Clown not eating.

[Yamaha1634]

Many of these threads to read i know. I've been reading all morning about clowns that don't eat but here's mine.

Tank set up in January using live sand, Fritz 9 etc. Was told this was the best way but now who knows. Added a pair of clowns Jan 26th. Didn't quarantine, kept freshwater for years and never used quarantine so didn't see the need, now i do obviously!

Added a YWG Jan 29th given to me by a friend, he contracted a bacterial infection a day later so was removed to a hospital tank and swiftly died. Treated the DT with antibacterial for 10 days and observed but all looked ok so continued my journey. Added 3 corals since. Corals were all dipped in RX Pro solution, all appear to be doing well. Also added a Pajama Cardinal this week after a 2 week QT as I was advised by my LFS, they said they kept all their fish in a copper solution and used dewormers so there was no need to QT, i did a 2 week QT just for observation. He has been in the DT for 5 days now and he appears to be doing fine, eating well etc

So my 2 clowns have been good eaters since day 1, I feed marine s pellets twice on day 1, frozen brine shrimp twice on day 2, nothing on day 3 and then repeat. I also direct pipette feed reefroids every 4 days and test the water the day after to check i haven't fed too much. Doing 10% water change a week with premixed salt water from my LFS. Tank is only 13gal so no need to mix my own. Also have an ATO using rodi.

Yesterday one of the clowns started breathing heavily, not really much quicker than the other clown but opening his mouth wider. This morning he hasn't eaten with the other fish. He's swimming around actively and acting normal, no visible signs other than looking thinker than the other clown.

Testing water every 4 days and all has been stable for some time bar a magnesium jump from a water change with a bad batch. Bringing this back down slowly.

Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10
pH 8.2
Temp 25.8
Salinity 1.026
Calcium 430
Magnesium 1560
Alkalinity 7.8

 

[LAA]

Hey mate! First off can’t view the video. Water levels seem fine… getting thinner and heavy breathing may have internal parasites or something. Did he just not eat the one meal or multiple? If it’s one meal he may not have been hungry.

 

[Balthazar]

Have you checked for flukes? There are threads and videos on how to for flukes and treatment.

 

[Yamaha1634]

So yesterday afternoon i changed the flow around in the tank, moved the powerhead and changed the angle of the filter return pump to even out the flow and try to kill a dead spot I had at the back of the tank. When i sat down to watch the fish he was hiding in a little cave. After an hour or so he ventured out and I fed them, didn't see him eat but wasn't really checking, just thought to myself I'm sure I didn't see him get anything.... Fed again this morning and he definitely didn't eat anything today. The others all have eaten well today but he just let's the food float past him... So I guess it has only been 24 hours or so that I've noticed him not eating.

 

[Yamaha1634]

Have you checked for flukes? There are threads and videos on how to for flukes and treatment.

I've looked and see no signs. But if they're Gill flukes I'm not sure i would see them? But then if it is Gill flukes a freshwater dip wouldn't get rid of them would it?

 

[Balthazar]

Flukes are difficult to see unless you give it a freshwater dip (please read up on how to do this properly).
A freshwater dip will show you if the fish is infected and provide some temporary relief.
I use Prazi pro with lots of aeration in a hospital tank to treat for flukes.
I looked on the internet on how to check and treat for them,a quick search should turn up some results.

 

[Balthazar]

Also Keep an eye out for brooklynella or ich as well.

 

[Yamaha1634]

The clown has now started eating again and doesn't appear to be breathing as heavily but he is showing some signs of stringy poo so I assume an internal parasite of some sort. Being in the UK we can't buy prazi or metro without a vet prescription so I've ordered some API General Cure and some Seachem Focus from you fine fellows in the USA which will be here in a week or so. My plan is to soak the food in the general cure and focus so I can feed all 3 fish in the tank for parasites without removing them to dose in a separate tank as from what I read, the general cure is not reef safe.

Does the general cure and focus soaked food sound like a suitable approach to the symptoms? Obviously I would treat all 3 fish even though only one is showing symptoms but I assume that won't cause any issues to them.

 

[Duncan62]

The clown has now started eating again and doesn't appear to be breathing as heavily but he is showing some signs of stringy poo so I assume an internal parasite of some sort. Being in the UK we can't buy prazi or metro without a vet prescription so I've ordered some API General Cure and some Seachem Focus from you fine fellows in the USA which will be here in a week or so. My plan is to soak the food in the general cure and focus so I can feed all 3 fish in the tank for parasites without removing them to dose in a separate tank as from what I read, the general cure is not reef safe.

Does the general cure and focus soaked food sound like a suitable approach to the symptoms? Obviously I would treat all 3 fish even though only one is showing symptoms but I assume that won't cause any issues to them.

I would follow the directions. The soaked food might have to much in it. Maybe a very dilute solution. I'm not familiar with the api product. I'm gonna look it up now.

 

[Harold999]

Many of these threads to read i know. I've been reading all morning about clowns that don't eat but here's mine.

Tank set up in January using live sand, Fritz 9 etc. Was told this was the best way but now who knows. Added a pair of clowns Jan 26th. Didn't quarantine, kept freshwater for years and never used quarantine so didn't see the need, now i do obviously!

Added a YWG Jan 29th given to me by a friend, he contracted a bacterial infection a day later so was removed to a hospital tank and swiftly died. Treated the DT with antibacterial for 10 days and observed but all looked ok so continued my journey. Added 3 corals since. Corals were all dipped in RX Pro solution, all appear to be doing well. Also added a Pajama Cardinal this week after a 2 week QT as I was advised by my LFS, they said they kept all their fish in a copper solution and used dewormers so there was no need to QT, i did a 2 week QT just for observation. He has been in the DT for 5 days now and he appears to be doing fine, eating well etc

So my 2 clowns have been good eaters since day 1, I feed marine s pellets twice on day 1, frozen brine shrimp twice on day 2, nothing on day 3 and then repeat. I also direct pipette feed reefroids every 4 days and test the water the day after to check i haven't fed too much. Doing 10% water change a week with premixed salt water from my LFS. Tank is only 13gal so no need to mix my own. Also have an ATO using rodi.

Yesterday one of the clowns started breathing heavily, not really much quicker than the other clown but opening his mouth wider. This morning he hasn't eaten with the other fish. He's swimming around actively and acting normal, no visible signs other than looking thinker than the other clown.

Testing water every 4 days and all has been stable for some time bar a magnesium jump from a water change with a bad batch. Bringing this back down slowly.

Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10
pH 8.2
Temp 25.8
Salinity 1.026
Calcium 430
Magnesium 1560
Alkalinity 7.8

Many salts have 15-1600 Mag nowadays, nothing wrong with that. The idea that it is too high is outdated.

 

[Duncan62]

The clown has now started eating again and doesn't appear to be breathing as heavily but he is showing some signs of stringy poo so I assume an internal parasite of some sort. Being in the UK we can't buy prazi or metro without a vet prescription so I've ordered some API General Cure and some Seachem Focus from you fine fellows in the USA which will be here in a week or so. My plan is to soak the food in the general cure and focus so I can feed all 3 fish in the tank for parasites without removing them to dose in a separate tank as from what I read, the general cure is not reef safe.

Does the general cure and focus soaked food sound like a suitable approach to the symptoms? Obviously I would treat all 3 fish even though only one is showing symptoms but I assume that won't cause any issues to them.

I found several articles about how to mix with food. Good luck!

 

[Harold999]

The clown has now started eating again and doesn't appear to be breathing as heavily but he is showing some signs of stringy poo

Stringy poo doesn't automatically mean internal parasites, this is a huge general misconception.
Stringy poo can have other causes: change of diet, stress, or not eating.

 

[Yamaha1634]

Stringy poo doesn't automatically mean internal parasites, this is a huge general misconception.
Stringy poo can have other causes: change of diet, stress, or not eating.

I'll keep an eye on him for the next week until the stuff arrives from the States. If he keeps eating and the stringy poo disappears then I'll take no action. The general cure and focus will be useful to have in the cupboard anyway. If I do need it it would be nice not to have to wait 2 weeks for it to arrive!

 

[Yamaha1634]

Many salts have 15-1600 Mag nowadays, nothing wrong with that. The idea that it is too high is outdated.

The issue with the mag was that I did a 30% water change and my mag levels jumped from 1320 to 1600 in one go. Tested the water in the barrel from my LFS and it was off the scale, calculated it to be around 1900 magnesium... That's more why I'm lowering it slowly, getting it back down somewhere close to 1400 so I don't see any massive swings. Last thing I want to do is a 50% water change and see a huge swing the other way!

 

[Yamaha1634]

The plot thickens.....

Clown is still eating although not a massive amount, nowhere near as much as the other one.

He's starting to look quite thin and he appears to have a dark patch just behind his right gill, between his gill and fin on his right side. Looks like something dark under the skin. Imagine a splinter in your finger.... Looks like that. Tried to get a picture but struggled as he won't stay still and it's hard to make out as he's still tiny, barely an inch long!

Tail fin also has a tiny tear in it and his rear dorsal fin (if that's what it's called) doesn't look as rounded as it should be..

Gills also still seem to be working a little faster than his tankmate.

Any ideas?

 

[Yamaha1634]

Checked on my medicine order and it's currently with DHL in Whittier, CA so doubt it will be here any time soon! Not much I can do except wait is there?

 

[Yamaha1634]

Looks like he's not going to make it. The General Cure is still in California. I now have him out and in a hospital tank. I've treated with anti bacterial as that's all I have, hoping that may prolong the process in a last ditch attempt hoping the General Cure arrives but I doubt it will be here in time.

What do I do with the DT now? Can I get rid of the parasites in the system without dosing the whole tank with general cure as it's not reef safe?

 

[Yamaha1634]

@Jay Hemdal

Is there anything I can do as a preventative measure for my DT?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

@Jay Hemdal

Is there anything I can do as a preventative measure for my DT?

Hi, I read through this thread and sorry, but I can't really suggest anything to do without medication. Given the time frame involved though, it probably isn't an external issue and internal issues are a lot less contagious to other fish.

If you do get the meds, have you seen my article on dosing medicated foods? It is actually much more difficult than people suppose>

Proper Dosing of Medicated Foods

Proper Dosing of Medicated Foods Jay Hemdal c. 2020 Oral medications are an excellent way to target internal diseases of fishes. Marine fish absorb aquarium water, so in certain cases, they “drink” enough medication from the water to effect a cure. However, freshwater fish actively export...

www.reef2reef.com

Jay

 

[Badspstank]

Just my opinion clownfish is extremely difficult for them to catch flukes just saying a lot of times clown fish especially tank raised clown fish once they go into a different environment you usually take a month or two to start eating they're not dying they're not starving. The heavy breathing could be from the pH the heavy breathing can be from ammonia very hard to kill clownfish.