Clownfish acting strange

[reefjerk]

Just skimming through this thread..."Screams Velvet"? Really?

Sounds just like a regular clownfish behavior to me, the colour looks fine too. He darts back down to the bottom because that is his "spot".

Be cautious taking advice from the internet, especially when you can't confirm what is wrong.

He doesn't seem to be breathing heavy in the picture, however it won't hurt to add some aeration if it makes you feel better.

 

[Humblefish]

@reefjerk Your name suits you.

 

[melypr1985]

Just skimming through this thread..."Screams Velvet"? Really?

Sounds just like a regular clownfish behavior to me, the colour looks fine too. He darts back down to the bottom because that is his "spot".

Be cautious taking advice from the internet, especially when you can't confirm what is wrong.

He doesn't seem to be breathing heavy in the picture, however it won't hurt to add some aeration if it makes you feel better.

I believe i said my GUT was screaming velvet. I have my reasons for that. Why not be constructive to the conversation instead of rude. We are a nice community and pride ourselves on that.

 

[Humblefish]

I believe i said my GUT was screaming velvet. I have my reasons for that. Why not be constructive to the conversation instead of rude. We are a nice community and pride ourselves on that.

^^Agreed. It's not normal behavior for any fish to breathe heavy and to stay in the "same spot at the bottom of the tank". Even bottom dwellers like gobies & blennies move around. At the very least, the FW dip will confirm/rule out the presence of flukes and if done correctly, is minimally invasive to the fish.

But hey, anyone who thinks they can give better advice please step up to the plate!

 

[reefjerk]

OK so one calls me a jerk and the other calls me rude for caring about the lively hood of that little fish? Am I understanding this correctly?

Does a nice community subject defenseless animals to medical experiments based on "gut" feelings?

With friends like that.....

"Agreed. It's not normal behavior for any fish to stay in the "same spot at the bottom of the tank""

Really? One of my clowns stays in a flower pot 90% of the time, maybe I should toss it in some freshwater? lol

You guys really need to have to OP reiterate the symptoms, you just don't have enough information to make suggestions. You are just guessing.

"But hey, anyone who thinks they can give better advice please step up to the plate!"
Sure, first rule is do no harm.
Second, find somebody qualified to consult or have inspect your fish.

That is the best advice.

 

[Humblefish]

Second, find somebody qualified to consult or have inspect your fish.

That is the best advice.

The only people truly qualified would be a vet that specializes in marine fish or a marine biologist focused on fish pathology. And even then, just a pic & description is never going to do. You either need to bring the fish to them, or pay for a home consultation so they can take a skin/gill scrape which can then be examined under a microscope. Yes, all that sounds completely feasible.

.....

@melypr1985 Sounds like it's time for us to shut the fish disease forum down! We have just been informed of a better way!

 

[FarmerTy]

Please carry on guys and thank you for doing what you guys do. There's one in every group.

 

[reefjerk]

Please carry on guys and thank you for doing what you guys do. There's one in every group.

Did you have something constructive related to the thread to add?

 

[reefjerk]

The only people truly qualified would be a vet that specializes in marine fish or a marine biologist focused on fish pathology. And even then, just a pic & description is never going to do. You either need to bring the fish to them, or pay for a home consultation so they can take a skin/gill scrape which can then be examined under a microscope. Yes, all that sounds completely feasible.

.....

@melypr1985 Sounds like it's time for us to shut the fish disease forum down! We have just been informed of a better way!

Now you get it.

"And even then, just a pic & description is never going to do. "

So what do you hope to achieve then, besides self gratification?

 

[Humblefish]

So what do you hope to achieve then, besides self gratification?

Satisfaction, when I help someone save the life of a fish. Doesn't happen every time but it does happen.

 

[melypr1985]

Exactly. Start a thread and poll the people here. See if they agree with you that we arnt helping them. Even if we are too late to save the fish or are wrong about a diagnosis, that person leaves having learned something from it. I enjoy helping people learn about these things, and its never dissapointing when a life is saved.

 

[reefjerk]

You shouldn't need a public poll to know what is morally right. That seems a little strange doesn't it?
If your dog gets fleas and somebody on the internet tell you to boil him, are you going to do it based on polling a group of folks who like to boil dogs?
Nonsense.

So let's look at it this way, say the person is new and like all of us when we were new tend to overreact to things...nothing wrong with that.
So, say Dunnman leaves the fish alone and the fish lives a long and healthy life.

OR

We can start subjecting the potentially healthy fish to exposures to freshwater tortures, medications that will cause permanent liver damage, garlic seasoning etc etc.
If it wasn't sick before...

The reality is, if the OP's little fishy gets ich or velvet, they will know it, at which point they may want to try harsh treatments or medications to save the fish that may or may not work, which is besides the point as that has not been shown to be the case.

I actually encourage you to start a poll, if nothing else, I'm sure it will treat your ego well.

The OP never did mention the size of tank, but based on the information we do have, it just looks like a bored, lonely or bullied clown hanging near the only thing in the barren tank that resembles something that might be found on a reef and may host it. A security blanket if you will.

So we will wait and see in the morning whether the fish stays near his spot or floats to the top.
That is if you guys don't kill him first, lol, don't do it just to spite me.

What I would recommend to Dunnman if he/she is thinking to medicate, is to figure out arrangements for a hospital tank, which includes a plan of how you are going to cycle a tank in that short amount of time, or have lots of extra water ready to control ammonia should it rise...
That way if in fact your fish does have something, you are prepared treat and house the fish for the 3 or so months it takes before you can return the fish to the display.
Be mindful of your equipment exposed to medications, don't contaminate you main tank. Soak anything exposed to medications in some vinegar and give it a good wash before returning any equipment to your reef tank.

Good luck

 

[Dunnman39]

You shouldn't need a public poll to know what is morally right. That seems a little strange doesn't it?
If your dog gets fleas and somebody on the internet tell you to boil him, are you going to do it based on polling a group of folks who like to boil dogs?
Nonsense.

So let's look at it this way, say the person is new and like all of us when we were new tend to overreact to things...nothing wrong with that.
So, say Dunnman leaves the fish alone and the fish lives a long and healthy life.

OR

We can start subjecting the potentially healthy fish to exposures to freshwater tortures, medications that will cause permanent liver damage, garlic seasoning etc etc.
If it wasn't sick before...

The reality is, if the OP's little fishy gets ich or velvet, they will know it, at which point they may want to try harsh treatments or medications to save the fish that may or may not work, which is besides the point as that has not been shown to be the case.

I actually encourage you to start a poll, if nothing else, I'm sure it will treat your ego well.

The OP never did mention the size of tank, but based on the information we do have, it just looks like a bored, lonely or bullied clown hanging near the only thing in the barren tank that resembles something that might be found on a reef and may host it. A security blanket if you will.

So we will wait and see in the morning whether the fish stays near his spot or floats to the top.
That is if you guys don't kill him first, lol, don't do it just to spite me.

What I would recommend to Dunnman if he/she is thinking to medicate, is to figure out arrangements for a hospital tank, which includes a plan of how you are going to cycle a tank in that short amount of time, or have lots of extra water ready to control ammonia should it rise...
That way if in fact your fish does have something, you are prepared treat and house the fish for the 3 or so months it takes before you can return the fish to the display.
Be mindful of your equipment exposed to medications, don't contaminate you main tank. Soak anything exposed to medications in some vinegar and give it a good wash before returning any equipment to your reef tank.

Good luck

It is a 55 gal tank. The fish is still alive. I do have a QT tank that is not set up. I do have sponges in my canister filter collection bacteria that should help the cycle if needed. You are right I am new and still getting the hang of things. But I am apart if many many hobbies including Christmas groups and in every group you always have people disagreeing and being turned against each other. Hobbies are supposed to be enjoyed and everyone is suppose to gey along. We all have our own opinions and it is up to the person who asks the question to gather all info possible and take that info and make the decision you think is best for the fish regardless of your experience. I have been watching the fish closely and I have seen no signs of ich. That's about the only disease I really know anything about though...

 

[ngvu1]

Does the fish eat? After 3 months I think the fish is OK just maybe a bit skinny so just make sure he gets to eat more.
When I first put my baby clowns to the 85 gallon, they hid behind a big rock as they were raised in a small cube and did not experience such environment like my tank which has too much flow for them. They did that like a month at least. I had to turn off the pumps and target fed them. After 3 months, my clowns now moved to the big nem but I think they still are not comfortable with the flow.
Naturally, the clown fish do not travel around the tank like a yellow tang. They tend to hang out at a place that they are comfortable with.

 

[Dunnman39]

Does the fish eat? After 3 months I think the fish is OK just maybe a bit skinny so just make sure he gets to eat more.
When I first put my baby clowns to the 85 gallon, they hid behind a big rock as they were raised in a small cube and did not experience such environment like my tank which has too much flow for them. They did that like a month at least. I had to turn off the pumps and target fed them. After 3 months, my clowns now moved to the big nem but I think they still are not comfortable with the flow.
Naturally, the clown fish do not travel around the tank like a yellow tang. They tend to hang out at a place that they are comfortable with.

He has been eating. I'll feed it more though.

 

[Humblefish]

@reefjerk Have you ever performed a 5 min FW dip on a SW fish before? I've done it probably hundreds of times, and the only fish I've ever lost were already on death's doorstep. Also, very detailed info was provided by @melypr1985 on how to safely implement the FW dip, step by step. The goal was to confirm/deny the presence of Monogeneans aka gill flukes, and also provide temporary relief of flukes/parasites inside the gills since the OP stated, "His breathing does look heavy at times." Something is causing the heavy breathing, it is not normal behavior for any fish. In addition, the OP wrote the clownfish "swims toward my powerhead" and that is a classic symptom of Marine Velvet Disease; so @melypr1985 rightly suspected this as a possibility. At the very least it raises the possibility that the fish is seeking to relieve an irritant inside the gills. This is how you diagnose fish diseases over the Internet. You take the bits & pieces of information you are given, try to match that information to known symptoms, and offer advice to confirm your suspicions. Once you are reasonably sure of a diagnosis (or sometimes just narrow it down to 1 or 2 possibilities), you can offer treatment options. I understand this is not how it's done in the marine biology world. However, most of our members do not have access to those kind of resources, so we have to improvise and provide assistance the best way we can.

@Dunnman39 I apologize that this commotion has derailed your thread. Do you have a build thread I can look at to see pics of your tank? Also, were you able to do the FW dip? If so, did you see any tiny white worms come out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 min mark?

 

[Dunnman39]

@reefjerk Have you ever performed a 5 min FW dip on a SW fish before? I've done it probably hundreds of times, and the only fish I've ever lost were already on death's doorstep. Also, very detailed info was provided by @melypr1985 on how to safely implement the FW dip, step by step. The goal was to confirm/deny the presence of Monogeneans aka gill flukes, and also provide temporary relief of flukes/parasites inside the gills since the OP stated, "His breathing does look heavy at times." Something is causing the heavy breathing, it is not normal behavior for any fish. In addition, the OP wrote the clownfish "swims toward my powerhead" and that is a classic symptom of Marine Velvet Disease; so @melypr1985 rightly suspected this as a possibility. At the very least it raises the possibility that the fish is seeking to relieve an irritant inside the gills. This is how you diagnose fish diseases over the Internet. You take the bits & pieces of information you are given, try to match that information to known symptoms, and offer advice to confirm your suspicions. Once you are reasonably sure of a diagnosis (or sometimes just narrow it down to 1 or 2 possibilities), you can offer treatment options. I understand this is not how it's done in the marine biology world. However, most of our members do not have access to those kind of resources, so we have to improvise and provide assistance the best way we can.

@Dunnman39 I apologize that this commotion has derailed your thread. Do you have a build thread I can look at to see pics of your tank? Also, were you able to do the FW dip? If so, did you see any tiny white worms come out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 min mark?

I do not have a build thread. However if it would help I could state all my equipment.

 

[Humblefish]

I do not have a build thread. However if it would help I could state all my equipment.

Just wanting to be sure all your parameters check out and it isn't an environmental factor stressing the clownfish. Have you tested ammonia & pH lately? How many powerheads do you have (for circulation/gas exchange)? A nice full tank shot would be useful for us to see if anything looks amiss.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

@reefjerk Just a quick reminder of our site rules:

"We aim to ensure that the forum is an enjoyable place that you want to visit time and time again. Our underlying philosophy is that the strength of the member relationships we build here is what sets us apart from the other boards - we are friendlier, more civil, more insightful, more mature and more fun.

* R2R encourages the beneficial exchange of information, ideas, and opinions and we expect members to do so respectfully and thoughtfully. Personal attacks on others will not be tolerated.

* Trolling or cyber-bullying are NOT allowed and are grounds for account restriction or banishment. Harassment, stalking or predatory behavior will result in account suspension.

* We take the "be nice" rule VERY seriously! We do not tolerate ANY rudeness."

Please keep disagreements civil and discussion focused on the topic. Disrespect for other members is not tolerated at R2R.


Now let's keep this thread on topic.

 

[omykiss001]

Keep up,the good work @Humblefish and @melypr1985 your advise is sound and consistent with published literature. Occasionally a troll escapes from his cage [emoji83] sadly he wondered into this neighborhood. I'm sure he'll find his bridge again.