First two clownfish died, what to do next

[kiteski14]

I'm pretty bummed. I'm new to this hobby. Have done a ton of research and took the time with my tank. All levels are good, temperatures good, salinity's good. I bought two clownfish and within a day one developed some white spots (I assume ICH?) They went away the next day and now two weeks later they came back strong last night on both fish. I freshwater dipped and it seemed to help a bit and came home from work today and they were both dead. I took them out of the tank. I'm bummed and not sure why these fish got sick, if they had it before I got them or not.

I still have a goby that appears to be OK, a fire shrimp, and the cleanup crew. Just wondering what my next move should be? I'm seeing to wait 72 days for ICH to be gone, that doesn't sound great to me, as I was just getting excited to have fish in my tank.

Curious what everyone thinks

 

[Brad Waddell Wrath's Reef]

I'm pretty bummed. I'm new to this hobby. Have done a ton of research and took the time with my tank. All levels are good, temperatures good, salinity's good. I bought two clownfish and within a day one developed some white spots (I assume ICH?) They went away the next day and now two weeks later they came back strong last night on both fish. I freshwater dipped and it seemed to help a bit and came home from work today and they were both dead. I took them out of the tank. I'm bummed and not sure why these fish got sick, if they had it before I got them or not.

I still have a goby that appears to be OK, a fire shrimp, and the cleanup crew. Just wondering what my next move should be? I'm seeing to wait 72 days for ICH to be gone, that doesn't sound great to me, as I was just getting excited to have fish in my tank.

Curious what everyone thinks

You need to make sure that your fish are quarantined before you put them in you tank. I have a LFS that does that before they sell so that is great. at this point you should not use medication because of your inverts. just keep a good eye on your remaining fish. You should wait a few weeks before adding fish so that the Ick dies off.

 

[Big G]

Could be Ich, but it doesn't always kill fish like yours did. With clowns we always look for Brooklynella, which can appear similar in its early stages or velvet which also looks similar. But both of these can and often do kill and often quickly.

Here's some pictures of common fish diseases for you to take a look:

Fish Disease Index - Pictorial Guide

Pictorial Guide to Marine Fish Diseases Use this guide to find a picture that most closely matches your fish's symptoms. Click the link, if available for more detailed information on the disease and how to treat it. Ich (Cryptocaryon Irritans) One of the most well-known parasites in the...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[SashimiTurtle]

For a fallow period to get rid of disease, the tank must be fishless the entire time.

Are you sure you didn't have brook or velvet? Ich usually doesn't kill clownfish that quickly. Iwould set up a hospital tank for your goby... it's highly likely whatever killed your clowns is already affecting the goby as well. Quarantine is the only way to prevent disease from entering your tank in the future.

 

[bluprntguy]

Just given the fact that the clowns were hit first and hard, I'd say it's probably Brooklynella. The fallow period for that is only about 6 weeks. You DO need to remove and treat the remaining goby as it could continue to carry the disease. The quarantine tank for a goby can luckily be as simple as a 5 gallon bucket, heater, and airstone. Just do large water changes.

If you want to keep clownfish in the future, I do think you are best off by doing the fallow period for at least 6 weeks (preferably 76 days since you aren't sure what the clowns had). I know it's hard to have a fishless aquarium, but it does allow you to concentrate on growing coral!