Damsels rubbing on rock

[Dmsick]

I have 3 lemon damsels. I got them from Diver's Den. they spent a month in quarantine after I got them and were treated with Prazipro then Cupramine. I've never seen any spots on them. They all eat well and are very active and have never looked sick in any way. They seem to rub on the rocks intermittently. Sometimes it looks like they are picking at algae but other times it looks like they are rubbing their necks on the rock. They currently share the tank with 2 clowns and a foxface all of which look healthy and also went through QT before being placed in the tank.
Do I need to try to catch these Damsels and put them back in qt? If so, any tips for catching them? Is it possible they just like to rub on the rocks and don't have ich or other illness?

 

[sfin52]

Flashing usally mean external iritations. Parisites is a very common cause.

 

[Dmsick]

Ugh. I have a new purple tang in qt, just starting. I guess I can try to catch the damsels and put them in with him. I can let them go through the whole treatment again. It's frustrating since I already treated them and they've never looked sick.

 

[Big G]

Have you done a freshwater dip with the fish in a dark colored bucket to check for flukes? There are some prazi resistant flukes.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/video-how-to-do-a-freshwater-dip.286639/#post-3487082

 

[Dmsick]

Have you done a freshwater dip with the fish in a dark colored bucket to check for flukes? There are some prazi resistant flukes.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/video-how-to-do-a-freshwater-dip.286639/#post-3487082

No. I treated them prophylactically and assumed that would be adequate. I’m super bummed because they spent a month in quarantine after the stress of being shipped etc and now that they’re in my DT they’re acting questionable. I’ve spent most of the last hour trying to net one but it’s pretty much futile. If I need to remove and treat them I guess I will need to buy a fish trap. This is hugely disappointing. My whole goal in quarantining and treating these fish was to keep disease out of my tank.

 

[Big G]

Sounds like you are doing all the right things to keep your tank disease free. The freshwater dip looks worse than it actually is on the fish.

 

[Dmsick]

I have no problem doing it and will certainly dip them if I can ever catch them. Thanks so much for the feedback.

 

[Big G]

Best of luck with your fish.

 

[Big G]

For difficult to catch fish I like to use the following. Let the room the tank is in go dark for at least a couple of hours. The fish will go into sleep mode. Using a small flashlight locate the fish and keep the light in the fish's eyes. The light will mesmerize the fish - net it. Works pretty good except for wrasses and others that hide in the sand/rocks to sleep.

 

[Dmsick]

For difficult to catch fish I like to use the following. Let the room the tank is in go dark for at least a couple of hours. The fish will go into sleep mode. Using a small flashlight locate the fish and keep the light in the fish's eyes. The light will mesmerize the fish - net it. Works pretty good except for wrasses and others that hide in the sand/rocks to sleep.

Thanks for the tip. I’m going to try it tonight. My foxface and clowns go to sleep but the damsels always seem active and they hide in the rocks!