Selecting Food

It is not required that you feed ornamental fish in a well-balanced pond. Since many ponds are not in perfect balance, your fish can be sustained using a quality food specially formulated for them. The nice thing about ornamental fish is their memory retention. When feed by you, they associate you with food and literally swim full speed to their normal feeding location. If you want to train your fish to feed in this manner, be sure to feed them at regular intervals and in the same location daily.

Stick, nugget or pellet shaped foods is the easiest to use. They are generally a floating food that remains on the water surface until eaten. Be sure to remove any uneaten food from the pond before it has a chance to sink. This food will decay and cause water quality problems down the road.

If your pals are mostly Goldfish, you can feed them a flaked food instead of the type described above. It has all the nutrients and seems to be the best choice for this type of fish. This food however will not float as long and will require removal if not consumed by the fish population.

Live Foods

During the summer months, live food is a good diversion from the pellets and nuggets your pond pals have become used to having. Earthworms and Daphnia are excellent alternatives. Earthworms can be found in almost any most soil or can be purchased locally at most bait shops.

Daphnia are water fleas and can be cultured quite easily. They are found in most ponds or they can be purchased from some aquatic suppliers. By placing them in a tub or barrel, you will have an ample supply for your fish. It's a great treat for them in the summer.

Pests And Diseases

Unfortunately, there are many pests and diseases can afflict fish. Most of them are easily controlled, but some can cause major problems and even death.

Anchor Worm

This crustacean is very tiresome and unpleasant and is a common parasite of goldfish and carp family. They are rarely more than 1/4" in size, with a tubular body and barbed head.

The most practical treatment is to capture the worm using a cloth and dab the parasite with a 0.1 percent solution of potassium permanganate Then treat the wound of the fish with a proprietary fungicide. Other treatments are available in our product section. These can simply be added to the water to rid your fish of their unwanted parasites.

Diving Beetles

The various diving beetles and their larvae can devour Young fish, or fry. They vary in size and color, but the Great Diving Beetle, about 2" long, has a yellow bordered, dark brown body. There is not much you can do to prevent them, as they are part of the natural Eco-system of the pond.

Dragonflies

As pretty as they are, these creatures are born predators and can kill small fish. Their larvae spend up to 5 years living in the pond water posing a threat to young fish.

There really is no treatment for dealing with this problem. Once again you are looking at the natural Eco-system of the pond working day in and day out.

Dropsy

If you notice that your fish have scales sticking out from their bodies and resemble the needles of a pinecone, this is dropsy. This is usually cause by an internal bacterial infection or kidney disorder.

Placing the infected fish in a salt bath of 1 oz. rock salt per 1 gallon of water for seven days will reduce the swelling. Treating the water with an antibacterial solution can also be effective is bacteria are the problem. The best remedies are those that are sold for treating ulcers in pond fish.

Fish And Tail Rot

This infection usually starts at the tip of the fin or tail, which slowly rots away until just a stub remains. This is actually a combination of bacterial organisms. Your first indication will be a white line that runs the length of the fin, which progresses downward.

If this condition is caught early, a fin rot cure can be used for treatment. If the disease continues and invades the main body tissue, the use of antibiotics may be needed.

Fish Louse

There are many species of fish louse that cause extreme distress to pond fish. These are parasitic crustaceans that will cling to the fish to feed. The louse is about 3/8" in length and has a strange flatten circular appearance.

Using a parasite remedy is the best solution to the problem. They can be found in our product section.

Fungus

Fungus is very common among pond fish. It can be spotted as a cotton-wool-like growth on their fins, body or the tail. They normally occur as secondary infections on wounds already present on the fish. Rubbing against sharp rock or rough handling by the pond owners generally causes the wounds. There is also an unrelated fungus known as Mouth Fungus that is caused by another bacterium. It looks the same but is generally limited to the mouth area of the fish.

These fungal conditions are easily treated using a rock salt bath or one of the remedies on our site. Bacterial treatments are highly effective for the mouth fungus.

Gill Flukes

These minute little creatures infest the pond fish at the gills and sometimes the whole body. The earliest signs will be the fish rushing around in the water banging themselves along the sides and bottom of the pond. To eliminate the Flukes use a simple parasite cure. Also be sure to keep the water well aerated by use of waterfalls or fountains. This will help them to survive while the medicine is working to rid them of the Flukes.

Leeches

Leeches are easy to spot. Most everyone knows what a leech looks like. Long, slender body with a sucker at each end. Remember, a single leech, when attached, can suck out ten times its weight in blood. This action can last for a very long time and put a lot of stress on your fish.

To remedy the problem, remove the fish and immerse in a salt bath at a rate of 1 oz. per gallon of water. The leeches will usually drop right off of the infected fish. DO NOT pull them off of the fish without first treating them. You will cause undo stress and cause wounds that could be future fungal problems.

ICH

Badly infected fish may look like they have the measles. Their bodies will be covered in small white spots. The fish will swim as though they have been on a 2-day drunk. Pretty easy to spot huh? ;+)

To treat this condition may take from 3 to 14 days using an appropriate remedy that can be found in the product section of our site.