Do certain diseases crop up at certain times of the year?

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CPryor

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
Mar 9, 2014
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121
Location
A-way Down South, USA
I work at a pet store, and lately I've had a rash of people come in for parasite medicine and quarantine tanks. I've been asking customers about the 'source' of the disease (to see if we had a shipment of "carrier fish", and about half of them claim the sick fish come from elsewhere, or that didn't add anything to the tank recently. Do you guys find that certain diseases and infections crop up at certain times of the year 0_o?

Could it be people's water quality is getting worse because of rising temps? Maybe the breeders are sending sick fish because they're trying to keep up with demand (but then, this should have happened just after christmas.....) I'm really trying to wrap my head around this one!

Also; a lady came in looking for parasite meds because her fish was "pooping long strands of white gunk" stringy in some places and gunky in others.....that stumped me. Any thoughts?
 
Usually ick is one when temps change. Like me I have to add a heater in the winter but turn it off in the summer. Right now it's 65° one day and the next it's 30°. So that most definitely has an impact on things.

Long stingy white poop usually means the fish is suffering from a issue in the digestion track. More than likely the cause is from feeding bad foods or what to much

Sent from my VS950 4G using Aquarium Advice mobile app
 
Usually ick is one when temps change. Like me I have to add a heater in the winter but turn it off in the summer. Right now it's 65° one day and the next it's 30°. So that most definitely has an impact on things.

Long stingy white poop usually means the fish is suffering from a issue in the digestion track. More than likely the cause is from feeding bad foods or what to much

Sent from my VS950 4G using Aquarium Advice mobile app

Okay, thanks! That answers my questions perfectly.

I've been thinking about it, and I think it must come, in a large part, from the breeders. Our shipments of fish have been small lately.... I think they are trying to speed up breeding, and possibly overstocking tanks or sending stock of less quality, to make up for the christmas rush.

And I'm glad for your answer on the poop...We reviewed her feeding habits, and I said i felt like she was feeding too much (but the fish were discus fish, which I don't know much about...) I told the lady to try feeding it a pea, or a tiny dollop of pea baby food to act as a laxative....I've never seen something like that, but I knew from researching that digestive problems can just as easily be bacterial, as parasitic; she ended up getting a broad-spectrum medicine, so hopefully we got all bases covered. :confused:
 
I don't know about diseases but I know my tap water changes at start and end of summer. Just in the last couple of weeks kh is coming up whereas before during summer kh has been a real struggle to keep above 2.
 
Hello C...

If the fish is sick, 99 times out of 100 the reason is poor water conditions. Either the source of the fish or the water keeper isn't removing and replacing the tank water often enough. In most cases, the fish can be nursed back to health, though. Just takes improved water conditions and better food.

B
 
Fish Foods

Food as in ?

Blue's Galaxy S4

Well, the foods need to have a very few ingredients. I feed mostly frozen, because if you read the contents label, there's the frozen animal and water. I do feed some freeze dried and a little flaked. The fishes' digestive system knows how to use these ingredients. Their digestive system doesn't know how to deal with most of the chemicals that some companies put into the flaked foods to ensure the food is usable a year or five years from now. Most of the foods with a long list of ingredients are the "fast foods" of the fish world.

I have one, trusted source for my fish, plants and fertilizers. I always check with the products those people use. They're the experts.

B
 
Well I can't comment on frozen foods as have never used them. :(

Sinking pellets for b/n catfish I use tetra veggie algae wafers. I break these up into smaller sections and the catfish are doing well on those, driftwood and a steady diet of plants (or at least one of the fish is :) ). Mainly I go for a bit more expensive food as it seems the fish do better however this is just what I've noticed.

Edit - just re-reading, I also use tetra tropical granules which sink fairly quickly and I've noticed no problems with water or fish. Ones that sit there for a bit don't seem to swell whereas years ago I used pellets which fouled the water.
 
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I usually take the cube. Break it flake some and put in freezer for few as I stir other in cup of aquarium water. I have the waffers but my plecosto and cst fish seemed uninterested. Hmmmm. You say more expensive. Can u give a name so I can investigage. Lol. Thanks for response

Blue's Galaxy S4
 
I had a look and it is either tetra or aqua-one (for the algae eaters) products in the drawer. I do have a lfs that sells big plastic containers of food which is way cheaper as bulk buy but I've found it seems to go stale. Now I buy smaller containers and I believe the fish do better and have more colour.

Edit - do you have driftwood for the catfish? I've found that if I turn down the lights a bit they will come out for feeding (I feed at night) but yeah, I've seen others have trouble but mine will come out (then disappear for the next 22 hours).
 
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I've got tetra colour tropical granules (huge ingredient list) - they are really expensive here,

Aqua one spirulina (for live bearers, etc) - these are cheaper but I mainly get them for the algae eaters.

Then the tetra veggie algae wafers for the catfish.

I find the fish eat anything - the angelfish will go at the wafers and the cardinal tetras will try the granules.

Also I have driftwood for the catfish and plants (which the mollies take a liking to or the algae on the plants).

Back in the 1990's the choices seemed very limited, now there seems a whole selection of fish food which is probably healthier than I eat.

It's just about bed for me, will check tomorrow.
 
My biggest tank is a dinky little 10 gal with a few danios. I feed them Omega One flakes, as it was the best food I could buy locally. I don't know if it's the best food available, but it was AMAZING to see how much their colors improved after about a week on it! My Longfin Leopards especially...their fins turned from clear to a bright yellow and their spots picked up a lot of definition.

I have to tell people ALL THE TIME about water changes. People think they can buy a pleco and that will "maintain" their tank....sighhhh.......
 
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