You might have heard that having fish at home is considered as the symbol of good luck. But in order to keep them healthy, you have to make continuous efforts. One needs to be very careful about their feeding habits and maintain perfect hygiene in the aquarium.
One of the most common questions that people keep on asking is how fish poop and pee. Well, there are so many things to discuss this topic, and the article below can help you to update your knowledge base.
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Do fish pee and poop?
Yes. Fish also excrete some liquid waste in the form of urine. Whether we talk about the fish in the tank, or those living in the pond, all fishes poop. The rule is the same for the marine fish, and the fishes found everywhere else.
Same as human beings, fish also have two kidneys; however, the size and shape of these kidneys may vary as per the type of fish. Some fishes may have longer kidneys, and others may have shorter, but they help to filter out the excess water and the waste material as well.
It is not like they need to pee after every two hours like human beings, but yes, at least once a day. The kidneys of fish take a longer time to complete the digestion process, and that is why their excretion rate is slow.
How fish pee?
Some of you might be wondering that there is no other opening except mouth in the body of fishes. So, how do they poop or pee? Well, fishes poo and pee via their skin and gills.
Few members of these species also poo and pee through very small openings in their body that are known as pores. They are located near the rear end of the body.
The gills in their body can filter out all the unwanted material or waste in their body and help to excrete it. Their skin is permeable, and this is the main reason why they can use it to pass the waste.
Nature has developed the excretory system of fish as per their habitat. The places where fish live have evolved in the past several years. Hence, the type of water where fish live decide what kind of secretion their body will follow. Note that the waste of marine fish is much different as compared to freshwater fish.
How Often do Fish Poop and pee?
The next big question in your mind may be why you cannot see their poop more often in the aquarium. Well, fishes generally take a longer time to poop.
It is just because their digestive system gets jammed when they pick food. Their body takes several days to complete the digestion process of complex food. It clearly means that pee and poop only when the digestion is complete. So, the time may be longer.
- Freshwater fish:
Freshwater fish have a unique body type, and they need to retain salts while excreting excessive amounts of water. This process helps their body to function normally. The saved salt helps their body to ensure optimum growth and healthy development.
The freshwater fish are not in a position to lose too many salts as they help them in survival. That is why the internal system of their body is developed in such a way that it retains salt and excretes excessive water.
Their pee is usually watery, and it doesn’t produce much smell. In order to pee, they use the posterior part of their body.
- Saltwater fish:
The marine fish spend their life in a salty environment. Hence, they do not need to store much salt in their body. This is why their kidneys are developed in such a manner that they retain water and pass out unwanted salt.
The pee of a saltwater fish consists of some water with lots of salt. The pee of marine fish is not very watery; rather, it is more concentrated. It is just because of the overload of salt in that.
It is important to mention that marine fish do not pee more; they excrete waste once every one or two days.
Marine fish make use of skin and gills to get rid of body waste. Few species of this category also use the opening on their tail to pee.
How to clean your fish tank from fish pee and poop?
If you have an aquarium or fish tank at home, it is important to learn the tactics of removing poop from water. After all, they need to have fresh water to live. Experts say that fish poop contains lots of parasites, bacteria, colonies, and fungi. If this waste is not removed on time, it may get mixed into the news feed, and the fish may ingest it into their body.
If this happens time and again, the body of fish may become a living host for harmful parasites, and hence, it may cause several health problems. Such situations may even lead to the death of the fish.
Usually, fish poop settles down on the floor of the tank. It may also stay on the plants in the aquarium. Hence, experts advise using adequate filters to reduce the waste volume inside the tank. But at the same time, one needs to be very careful with the usage of filters because the excessive amount can even kill the fish inside.
Here we have listed a few simple steps that you should follow for cleaning fish pee and poop from tank or aquarium:
Step 1: Turn of the electric components
The first most task is to turn off the electrical component of your fish tank; it can be the heater and filter. At the same time, you should also shut down the air pump. It will help you to stay safe from any mishappening while cleaning the system.
Experts advise making use of algae scraper to remove the accumulated waste from the sides of the tank. The chances are that some poop may be hidden on the algae.
Step 2: Take out some water
The next important step in the cleaning process is to remove almost 40 to 50% of the water from your fish tank. You can do this by using a gravel vacuum that makes it easier to pull water and collect it in the bucket.
It is also possible to use a vacuum to collect all the debris accumulated on the bottom of the fish tank. This debris may also include leftovers of the fish food along with poop.
Step 3: Clean the decoration and equipment
In case if you are using some kind of decorations and other equipment in your fish tank, the chances are that they have also collected some amount of poop. Although it may be difficult to remove all the poop at once from the tank; but if you keep on changing tank water time and again, it may help to get rid of remnants.
Experts recommend replacing almost 15% of the tank water in routine; however, for the weekly cleaning sessions, you can replace around 50% water in one go.
While adding water to your fish tank, you have to be very careful about the type of water you use. Generally, tap water contains lots of chloramine and chlorine, and this content is very harmful to the fish. Hence, it is better to find a reliable replacement to tap water ahead of time.
You can think of boiling the tap water for around 2 hours and then let it cool down overnight. It is more preferred to let it stay as it is for almost 24 hours. This water is a better choice for the overall health of fish.
Step 4: Prepare your water for replacement in advance
While adding water into the tank, make sure that the fish are already separated into a fish bag. When you have added new water to the fish tank, it is time to pour some water into the fish bag as well. Do not pour the fishes immediately into the tank; rather, let them stay in the new water added to the bag for around 20 minutes. After this, you can put fish back to the tank.
Step 5: Clean the outer portion
As soon as the replacement task is over, you can turn everything back. The tank is now ready to function normally.
It is important to mention that fish poop cleaning must be a regular process. You should clean the tank at least once a week. Also, don’t forget to clean the external part of the tank after completing the cleaning inside.
Step 6: Prefer to make use of clean damp cloth for wiping out the outer portion of the tank. It is sad to know that many tank owners forget to clean the outer part of the tank and it can cause the development of many germs on the surface. This condition is really harmful to the fish living inside as the germs can enter inside as well.
Make sure the external part of the fish tank stays dry all the time.
These simple cleaning steps can help you to prevent major health issues for your fish. No matter what type of fish you have at home; whether it is a small tank or big aquarium; regular cleaning is a must. Good habits for hygiene and cleaning can help you improve the lifetime of your fish.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):
Can a Fish Suffer Constipation and how to treat?
Well, the direct answer to this question is Yes. Fish can also suffer from constipation, especially when the tank owners do not follow proper cleaning and care habits for them.
The appearance of a very stinky poop; that may also stick to the body of the fish is an indication of constipation.
If you feel that your fish is suffering from constipation, it is important to take some strict actions for their health. There are so many methods that you can follow, especially if pooping has bloated their stomach.
Follow some instructions from the experts while feeding pallets to your fish. It is good to avoid flake foods as they cause to increase the symptoms of constipation.
One can also use flaring of the tank to increase the chances of poop for fish. Many studies reveal that fish poop when a mirror is placed near the tank. You can also go ahead with the pea diet to improve their digestion.
Is fish poop good for plants?
Fish poop is really useful for some types of plants; especially coral reef that needs more sunlight, warm water, and nutrients to survive. Whenever fish poop or pee, the coral reef tries to grab the content to absorb all essential nutrients, many other plants follow the same procedure.
Some studies reveal that water plants such as corals get a variety of nutrients from fish poop; it includes Phosphorus and Nitrogen. Algae also absorb some nutrients from fish poop and convert them into sugar needed for growth. You can find many other plants to grow in the aquarium.
What color is Fish Poop?
As fish poop comprises of a variety of waste products, it may vary in color. This waste usually includes many undigested food particles, bacteria, and salt as well.
Along with variable color ranges, fish poop can also vary in terms of odor, volume, and texture.
Generally, the fish poop follows the color of the food that is consumed by these tiny species. For instance, if you keep on feeding flakes to your fish for a longer time, they may produce poop with red color. It is just because flakes contain a large quantity of blood worms.
On the other side, fish that are eating peas from long time may excrete greenish poop. Darker peas cause dark green poop.
In case if your fish is starving, it may produce whitish or clear poop; however, in a few cases it can be brown in color.
