(WORK IN PROGRESS)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Fill out only the parameters you know or apply to your situation. It is important, however, that you supply the **NUMERICAL VALUES** for your water quality. Saying "water quality is good" or "the water is clear" will not help with the diagnosis. Liquid ammonia is clear, but fish will not live in it. Failure to provide numerical values will delay the start of treatment. Take as much room as you need to fill in the blanks.  Once you have finished filling out the form, click "Submit" to send it to the group.

WHAT TO DO UNTIL A DIAGNOSIS IS MADE:

1) If you suspect a specific disease problem, or even if you don't, you should make a 50% water change. Be sure the water you add back is within a few degrees of the tank temperature. Add a water conditioner as needed. In many cases, what your fish are experiencing may not be a disease problem, but rather a reaction to poor water quality. It would be in the fish's best interest if you had your own water quality test kits in order to do periodic testing.

2) DO NOT MEDICATE unless you are absolutely sure what the problem is. In most cases, hobbyists use the incorrect medication at the incorrect dose. The incorrect use of medications can cause more problems than the disease itself. Remember: "If a little is good, a lot is better" is NOT the way to treat, nor is half-dosing. There are therapeutic doses that MUST be followed if you are to correct the problem. And please disregard the myths regarding salt sensitive or malachite sensitive fishes. Salt at the therapeutic level is safe for ALL fishes, and malachite sensitivity occurs mostly in baby fish or when the medication is dosed incorrectly.

3) Remove all chemical filtrants from the system (carbon, PolyFilter, etc) as these will remove most medications.

4) Be careful using water quality test kits. Make sure the reagents are fresh. Old reagents will provide false readings
which will affect the diagnosis made. In most cases, reagents over 8 months old should be discarded.

5) Once the treatment is finished, do a 25% water change ( to aid in removing residual medication) and replace the chemical filtrants.

Name Email Years in hobby Type of tank (Tropical, Gold Fish, Cichlid...) Problem Category Tank size (Specify Liters or Gallons) Tank age Filter type and model Heater type and model Lighting (Indicate type, number of bulbs and bulb wattages) Substrate (Gravel, Sand, Laterite...) Fish Stock Please list all fish, length and how long you've had them for eg. 2 Platties - 2" long - 6 months 6 Neon Tetras - 1" long - 3 days Maintenance Water change frequency Amount of water changed each time Water used (Tap, well, RO...) Water conditioner used Filter cleaning frequency Amount of filter media cleaned each time Tests Temperature (Specify C. or F.) PH KH GH Ammonia Nitrite Nitrate Phosphate Salinity/Specific Gravity Test kits used Tests performed by Visual Inspection Notes