sera guide - Healthy aquarium fish

2 Recognizing fish diseases Unfortunately, fish diseases may occur even when best care conditions are provided. It is important to recognize these diseases, allo- cate them correctly and treat them. Some ba- sic knowledge about the most common fish diseases is required to do so. You should observe the fish for disease symp- toms and unusual behavior every day when feeding them, as to ensure you can judge their health status. Be extremely vigilant even if only one fish separates from the others or behaves conspicuously in another way. Generally, external and internal diseases are distinguished, depending on where they occur. External diseases mainly occur on the fins, the skin and the gills. They can usually be rec- ognized in early stages and therefore be treat- ed in time. Internal diseases are less easy to recognize. However, upon careful observation almost all diseases lead to untypical behavior. This in- cludes loss of appetite, conspicuous swim- ming behavior, apathy and color changes (es- pecially darkening). Attentive aquarists therefore can quickly no- tice something is wrong also in case of internal diseases. Regular and careful observation allows to rec- ognize many diseases already in their early stages. The affected fish are not yet weakened too much, and chances are good that healthy fish will not be infected at all. Correct diagnosis is a precondition for suc- cessful treatment. sera treatments are tai- lored to specific diseases and does not unnec- essarily burden the fish nor the aquarium. A general rule applies for all diseases: treating quickly considerably increases the chances for recovery. This in particular applies for very contagious diseases. We will provide you with exemplary pictures and symptom descriptions for diagnosis sup- port in the following chapters. Please take your time and carefully read the sections about all possible disease causes as well as the general useful advice at the end of this guide booklet. Some disease symptoms look very similar at first. A hasty and, accordingly, possibly wrong diagnosis may lead to a wrong treatment with possibly far reaching conse- quences. If in doubt, please consult a special- ized veterinarian. Tip Observation Diagnosis Treatment !! 5