How to Care for Your Fish

How to Care for Your Fish. Fish need an optimal environment. These general guidelines apply to most freshwater fish in pet stores but not to saltwater or tropical fish, which have different requirements.

Things Needed

• Aquarium Air Pumps
• Aquarium Filters
• Aquarium Gravel
• Aquarium Plants
• Aquarium Water Conditioners
• Aquarium Water Test Kits
• Aquariums
• Fish Bowl
• Goldfish Food Packages
• Goldfish

Step 1

Start off with healthy fish. View every fish in that tank before you purchase one. They should move about the tank with purpose and not display any signs of sickness, such as cloudy eyes or slimy-looking bodies.

Step 2

Keep new fish in a quarantine tank with the same water quality as the main tank. They should stay there for at least two weeks (preferably three) before you introduce them to the new tank. When you start getting impatient, think about how much trouble it would be to treat the entire population for infection instead of just one fish.

Step 3

Place the tank against an inside wall ' away from windows, doors and heating systems ' to prevent drafts and sudden temperature changes.

Step 4

Maintain the water quality. Test the ammonia, nitrite and pH levels regularly with a special kit. Chemical imbalances are a leading cause of sickness in fish. Once the water quality is acceptable, use a special filtered siphon to change 20 percent of the water every 10 days. A pet store that sells fish should also sell test kits and siphons.

Step 5

Provide your fish with a diet of commercially prepared fish food. Store it in a cool, dry place for no more than a few months.

Step 6

Remove waste and uneaten food with a net every other day. Rinse the net thoroughly before and after use to avoid the potential spread of infection.

Step 7

Keep a canopy or hood over the tank at all times. Some fish are jumpers.

Step 8

Don't let your fish get stressed by poor water conditions, drastic lighting changes or constant activity outside the tank. These things will lower their resistance to disease.

Warnings

• Make sure your tank is large enough ' about 30 square inches of surface area per inch of fish. Increase the size of the tank by 50 to 100 percent before adding more fish.

Warnings

• Mixing faster and stronger fish with slower, weaker ones is a bad idea. The slower fish will not get enough to eat, and the others will be overfed.
• Discuss what types of fish are compatible in a tank and which to keep separate ' some species can be very territorial and will kill other fish.