Blue spot jawfish

[Ashley13]

So i took my jawfish out of my reef tank where he has been for 2 years at 78 degrees because he stopped eating, breathing heavily, his color isn't normal and he wasn't acting like his playful self. Put him in QT and gradually lowered the temperature to 70 degrees (was advised on R2R they like colder temps) and started treating him with Fritz Maracyn Oxy for fungal, fin rot and labor breathing. After 2 days of treatment he may be getting a little better. He'll kinda just float around in the water flow from the air stone then he'll wake up and swim for a minute. But still looks bad, breathing heavily and not eating (day 5). Any advice or if im treating him with the right medication?.

 

[archercorals]

That’s a long time to have these. They don’t tend to live long

 

[vetteguy53081]

So i took my jawfish out of my reef tank where he has been for 2 years at 78 degrees because he stopped eating, breathing heavily, his color isn't normal and he wasn't acting like his playful self. Put him in QT and gradually lowered the temperature to 70 degrees (was advised on R2R they like colder temps) and started treating him with Fritz Maracyn Oxy for fungal, fin rot and labor breathing. After 2 days of treatment he may be getting a little better. He'll kinda just float around in the water flow from the air stone then he'll wake up and swim for a minute. But still looks bad, breathing heavily and not eating (day 5). Any advice or if im treating him with the right medication?.

Maracyn oxy very ineffective but more of concern is this fish is very thin and appears to be becoming moribund and may or may not make it
Seachem kanaplex or neoplex would have been more effective
What foods are you feeding it?

 

[Ashley13]

Maracyn oxy very ineffective but more of concern is this fish is very thin and appears to be becoming moribund and may or may not make it
Seachem kanaplex or neoplex would have been more effective
What foods are you feeding it?

He hasn't ate in 5 days, that's why he looks thin. But i feed a mixture of live brine and a frozen mixture of Piscine foods (mysis, krill, eggs, brine, ect) I have metroplex and melafix on hand, do you think either will work better than what I've been using?

 

[Ashley13]

That’s a long time to have these. They don’t tend to live long

I've grown attached to this fish. Like all fish before i add them to my reef tank i quarantine them, just a couple days after i got him he started showing signs of blue spot jawfish disease. At the time i treated him with melafix and it worked. Fast forward 2 years and he just out of no where got sick, haven't added any new inhabitants and all other fish as fine so idk what he has wrong or where it came from. If it was something in the tank im sure my hippo would be sick, she is a sickling lol i fought ich with her for 6 months and had to run my tank fallow for several months to get rid of it but that was a year and half ago. And everything has been healthy since then.

 

[NanoJHB]

2 Years at 78° is a good run. Unfortunately after that duration at a higher temp, they won't live as long. Changing tanks and temperatures now is unlikely to do anything

Well done for keeping it happy and healthy for that time

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Sorry to see, but as the others said, two years is really good for this species at tropical temperatures.

The fish is thinner than 5 days without food would have caused, so that has been going on for some time.

I agree with @vetteguy53081 Maracyn Oxy isn't going to help with this. Neoplex or Kanaplex are better choices for antibiotics, but I also think that with the rapid breathing, that this fish is past the point of saving.

Jay

 

[MnFish1]

I've grown attached to this fish. Like all fish before i add them to my reef tank i quarantine them, just a couple days after i got him he started showing signs of blue spot jawfish disease. At the time i treated him with melafix and it worked. Fast forward 2 years and he just out of no where got sick, haven't added any new inhabitants and all other fish as fine so idk what he has wrong or where it came from. If it was something in the tank im sure my hippo would be sick, she is a sickling lol i fought ich with her for 6 months and had to run my tank fallow for several months to get rid of it but that was a year and half ago. And everything has been healthy since then.

My guess is it's 'old-age' - as well as the higher temperature it's been kept at (although - I would wonder if dropping your temperature quickly may be causing more harm than good. I.e. any damage done by the slightly higher temp may already be done. Additionally, their life expectancy is 3-5 years in the wild and in captivity - as others have said - 2 years is a long time. Sorry about your fish!

 

[The Ginga Ninja]

2 Years at 78° is a good run. Unfortunately after that duration at a higher temp, they won't live as long. Changing tanks and temperatures now is unlikely to do anything

Well done for keeping it happy and healthy for that time

Agreed! Very decent lifespan. How’s the little guy doing now? Don’t take it too personal if this one doesn’t make it. Sometimes it’s even just best to leave them in the environment they thrived in for so long
How To Care For Blue Spotted Jaw Fish (The Story of William )