A healthy environment is crucial for all aquariums. It is often a challenge to understand what fish need to survive apart from a tank of water and a daily sprinkle of fish food.

The Manual of Fish Health is a fully illustrated and highly informative guide covering:

Maintaining a healthy aquatic environment
Recognizing and coping with pests, diseases, parasites and bacteria
Water chemistry and how to achieve the correct balance for your fish

This book explores vital aspects of health care for all types of fish including freshwater and saltwater, tropical and temperate, and pond and aquarium.

The clear and concise text is abundantly illustrated with underwater photography, charts, and diagrams.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 5.0 based on 13 reviews)

recommended read

I like that this book is more focused at experienced aquarist who want to further their understanding rather than people who are completely new to the hobby. I also like that it is a heavy read relative to other aquarium books, In some places I felt like I was reading a microbiology textbook. Its all around aquarium health info but it has a big section on fish health. It has a lot of detailed pictures for identifying fish sicknesses, and is actually kind of gross, but I have never seen a book with so much info on the topic and I think that is its strongest point. The weakest point is there isn't much on plants which to me is just as important as the fish, I guess that's a different book.
September 16, 2008

Useful but not an exhausive resource

The book is pretty good for most aquarists as all should have something to help with the diagnostics and treatment of their pets. There's some pretty good photography of various diseases that simplifies the text, and in each section there is a little box of explanation of a point in the text, be it a bacteria type or similar. Where the book falls slightly short in my opinion is in the treatment section. I would not advocate the use of all the chemicals in this chapter and some may well be impossible to obtain for most people. In this case, I would recommend using the book then visiting a professional fish keeper, specialist shop or vet with your diagnosis after consulting the treatment section to see if there is an alternative.

All said and done anything that can help easy diagnosis and lead to the correct treatment of fish disease is a good thing.
November 04, 2007

Neat but can be better

I bought this book based on the great reviews here, and have not been disappointed. That said, there are a few deficiencies that drove me back to the web for more information and hence this review.

There is very little information about contemporary brands and their products that can be used to treat fish diseases. Using the book, one can easily diagnose pop-eye (which I was combating in my prize altum angels). But the suggestions are not terribly helpful in finding the right product to treat this affliction. For example, there are 3 or more different drugs under the Mardel brand that all claim to treat pop-eye. Some target gram-positive bacteria, some target gram-negative bacteria, and some are broad-spectrum antibiotics. At the same time, some can be simultaneouly administered with other treatments, some cannot. And so on. It would have been helpful if the book had helped me sort these details out (which I eventually did) and if it had suggested possible courses of action. Even something that lists all common antibiotics and adds a classification chart to go with them will address this concern.

And as one reviewer pointed out, some of the suggestions are beyond the scope of the hobbyist. But let this not detract you from purchasing a guide that will save you time and help you narrow your diagnosis.
March 21, 2006

If you have fish this book is a MUST HAVE

I have Aquarium books coming out of my ears. In my quest for knowledge on how to care and treat my freshwater fish, I have purchased books, but most left a lot of my questions unanswered, or were vague on discriptions of fish diseases and/or how to treat. This is by far the best all around book for the Aquarium Hobby enthusiast. It has everything you need to know about aquarium fish, their environment, disease and prevention. The pictures of diseased fish help you pin point the proper ailment, bacteria, and cure. I give this book 5+ stars and highly recommend it to anyone who has aquarium fish.
February 08, 2006

a MUST have for any budding or old hat Aquarist

This book is amazing! I absolutly recomend it to everyone I've talked to. Not only does it use casual scientific terms but it does also explain them for anyone that doesn't have a BSc. Great information not only on fish disease, but on maintaining a properly balanced aquarium & preventing diseases from occuring in the first place.

Personally I think it should be a manditory buy with ever first-fish purchase.
October 25, 2004

SIMILAR PRODUCTS

500 Freshwater Aquarium Fish: A Visual Reference to the Most Popular Species
by Greg Jennings

Encyclopedia of Aquarium Plants
by Peter Hiscock

The Simple Guide to Fresh Water Aquariums (Simple Guide to...)
by David E. Boruchowitz

A-Z of Tropical Fish Diseases and Health Problems
by Peter Burgess, Mary Bailey, Adrian Exell

Tropical Freshwater Aquarium Fish from A to Z (Compass Guides)
by Ulrich Schliewen