Doctor fish, or Garra Rufa is famous not only for aquarium breeding.

This small fish is well known for its ability to remove dead skin cells from the surface of the body. Therefore, such fish are often used in clinics treating psoriasis and various skin diseases. Spa salons in Turkey, Egypt and Thailand often offer tourists a fish peeling service using these fish. They are incapable of causing injury because they have no teeth. With their lips, like sandpaper, they carefully scrape off dead skin. "Doctors" not only gently clean old skin, but their saliva also contains a special component that promotes the healing of micro cracks and wounds.

Garra Rufa fish are a variety of cyprinid fish found in various freshwater bodies of the central Middle East.

This small gray fish are usually as much as about 7-9 cm in the whole size, however regionally they can reach 15 cm.

In the wild, Garra Rufa feeds on algae and small animals (arthropods and zooplankton).

Doctor fish can also be kept in a home aquarium. But they require special conditions for this: clean, warm water, bright lighting and height oxygen level. It is also important to maintain the acidity of the water at 7.3 pH. It is recommended to always close the aquarium with a lid, because these small fish are so active that they can jump out of the water.

In aquarium, "doctors" live an average of 5 years, in nature they can live a little longer - up to 7 years.