One of the most important tasks of keeping fish is to ensure that health of the fish is kept to a high standard., Many of us say that we do not look after our fish we look after the environment that they are in and the fish will look after themselves. There are of course other unwanted harmful issues that need to be kept in check like parasites that can be added to your pond by external sources like birds visiting the pond and adding new fish that have not been checked before adding to your pond for parasites. Parasites if unchecked can quickly explode to a large infestations and without the proper identification and, medication can quickly kill of your beautiful fish that you have cared for, for so long. Parasites are so small that without the proper equipment you cannot identify and treat accordingly. We do this by taking a scrape, this is when an object is used to gently scrape down the side of the fish removing a thin layer of mucus and then transferred to a slide and then viewing under a microscope. Each type of parasite has different types of medication that work best, and which is why we strongly suggest that you do not treat blindly without identifying the issue first. One of the main reasons is that a course of treatment generally needs to be in the water for a period of 7 days and some with repeat treatment and when treating for the wrong type of parasite this will mean that you won’t be able to correctly treat until the medication is spent (inactive) and your beloved fish will continue to die or not make any improvement. Water Condition is the next biggest cause for poor fish health, poor filtration, over feeding and general maintenance can cause your water parameters to be less than ideal. Beneficial bacteria lives throughout the pond and in particular the filtration system… This bacteria breaks down the fish waste into nitrate and this is consumed by the plants of which they need to survive. If your filtration is not up to the task the levels of ammonia and Nitrite will steadily increase and this for a fish is like swimming around in acid. Now to what we will do whilst undertaking a health check. Firstly we will check the water parameters for example PH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, General Hardness and where needed will suggest improvements or if identified as some other reason for adverse readings will talk you through the cause and the remedial work required. Secondly we will do a scrape to ensure that the fish are parasite free by taking a scrape off individual fish and viewing under a microscope, we use a system linked to a laptop so during the process your be able to watch and see the parasites that potentially could be there. Thirdly we will talk you through any improvements, upgrades, or medication that your require. We carry a full range of medication so if required can do the initial treatment and give instructions for any additional treatments but if your concerned can arrange to revisit to do follow on treatments. And finally, we offer a 24hr contact that your be able to reach us on if you are concerned in anyway. Price is for local to Dorchester, Distance may effect final price.
