Written by marylyn | Posted in Home and Household |

Pond Water Treatment

Fish ponds are finding their way into many backyards. Many owners are finding that maintenance of their pond is more than just making sure the filters are clean and keeping the quality of the water at its best.

Owners need to realize that the pond is basically a large cesspool that fish live in and can produce the perfect conditions for an invasion of parasites and/or bacteria. Regular pond water treatment can help reduce the chance of the fish becoming sick with one or more of the common problems.

Two of the most common parasites in fish ponds are Ick, white spot, and Lernea, anchor worm. These can cause a fish a lot of damage before killing it.

Ick looks like someone has sprinkled table salt on the fish. Some of the symptoms a fish may exhibit before the actual spots appear are rubbing the side of the pond better known as flashing, lethargy, and loss of appetite.
The anchor worm looks like a piece of string or thread caught under a single scale. These burrowing parasites cause damage that could lead to a bacterial disease that leaves open sores that will eventually lead to the death of the fish.

For both parasites a pond treatment using a salt bath is recommended. The recommend dosage of .03% to .06% is obtained by using 3-6 teaspoons of table, plain rock, or water softener salt per gallon of water over a 3 day period.

Once the parasites have been eliminated the salt is removed with water changes until the right water quality has been reached.

Bacteria are always present in the water and usually don’t present a problem to the fish until they are weakened by poor pond water treatment or parasite infestation. These two problems need to be corrected before treating for bacterial infections.

The symptoms of bacterial infections include but not limited to fin and tail deterioration and fraying, red coloration of the pectoral and/or anal fins, and open sores.

An effective treatment for almost all bacterial infections is giving the fish medicated food that contains tetracycline, romet, or oxolinic acid for two weeks. Fish that have open sores also known as Ulcer disease need to be kept salted water in addition to being fed the medicated food. The sores can be bathed with betadine to aid in healing.

By using the recommended pond treatment and knowing what to look for can keep the pond’s fish healthy for many years of enjoyment.

Popularity: 1%