Cleaner Wrasse Laying on Bottom

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

Hello. I bought a cleaner wrasse from the LFS this weekend and he has been doing great but this morning he doesn't wanna leave his bed. He looks fine, is breathing fine, and has all his coloration he is just chilling there. The only thing I see that may be unusual is he is holding his mouth open but he was like that when I bought him.

Any help or vote of confidence would be appreciated.

fishguy242 · Sep 15, 2020

hi ,has he eaten any thing since you've had him?

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

fishguy242 said:
hi ,has he eaten any thing since you've had him?

Oh yeah he has eaten the food I have fed and he has been chasing around the other fish cleaning then off like he is supposed to.

fishguy242 · Sep 15, 2020

any changes yet? have you tried to feed today?

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

fishguy242 said:
any changes yet? have you tried to feed today?

No he is still laying there. He took one little gulp of food this morning but he hasn't gotten any better. I have tried to "nudge" him a bit but he just swam up a bit and went right back to his hidey hole. Now he just kinda moves out of the way and doesnt swim out. He is still breathing though it is just like he is in hibernation or something.

fishguy242 · Sep 15, 2020

cleaner wrasses are kinda touch and go

but lets get some expert help here #reefsqaud

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

fishguy242 said:
cleaner wrasses are kinda touch and gobut lets get some expert help here #reefsqaud

Thank you. He is still just laying there. Usually after 4 hours or so, in my experience, if the fish is laying there to die, it would have died by now. Maybe he is a little sick or something or just being lazy who knows. No visible wounds, still has all his color, breathing is still normal.

Drobbin0608 · Sep 15, 2020

In my experience, when they are stressed out for whatever reason, they tend to do wrasse things. What I mean by wrasse things is that they tend to burrow or find a comfy spot on the sand and hang out. Now, with that being said was it swimming around perfectly fine? Do you have a copepod population? How often do you feed? Any parameters change recently?

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

Drobbin0608 said:
In my experience, when they are stressed out for whatever reason, they tend to do wrasse things. What I mean by wrasse things is that they tend to burrow or find a comfy spot on the sand and hang out. Now, with that being said was it swimming around perfectly fine? Do you have a copepod population? How often do you feed? Any parameters change recently?

It was swimming fine yesterday. This morning when I turned the lights on he was in his normal resting spot he just didn't come out. I have a good copepod population. I feed about 2-3 times a day. No big parameter swings lately.

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

Update: Still alive but sitting still. I very gently picked him up a little with the tongs and he flopped in a spiral pattern back to the bottom. Hopefully he will survive the night.

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

Roachbeef19 · Sep 15, 2020

Just leave him be and stop messing with him. Wrasse sometimes do this if scared or stressed.

Agsellers04 · Sep 15, 2020

Roachbeef19 said:
Just leave him be and stop messing with him. Wrasse sometimes do this if scared or stressed.

Thanks, will do

vetteguy53081 · Sep 15, 2020

These guys are fairly active and hardy. As suggested , let it do its thing. As with mine of 6 years, in the early evening, they select a spot in the rockwork to be their cleaning station. Additionally these wrasses should be kept within a sandbed, as they may choose to bury themselves for the night. It could be that it is settled.
You may very well find it all over the tank in the morning as mine does.