Why Your Pet Fish Keep Dying

Do your pet fish keep dying? Many novice aquarists will continue purchasing new fish without determining the cause of the repeated loss. If you keep losing every fish you buy for your fish tank, it is almost certainly because you are doing something wrong.

Here are some of the possible reasons that your pet fish keep dying.

Nitrate Poisoning

I believe that nitrate poisoning is the primary cause of death in pet fish. Nitrate levels rise when there is too much decaying food, fish poop or plant matter in your aquarium; it is produced as a natural by-product of decomposition. Nitrate is a silent killer; you may have no signs of high nitrate poisoning until the levels of this compound reach a deadly high.

To prevent this problem, use test strips in between water changes to determine levels of this compound. Aim to keep the levels below 20 parts per million (ppm). If levels are higher than 40 ppm, do an immediate water change.

Ammonia Poisoning

Does your fish tank have an odor? This is a very ominous sign, and indicates that there is ammonia in your aquarium. Even remote, trace amounts of ammonia are extremely toxic to fish. Ammonia poisoning is most likely to occur if you have a messy carnivorous fish such as a puffer or oscar. It can destroy a fish after only a few hours of exposure.

If you notice that your water is malodorous, get to work immediately on remedying the problem. Change your filter cartridge and at least 75% of your water. Consider using test strips to conifrm that levels are now safe, or undetectable.

Improper Diet

It is very rare for a pet fish to starve to death. Most aquarists actually massively overfeed their fishy friends-- which can lead to poisoning from nitrate or ammonia. However, if your fish keep dying, it is likely because you are feeding them the wrong foods. Are you trying to feed flakes to your puffer? Goldfish food to your betta? Betta food to your pleco? These will all lead to improper nutrition, which will cause the fish to die.

Prevent this problem by researching every species before you purchase it. Know its dietary needs and choose foods that provide balanced nutrition. If you do this, your fish stand a much better chance of survival.

There are many other potential reasons that your fish keep dying, including chlorine poisoning, infectious disease and improper pH. However, these are less common causes of repeated fish loss in aquariums.