How To Tell If Your Fish Is Sick

posted in: Koi Fish | 0

Generally, koi and pond fish are tough creatures and have a high resistance to disease and illness.

Every fish keeper wants their fish to be disease free and will work hard to keep them that way.  But, the overall health of any fish is heavily dependent on two factors, water quality and diet.

If their environment or water is bad or they get a crappy diet, their immune system gets stressed and their resistance to disease can go way down and even the mightiest fish can get sick.

There are several types of bacteria, parasites, fungus, and other illnesses that are common to tropical fish as well as koi or pond fish.

How To Know Your Fish Is Sick

A sick fish will sometimes appear to be lethargic.  It might lay on the bottom,  swim on it’s side or with it’s head down.  There could be scales missing or unusual spots or what looks like spider webs on it.   If your fish is not acting normally, pay close attention, it may be sick

If you’re a veteran fish keeper, then you may have heard of some these fish diseases and know how to recognize them.  If you’re new to keeping fish, then you may not know about some of these diseases and illnesses. 

Either way, it’s great to get to know what the symptoms are so you can quickly recognize them and take appropriate action to protect your fish .

Pond Water Quality

It doesn’t take much of a stretch to believe that disease and water quality (or the lack of quality) go hand in hand.  The following are among the most important things you can do to help maintain your water quality. High-quality water will help prevent your koi from developing disease.

1.  Make sure that the nitrate level in your pond water is no more than 50 ppm (parts per million).

2.  Make sure you have no ammonia and nitrite in your pond.

3.  Avoid a population explosion in your pond.  The more fish you have, the more wastes you will have in the water.  Make sure you do not have too many fish in the water.  Did you know that fish actually grow faster in a pond with fewer fish in it?  Their bodies simply react to the larger areas of water and they grow faster.

Another good reason to limit the fish load is that you reduce competition for food and lower the stress levels on the fish during their feeding times.

4.  Install a good filtration system.  Water quality is next to godliness to a fish.  By keeping the water circulating properly, you maintain a higher level of quality with less chance of debris or bacteria build up. The absence of bad bacteria floating around means your koi are less likely to develop disease.  The use of a UV sterilizer or water clarifier helps eliminate much of the bacteria.

A Good Fish Diet

Don’t forget about the importance of diet on your fish’s health.   An entire chapter of the “The Beginner’s Guide To Raising Healthy Koi” has been devoted to diet, especially the affect it has on the koi’s stress levels and its overall health.

Whatever you do, don’t beat yourself up when unpleasant things happen. It’s impossible to prevent all water-borne bacteria and other pathogens from sneaking into your koi pond.  So when you find something, don’t feel guilty.  In fact, most of the time you should feel pretty good about yourself for keeping the pond as bacteria-free as it is.

After all, consider this fact:  It’s possible for bacteria, viruses, fungus, and parasites to enter your pond’s environment through the air.  You’re never going to provide your koi with a completely sterile environment or one that promises the elimination of all potential disease.

Getting good information is the first step toward having a great Koi fish pond. Get all the information you need to keep koi fish healthy from the experts in the “The Beginner’s Guide to Raising Healthy Koi“.

CLICK HERE to get your own copy of this unique book.