Fish disections

[Midas]

...but if a fish of mine dies, I want to know the reason why, and if I know that it is not my fault and it appears to have died from some unknown cause, it gets disected (sp) and examined carefully until I find a reason, which I invariably do.

I started doing this in the early days of my fishkeeping and it's amazing what the insides of a fish can tell you, especially under a microscope.

[Pegasus]

Hi Midas,

How would a surgeon explain how to replace a heart valve He he.

I am no surgeon, nor do I have a degree in fish diseases, but I DO like to know the most I possibly can about our tank mates, and as I have said many times, a huge percentage of fish deaths are self inflicted by their owners, so if one of my fish dies, and I know I have done nothing wrong, then I like to know why it died if that is at all possible.

Sometimes the answers just aren't there, but when they are it is a great feeling, and adds that little bit more to what you knew before you started.

In the sixties I was fortunate enough to meet my friend Eli who was a professor at university, and I have mentioned him in other posts. He was head of a research dept for disease, and taught me the basics in his spare time. I practiced on Guppies, Mollies and Swords mainly, and purchased a microscope. It was then that things became even more confusing, until I sacrificed healhty fish and compared them to the dead ones.

If it was possible to observe the fish before it died, then these are your starting points, for instance,

Was it flicking or twitching at all.... Check the Gills,

Was it sulking, hiding, lathargic..... Check the gut and stomach,

Was it racing around madly... again, gills and internal parasites,

Is it swiming strangely.... Check swim bladder,

Was it gasping,..... Check for inflamed gills,

Was it swollen ,... various internal disorders,

Was it really thin,.... kidney or internal organ failure, intestines, pancreas, pyloric valve, ... (fish that live mainly on live foods and meats have a short intestine, and others that like green foods have long ones )

Was it not eating, ... restriction in the gut,... constipation,

Cloudy eyes,.... fungus usually, grey not stringy,

Injury,... fungus.... white hairy, stringy,

Blisters, sores, ulcers, .... Parasitic worm, or external damage, internal tumourous growth,

Spots various,... Good ones to see under the scope on low power.

Keep EVERY sample you take.

There are many more clues, but LOOKING at your fish rather than WATCHING your fish can tell you when trouble is lurking in the distance.

I like to think myself as an ichthyologist, not just a keeper of fish, and I learn something new every day on these forums.

When gill and organ examination (kidneys, stomach, intestines, pancreas, liver,) showed various differences, internal smears were placed on slides for the microscope for examination and for future reference. Seeing what caused the problem and knowing what caused it are two different things, and being able to look at a certain part and say that that is "xxxx" type disease was brought down to... External, Internal Parasite, Breathing Disorder, Digestion Disorder, or Organ breakdown, and so forth.

The water was always examined first for abnormalities, not just the normal tests, but under the microscope, and any decent microscope and a good hand lens will show you things you never knew were there.

Hope this helps a little,

Regards,

Bill (Pegasus)

[Midas]

Thanks Bill, I'll have to pull out my microscope and see what I can see.

[john1]

Hi midas

Pegasus is right. Mind you, not everyone has a microscope. but if you do and are interested what caused the fish's death, then you need to do it. According to the BAENCH book, amost every suspected fish (dead or alive and very sick)should be disected. There are sites which explain how to do it. So to be a good fishkeeper you also have to be a homemade coroner. Sounds fascinating. I do have a cheap microscope, but my 5 year old got rid of all my slides,glue etc. Useless withouth them

John