Is this normal firefish behavior? Or is he sick?

CLYRIC · Feb 11, 2023

I've had him for a month and he's in there with a threadfin cardinal and nothing else except for corals. This is the first time I've seen him like this. He's always been hiding for 3 weeks (coming out occasionally), but for the past week, he's been coming out and swimming in the tank, but I saw this through my camera and got worried. Is this normal?

fishguy242 · Feb 11, 2023

#fishmedic

vetteguy53081 · Feb 11, 2023

CLYRIC said:
I've had him for a month and he's in there with a threadfin cardinal and nothing else except for corals. This is the first time I've seen him like this. He's always been hiding for 3 weeks, but for the past week, he's been coming out and swimming in the tank, but I saw this through my camera and got worried. Is this normal?

This is flashing and darting and may be flukes. See if fish is still doing this tomorrow. If so, Prazi Pro will be treatment and you can even try a 4-5 minute freshwater dip to dislodge any that may be present and give it temporary relief

CLYRIC · Feb 11, 2023

vetteguy53081 said:
This is flashing and darting and may be flukes. See if fish is still doing this tomorrow. If so, Prazi Pro will be treatment and you can even try a 4-5 minute freshwater dip to dislodge any that may be present and give it temporary relief

So for a freshwater drip, do I just use rodi water? and just put the fish in a container with it and wait 5 minutes?

Also for prazi pro, I would have to take out the fish and put him in a seperate tank to treat it right? Can't be in the same tank as corals/other fish I'm guessing.

Jay Hemdal · Feb 12, 2023

CLYRIC said:
So for a freshwater drip, do I just use rodi water? and just put the fish in a container with it and wait 5 minutes?

Also for prazi pro, I would have to take out the fish and put him in a seperate tank to treat it right? Can't be in the same tank as corals/other fish I'm guessing.

+1 on this is flashing, probably caused by flukes. I think a FW dip is going to be tough to do - very stressful to try and catch that firefish out of the tank. Since the flukes are in the tank itself, a full tank treatment is better. Prazipro can be used in a tank with corals. You need to dose it twice, 8 or 9 days apart, but you need to add good aeration from an air stone, and remove carbon filtration. If you tank has a skimmer, keep the skimmer running, just don't collect any skimmate for the first 3 days after each dose.

Jay

CLYRIC · Feb 12, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
+1 on this is flashing, probably caused by flukes. I think a FW dip is going to be tough to do - very stressful to try and catch that firefish out of the tank. Since the flukes are in the tank itself, a full tank treatment is better. Prazipro can be used in a tank with corals. You need to dose it twice, 8 or 9 days apart, but you need to add good aeration from an air stone, and remove carbon filtration. If you tank has a skimmer, keep the skimmer running, just don't collect any skimmate for the first 3 days after each dose.

Jay

I observed the tank today and didnt see the firefish "flashing" again. Should I still dose with prazipro?

Jay Hemdal · Feb 12, 2023

CLYRIC said:
I observed the tank today and didnt see the firefish "flashing" again. Should I still dose with prazipro?

No - it could have just had something on its skin causing a temporary itch. I saw a LOT of flashing in the video, if you see more than a couple of flashes in five minutes, you should treat.
Jay

CLYRIC · Feb 12, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
No - it could have just had something on its skin causing a temporary itch. I saw a LOT of flashing in the video, if you see more than a couple of flashes in five minutes, you should treat.
Jay

Yea the video was about a minute (flashing only lasted that minute), and after that minute the firefish just swims away to a nearby rock. I'll make sure to keep observing, thanks for the advice!

CLYRIC · Feb 13, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
No - it could have just had something on its skin causing a temporary itch. I saw a LOT of flashing in the video, if you see more than a couple of flashes in five minutes, you should treat.
Jay

Hi, I just saw the firefish "dart" again 4 times just now and that was it (literally just 4 times and that was it). I've also seen a behavior in both the cardinal and firefish where they "bite" thin air (there's no food, they're just biting for no reason). Should I start dosing or observe some more?

Jay Hemdal · Feb 13, 2023

CLYRIC said:
Hi, I just saw the firefish "dart" again 4 times just now and that was it (literally just 4 times and that was it). I've also seen a behavior in both the cardinal and firefish where they "bite" thin air (there's no food, they're just biting for no reason). Should I start dosing or observe some more?

Darting forward like that is another symptom of possible flukes. I think you should dose with prazipro in the next day or so. It is a safe medication, it is just a bit costly. Dose it 2x, 8 or 9 days apart with good aeration. Keep your skimmer running, but don't collect the skimmate. Remove carbon filtration for the first 3 days afte each dose.

Jay

CLYRIC · Feb 13, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
Darting forward like that is another symptom of possible flukes. I think you should dose with prazipro in the next day or so. It is a safe medication, it is just a bit costly. Dose it 2x, 8 or 9 days apart with good aeration. Keep your skimmer running, but don't collect the skimmate. Remove carbon filtration for the first 3 days afte each dose.

Jay

What about the fish "biting thin air", they keep biting nothing (there's no food and it doesn't look like they're gasping for air and they bite with a little bit of "force" rather than just gasping). Is that a symptom for flukes or is that normal?

Jay Hemdal · Feb 13, 2023

CLYRIC said:
What about the fish "biting thin air", they keep biting nothing (there's no food and it doesn't look like they're gasping for air and they bite with a little bit of "force" rather than just gasping). Is that a symptom for flukes or is that normal?

I took that to mean they were rushing forward, and that's another type of flashing. If you can capture it on a video, I might be able to tell better.

Jay

CLYRIC · Feb 13, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
I took that to mean they were rushing forward, and that's another type of flashing. If you can capture it on a video, I might be able to tell better.

Jay

I got 2 videos in which the "biting" happened, any thoughts on this?

Jay Hemdal · Feb 13, 2023

CLYRIC said:
I got 2 videos in which the "biting" happened, any thoughts on this?

No - that is actually biting, the firefish is swallowing something in the water too small for you to see, that's normal. I was worried it was more an open-mouthed rush, and that is a sign of flukes.

Jay

CLYRIC · Feb 14, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
No - that is actually biting, the firefish is swallowing something in the water too small for you to see, that's normal. I was worried it was more an open-mouthed rush, and that is a sign of flukes.

Jay

Should I just treat the tank anyway just incase? Is there any harm to treat if the everything is normal?