Signs of fish disease depend upon the specific disease, but there are certain signs you should always look for. Any marked change in the appearance or behavior of your fish should be noted. This can include sluggishness, labored breathing, scratching against objects in the tank, discolored spots and loss of appetite. None of these symptoms alone can clearly define a single disorder, but can be signs of fish disease.

Sluggish or lethargic fish may be the result of poor water quality rather than signs of fish disease. Internal parasites are a common cause for lethargy, as is an early stage of a bacterial infection.

Rapid gill fluctuation, or heavy breathing, is another one of the common signs of fish disease. This can be due to an infection invading the fish’s gills, making breathing difficult. It can also be caused by gill parasites, or poor water quality (especially hypoxia or nitrite toxemia). Viral infection and “gill rot” are also common reasons for this sign of fish disease.

Scratching can be another of the signs of fish disease. Fish infected with ectoparasitesor Ich may become itchy and try to scratch themselves against nearly anything they can. You may see your infected fish trying to scratch himself on aquarium decorations, the bottom of the tank, or anything else he can rub against.

White spots are one of the classic signs of fish disease Ich, and often resemble grains of salt. Cottony white patches on the skin of a fish can be signs of fish diseases such as fungus infections. Red or white lesions on the body of a fish are often signs of eternal parasites. White or red fin edges, especially when accompanied by the fraying or splitting of fins, is frequently a sign of a bacterial infection or external parasite infestation.

Loss of appetite can also be one of the signs of fish disease. If you have several fish in your tank and only one or two are initially infected, it may be difficult to notice a loss of appetite.

Many forms of fish disease are treatable when detected early. The most common of the signs of fish disease involve changes in the appearance or behavior of your fish. In order to know exactly what these signs of fish disease mean, you will need to either more closely examine the fish or enlist the assistance of an expert.