Fish Medications: What You Need to Know

If you have home aquarium that’s bigger than a fishbowl, it’s a best practice to keep medications on hand. Here are the two medications every aquarium owner needs to keep in their home.
First, a note on antibiotics: We don’t recommend using antibiotics for fish tanks because A) you have to perfectly diagnose the disease you have to use the correct antibiotic for it to actually work, and B) using antibiotics can attack the biological filter, causing ammonia and/or nitrite to rise. If this happens while fish are stressed and ill already, it’s usually a disaster. So you’re better off leaving the administration of antibiotics to the professionals.
We do, however, recommend that all aquarium owners have two medications on hand:
Melafix is a great general medication for bacterial infections. It heals open wounds abrasions, treats fin and tail rot, eye cloud, mouth fungus and promotes re-growth of damaged fin rays and tissue. It will not adversely affect the biological filter, alter the pH, or discolor water. It can be used in fresh or saltwater aquariums, and is safe for reef aquariums and live plants.
Cupramine is an active copper treatment for Oodinium, Cryptocaryon, Amyloodinium, Ichthyophthirius, and other ectoparasites. It is also safe for use in both freshwater and saltwater aquariums. Before using in your tank, remove all invertebrates, who are extremely sensitive to copper.
The problem with many other mediations is that they are very specific in the types of diseases they work for, and if not diagnosed correctly you run the risk of either not doing anything or actually harming your fish.
Have a question about what medication to give to your fish? If you’re not confident you know what you’re doing, call us for a consultation first!