Pop eye and velvet

Owning pet fish gives joy and beauty but there are a few things one must be vigilant about when caring for these delicate creatures. Diseases like Pop eye and Velvet, among others, can still occur in the best-kept aquarium even when the fish-keeper has taken all necessary precautions; therefore it is of utmost importance to regularly monitor the fish.

Precautions to be followed: tips for healthy fish keeping
Prevention of disease is possible through good aquarium management. Take care only to feed the fish specified amounts; sustain proper temperature and water conditions to acclimatize them and make frequent water changes to ensure hygienic and pure water. Sufficient supply of oxygen is very important in disease prevention.

Pop-Eye: Symptoms and remedies
Pop eye is a disease that can affect pond and aquarium fishes. The disease and how it progresses is largely dependant on the cause. The name is indicative of the nature of disease and causes the fish eyes to ‘pop’ out or bulge. These bulging eyes can be attributed to different causes, including fish tuberculosis, ichthyosporidium, dropsy and bacterial infections. An aggressive tank mate or poor water quality may also be the cause of Pop eye. It may affect one or both eyes and they may protrude abnormally and appear cloudy at times. However, there are certain fish that are bred to have protruding eyes, like fancy goldfish. If the fish are not in this category, then treatment is necessary.

Treatment:
experts recommend the use anti-parasite and anti-bacterial treatments, as it is usually effective. Further precautions include using a fungus eliminator, like Binox or Fungus Clear Tank Buddies for serious fungus and/or bacteria related problems. Quarantining the fish and giving it clean water will help it to heal on its own with a little bit of time and isolation to reduce stress. One tablespoon of Epson salt per five gallons helps especially when the half dose is repeated on the third day.

Velvet: Symptoms and remedies
Velvet causes the skin/fins of the fish to appear dusty, with very fine spots in yellow or gray patches. This condition is a bit more difficult to diagnose since the symptoms are similar to ich. Velvet can be fatal to young fish and thus, the use of preventive measures like Velvet Guard, is one way of disease control. Velvet is caused in freshwater aquariums by protozoan parasite species called Oodinium and the cysts caused by this parasite are about 1 mm in diameter and give the appearance of a sprinkling of gold spots, or a velvet-like texture to the fish's skin. Velvet is highly contagious and cysts can live in the water after they have fallen off the fish. Therefore, timely treatment is necessary one full week in order to kill all the parasites.

Treatment:
salt baths and products containing copper salts are effective in getting the parasites off the fish. However, caution must be exercised in using these, as the stronger the chemical is the more stress it will cause to the fish while treating the parasite problem.