Clownfish help

[KK's Reef]

I have an ocellaris clown that's been quite healthy. Yesterday, his right eye swolled up. It could be due to injury because he and the damsel do pick on each other at times, but it looks like popeye? The eyeball is still clear, but clearly the outer membrane of the eye looks like a giant air bubble. What's the best treatment for popeye. I started treatment with Kanaplex today by soaking it with frozen brine. The clown is eating and swimming normally, albeit a bit timed because of his eye.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I have an ocellaris clown that's been quite healthy. Yesterday, his right eye swolled up. It could be due to injury because he and the damsel do pick on each other at times, but it looks like popeye? The eyeball is still clear, but clearly the outer membrane of the eye looks like a giant air bubble. What's the best treatment for popeye. I started treatment with Kanaplex today by soaking it with frozen brine. The clown is eating and swimming normally, albeit a bit timed because of his eye.

Soaking food in a antibiotic isn't a good idea - you have no way to determine the dose. There is a fish medication calculator here, but it is complicated:

Fish Weight Calculator / Medicated Fish Food Mix Calculator

If you follow threads on the Fish Disease Treatment and Diagnosis forum, you know that whenever oral medication is the recommended treatment, @Jay Hemdal cautions that achieving the proper dosage is critical to success. He often refers to his article Proper Dosing of Medicated Foods. That...

www.reef2reef.com

The general treatment for an eye injury/popeye is to dose with erythromycin (Maracyn 1) in a treatment tank. Many cases get better on their own in a couple of weeks.

Here is a link to an article I wrote on fish eye health:

Aquarium Fish: The ‘Eyes’ Have it: A Review of Eye Health in Aquarium Fishes

Aquarists need to inspect their fish closely every day, for signs of impending health problems. It is much easier to resolve a problem when it first starts, than to attempt a drastic emergency treatment when the fish is close to dying.

reefs.com

Jay

 

[KK's Reef]

Soaking food in a antibiotic isn't a good idea - you have no way to determine the dose. There is a fish medication calculator here, but it is complicated:

Fish Weight Calculator / Medicated Fish Food Mix Calculator

If you follow threads on the Fish Disease Treatment and Diagnosis forum, you know that whenever oral medication is the recommended treatment, @Jay Hemdal cautions that achieving the proper dosage is critical to success. He often refers to his article Proper Dosing of Medicated Foods. That...

www.reef2reef.com

The general treatment for an eye injury/popeye is to dose with erythromycin (Maracyn 1) in a treatment tank. Many cases get better on their own in a couple of weeks.

Here is a link to an article I wrote on fish eye health:

Aquarium Fish: The ‘Eyes’ Have it: A Review of Eye Health in Aquarium Fishes

Aquarists need to inspect their fish closely every day, for signs of impending health problems. It is much easier to resolve a problem when it first starts, than to attempt a drastic emergency treatment when the fish is close to dying.

reefs.com

Jay

Thanks @Jay Hemdal - I also did more research and found that they tend to heal up on their own. I'll stop the Kanaplex soaking and just give the fish a week to heal. The swelling has gone down a tiny bit already. If it doesn't improve significantly after a week, I'll set up a hospital tank and treat with Maracyn 1.