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Step 1
Look closely at the fishes eyes.
Make sure that the fishes eyes are the same size and that they look healthy and clear.
Fish that have foggy, milky, misshapen, uneven or white eyes are sick and the entire tank should be avoided.
Many fish stores connect all of their fish tanks to one central filtration unit. This means that if you spot a sick fish in one tank and all of the tanks might be connected then you should avoid buying any fish from the entire store.
If you find a fish and it has one eye that is larger than the other eye, this indicates that the fish has Popeye which is a symptom of an illness. Most fish that recover from pop eye are blind in the affected eye whether they lose that eye or not. Depending on the cause of the Pop-eye it should be treated with certain chemicals which can be expensive. -
Step 2
Watch the fish swim. Does it look like the fishes can maintain their balance?
A healthy fish can easily maintain its position in the water column. If a fish is struggling to swim it should be avoided because it might have a swim bladder disorder.
Avoid fish that are having problems swimming. The fishes tail should not point down or up. The fishes body should be leveled with the horizon.
Healthy fish should be able to swim at all levels of the tank. A sick fish might not be able to swim to the bottom of the tank and if it was to try, it might float back up to the top of the tank. Some sick fish can only float at the top of the fish tank.
If this happens, the fish will surely die from their illness, whatever it may be. -
Step 3
Inspect the fishes scales.
Healthy fish shouldn't be missing any of their scales.
If a fish has bloody, swollen or red areas where its scales should be, these signs clearly point to a sick fish.
Avoid buying fish out of any tanks that contain sick fish. -
Step 4
Examine, inspect, and look over each one of the fishes fins.
A small amount of fin tearing might be normal, if any of the other fish have been biting on or nipping at them. Even though the stress can weaken the fish, it should pull through unless it has another disease.
Fish with fins that are badly frayed, bloody or showing any signs of illness should be avoided. -
Step 5
Examine the water quality inside of the retail tanks.
Water that is cloudy or yellow can kill or sicken fish.
The water isn't necessarily bad just because it has debris floating in it, but fish housed in aquariums with yellow or cloudy water should be avoided.
Greenwater is not a cause for alarm as this is actually algae which is a natural fishfood. -
Step 6
Examine the employees of the fish store.
Do they even like fish? You can tell almost immediately if a person cares about their job or not just by watching them interact with a few customers.
This is a great way to find out if the employees have been taking care of the fish properly. -
Step 7
Finally look at the fishes behavior.
The fish should be swimming around or interacting with its environment.
Get to know the behavior of the fish that you prefer to buy so that you will know if the fish is acting normal for its species.
Don't ever buy a fish if it looks sick!
Fish such as guppies are always acting happy and they should look to be flirting with one another and fluttering about the tank.
Healthy African cichlids should chase your finger around the tank when you trace your fingers across the aquarium glass.
Start out by buying healthy fish for your aquarium and quarantine any fish that might be sick before adding it into an established tank. You are always taking a risk when introducing a new fish into an existing aquarium.
