatly aid them in their time of need.

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Question about Dropsy:
I posted about a female Siamese fighting fish (Betta) that appeared to have dropsy a few weeks ago. I treated her twice with Maracyn. After the swelling didn’t start to go down, but she is still as swollen as she was then, but has not got to the point were her scales have started to protrude? Do you know what else that it could be. She seems buoyant and the swollen cavity appears to be filled by either air, of a clear liquid, when she swims in front of the lights?

Answer:
Have you tried Kanacyn? Maracyn (Erythromycin) is usually not effective for most causes of Dropsy. And dropsy is generally a symptom of something else, sometimes digestive, often kidney related. Because of this, Dropsy can often be very difficult to treat, especially if caught in an advanced case in the fish. What the aquarist often observes is a “pinecone” swelling generally caused by fluid building inside the body cavity, for this reason, reducing this swelling is an important step in effecting a cure. This said, besides treatment for a possible underlying infection, you want to take steps to remove the swelling.

Here are the steps I would take:

*Change water! (25% should be fine)

*Perform a medicated bath with Methylene Blue. To prepare this bath I use 1 teaspoon 2.303% solution per 5 gallons (double dose) in a bath of aquarium water from the tank the fish you wish to treat came from, I usually use about a ½ gallon of water, however you may use less. Measurement of the Methylene Blue does not need to be precise as this bath should be used for about 30 minutes (although do NOT overdose). Make sure you keep the water in a warm area, as in a cold room the water temperature can drop rapidly which would stress the fish. Do not pour this water back into your display aquarium when finished. This can be performed twice per day.

*Add one tablespoon of regular salt (sodium chloride) per 5 gallons of tank water and ¼ to ½ teaspoon of Epsom salts per 5 gallons of tank water. Add a Wonder Shell (trace element block) or similar product to add needed calcium. What these minerals will do is add electrolytes and change (and improve) the osmotic balance of the fish vs. the surrounding water to hopefully pull fluids thru the body thus reducing swelling.

*Treat tank water with Kanamycin (Kanaplex), or possibly with Neomycin or Nalidixic Acid.

Here is more info about aquarium medications: Aquarium Medications; treatments, how they work, and which ones to use and not to use

Prevention:

The aeromonas bacteria (that is often present in healthy aquariums) can cause infections that will manifest this way in poor water conditions. So maintaining a healthy aquarium with regular water changes, good filtration (if possible, this is why I see more cases of Dropsy in Betta kept in a bowl), good feeding practices (not over feeding and using quality foods), and maintaining proper water parameters (ammonia and nitrites 0, kH 80 ppm, nitrates under 40 ppm). All this goes a long way in prevention of Dropsy and other diseases.

A proper diet makes a large difference here. Do not feed your fish meat based proteins, I recommend aquatic based proteins such as white fish meal, shrimp or even the proteins found in spirulina algae.

As a basic diet I recommend Sanyu or Hikari Betta Gold (there are many other quality foods as well, although I do not recommend flake foods for bettas as their staple diet) Poor quality proteins (or better; unusable amino acids for fish) can lead to digestive problems or Renal failure, which can lead to the symptoms of Dropsy. All proteins are made up of amino acids, some are usable (by fish), and some are not. Those that are not are disposed of by kidneys in the fish. This can lead to renal failure or infection. For more information about proper nutrition, see this article: “Quality Fish Food; What ingredients are needed for proper fish nutrition, growth and health”. Also always soak all dry foods in water for 5 minutes prior to feeding as this will remove air that can lead to infections of the digestive tract. I would recommend this as a basic diet for your Betta: Sanyu Betta Gold

For further & expanded information and pictures, please see this article: “Aquarium Answers; DROPSY in fish; prevention, causes, and possible treatment of this symptom. “

TREMATODES:

The trematodes belong to the Animal Kingdom Phylum Platyhelminthes, the flatworms and are commonly referred to as flukes. Trematodes usually have flattened bodies, a primitive digestive system, suckers for attachment to their hosts, and are hermaphrodites (an organism that possesses both male and female sex organs). The Monogenea are the class ectoparasites that infect fish.

Internal Trematodes:

Internal Flukes generally use intermediate hosts such as snails or other mollusks. The eggs must get into water in order to hatch and be able to infect their first host, a freshwater snail. The fluke develops in the snail and then burrows out to seek the second host which is a freshwater fish. Many species of snail and fish may carry these internal flukes.

Gill Flukes:

Gill flukes (Dactylogyrus) will appear on the gill filaments as tiny dark spots 0.04-0.08in (1-2mm) long. Gill flukes can infect freshwater and saltwater fish and are found on fish from the wild as well as farmed fish. These parasites attach to the gills of the fish and feed on mucus, epithelial cells (cells that line the inside of gills and perform the tasks of secretion, absorption, protection, and transcellular transport), and blood from the host, much of this material being produced by the fish in response to the physical injury caused by the parasites. Damage is physical and inflammatory, with secondary bacterial infections such as septicemia. Small or weak fish may die from the stress of acute infestations.

Common carriers of gill flukes include: Plecostomus, Otocinclus, Corydoras, Koi, Discus, Characins, livebearers (Poeciliidae), some tetras (Characins) and Barbs (Cyprinidae), and Elephant Nose (Gnathonemus petersi).

NEMATODES:

Also known as Roundworms are a very common phyla of animals of which there are many parasitic forms. Nematodes are one of the simplest animal groups to have a complete digestive system, with a separate orifice for food intake and waste excretion unlike the Trematodes mentioned above. Reproduction is usually sexual and males are usually smaller than females. Parasitic Nematodes can have quite complicated life cycles, moving between several different hosts or even locations in the host’s body.

If the Nematode has a direct life cycle, then it does not need an intermediate host and infection can spread directly from one fish to another by means of a fish ingesting of eggs or larvae.

If the Nematode has an indirect life cycle the nematode eggs or larvae enter an invertebrate intermediate host (such as copepod, tubifex worm, or insect larva) or a fish intermediate host (these fish are then consumed by larger carnivorous fish) prior to being eaten by or entering the final host fish.

A method of diagnosing a nematode problem is generally just a guess. When a fish is eating well yet is still not putting on weight, an intestinal infestation may be suspected. This is particularly plausible when a fish is eating regularly yet continues to lose weight, metabolizing body musculature to stay alive. This is usually seen as thinning along the back on either side of the dorsal fin. This often results in a well-fed fish starving to death.

True identification begins with a microscope. Nematodes are smooth, cylindrical, relatively long worms, which distinguishes them from the flatter, segmented tapeworms and from the wider and shorter Monogenea Flukes.

A few common Nematodes:

Capillaria is a relatively common nematode that lives in the intestines of angelfish and discus (and other fish as well)

Eustrongylid nematodes are found in muscle within the body cavity or encapsulated on the liver and other organs. These nematodes can affect a number of different species such guppies, gar, danios, and angelfish. Affected fish typically have bloated abdomens (similar to dropsy of bacterial origin), as these nematodes often migrate into the body cavity and can be quite large. Unfortunately the treatment of these Nematodes usually fails (which is often misdiagnosed as bacterial Dropsy leading to the statements that “Dropsy is un-treatable”)

Camallanus Nematodes infect the gastrointestinal tract of live-bearers, cichlids and other species of freshwater fish. Usually, the first indication of infection is a red worm extending from the anus of a fish (sometimes mistaken for feces)

TREATMENTS for internal Trematodes and Nematodes:

*Metronidazole
*Jungle Internal Parasite Guard (ingredients: Metronidazole, Praziquantel)
*Levamisol
*Piperazine

Treatments for external Flukes:
*Clout
*Trichlorfon
*Potassium Permanganate

For further information about this subject, including pictures, please read this article: *“Aquarium Answers; Trematodes and Nematodes in Fish”