Beware of Tilapia Fish Disease! Prevent From Now!

When cultivating tilapia, disease and epidemics are something to be faced, but nothing to be afraid of. Even though it is classified as a strong fish, tilapia disease can still come and attack its immune system. This of course can interfere with your cultivation process.

Diseases in Tilapia

There are many diseases that can infect tilapia, including:

1. Red Spot Disease

Disease Red Spot Disease or what is commonly called red spot disease in tilapia this makes the fish scales peel off and reddish sores appear. Red Spot Disease caused by several types of fungi including Aphanomyces invadans, A. piscicida, A. invaderis and ERA. If tilapia is affected by this disease, the initial symptoms are weakness due to loss of appetite, the color looks duller, and it floats on the surface of the water.

For this red spot disease, you can do treatment by soaking the fish in a solution of 10-20 mg of Potassium Permanganate per liter. Make an injection with 0.05 ml of Terramycin which is adjusted to the weight of the fish per 100 grams. You can also do treatment by mixing it Oxytetraxyclin into the feed as much as 50 mg per kg for 7-10 days.

2. Tilapia Lake Virus

This new outbreak was caused by Orthomyxo-like virus, a new virus from the Orthomyxoviridae family. If exposed to Tilapia Lake Virus, the tilapia's body will blacken, and swelling will occur in the abdominal cavity and eyes which can cause cataracts. Fatal TiLV causes damage to the brain, nervous system and liver of the fish.

This disease is easily transmitted among commodities through water and direct contact between fish. This gave rise to a death attack that reached 80-100%. To treat this disease, you must isolate the fish affected by the disease, in order to break the chain of transmission.

How to Prevent Tilapia Fish Disease From the Beginning

Preventing disease from coming is better than cure. If the tilapia disease has attacked, of course the losses incurred will be greater. This prevention can be done from the early stages of seed selection. 

The things that can be done to prevent tilapia pests and diseases are: 

1. Make sure you choose tilapia seeds that are free from disease and viruses. Get tilapia seeds from a trusted source.
2. Implement a biosecurity or quarantine system on the selected seeds. The new environment will stress the fish. In this condition, tilapia is susceptible to disease. By doing quarantine, recovery will be much faster and avoid illness.
3. Keeping the temperature in the optimal range of 25-30oC with a water pH of 7-8. Stable temperature and pH make fish not easily stressed and less susceptible to disease due to decreased body resistance.
4. Maintain stocking density in ponds. For tilapia seeds measuring 10-20 grams per head, it is best to only fill 15-30 fish seeds per m²2.
5. Pay attention to the quality of the water in the pond. Keep the water circulating so that the water quality is maintained and the condition of the tilapia is always healthy.
6. Do not just do the feeding! Give feed with the right type and dose. Giving too much feed will cause the feed to settle and pollute the water quality in the pond.