Not sure how to handle this situation

[Dburr1014]

Sunday I went to break down a club members tank. SPS was 80% dead. Such a terrible site. Tried to save a bunch but it was a lost cause.

Anyway, I walked away with a bimaculatus anthias. I don't know how long he's had it. He thought there were (3) and (1) somehow escaped being captured and transported (a complete mystery). I have (1) and I guess the third died long ago.

Anyhow, I put it in QT Sunday. It's full grown, probably almost 4".

I have not seen it eat yet. I've tried pellets and frozen spirulina mysis.

First day it was hanging at the top of my 20g tank in the corner straight up and looking like it was gulping air. I do have some pvc to hide in the tank.
Yesterday I added a few bits of live rock and she immediately went under one. Still there this morning.

She looks healthy and I don't have any reason to think she is not healthy. She is full grown.

Do I;

1) keep her in QT for opservational 2 weeks.

2) do a full blown qt.

3) in the display.

The "not eating" is my only reason I question this process.
I was going to do 2 week observation and call it a day.

 

[fishguy242]

Better safe than sorry...

 

[KrisReef]

On the questions, I would suggest that a stressed fish will be attacked by Ich and that it has a better chance of survival if it had been put into the dt directly.

If there wasn't obvious disease showing symptoms in the neglected tank I would have recommended an immediate transfer, but this violates QT approaches. I hope it pull through for you.

 

[Tamberav]

2 weeks isn't long enough, do 4 minimum.

One anthia isn't worth risking everything.

If you think it is just stress and plan on observation only, you can make the tank more "comfortable" than a QT. There is no reason a healthy fish shouldn't eat in an observation tank set up with live rock, aka mini DT.

 

[Dburr1014]

I think tonight I will drop in some more rock to make it more homie. Hopefully it will swim around more and start eating.

Thanks all who voted so far!

 

[Dburr1014]

Still not eating since Sunday. She just hides all day. She is fat though.

When does it become dire? How do you get fish to eat... Anything? I suppose I can pickup live worms if needed.

 

[Dburr1014]

Dang thing still not eating on Tuesday so I did the inevitable.
Took him out of qt and in the display. I figured,
1) came from a healthy tank(was)
2) older, aged in the tank
3) zero signs of any problems other than not eating.

And wouldn't you know, my whole tank got ich the next day.














Kidding, ha!

It was out and eating the next day. Fit right in with the rest of the crew.
I'm always worried about my purple tang not excepting new comers but she has not rejected anyone. I'm quite amazed really. I've had her for 8 years now.

I forgot to take pics, forgive me.

 

[VintageReefer]

when I got my anthias they went on hunger strike for 2 weeks. They would eventually eat then spit it out. So frustrating I tried all sorts of frozen and pellet and flake foods.

Then I tried two things new to me. Frozen plankton and refrigerated copepods. The anthias ate them immediately and so did all my other fish. I found my corals love them both also. I don’t know why we all default to mysis. The copepods and plankton have a better feeding response and seem more nutritious. I’ve now included them in my regular rotation.

 

[Dburr1014]

when I got my anthias they went on hunger strike for 2 weeks. They would eventually eat then spit it out. So frustrating I tried all sorts of frozen and pellet and flake foods.

Then I tried two things new to me. Frozen plankton and refrigerated copepods. The anthias ate them immediately and so did all my other fish. I found my corals love them both also. I don’t know why we all default to mysis. The copepods and plankton have a better feeding response and seem more nutritious. I’ve now included them in my regular rotation.

I tried, flake, pellets, phyto mysis, nothing.

All day it would be facing up against the glass and at night in the rock.

As you can see in my Pic, post #6, it's fat and healthy. So I pretty much took the chance but I know where it came from.
I really feel I made the right choice.
Especially since it immediately started eating and out in the display. It just wanted to be more in the natural setting.

 

[VintageReefer]

I tried, flake, pellets, phyto mysis, nothing.

All day it would be facing up against the glass and at night in the rock.

As you can see in my Pic, post #6, it's fat and healthy. So I pretty much took the chance but I know where it came from.
I really feel I made the right choice.

I feel you did also

I go against the norm and don’t qt unless I see visual indications of an issue. in your case the fish sounded stressed and was trying to hide and went on hunger strike. A natural environment seemed like it was the solution

 

[Chrisv.]

Dang thing still not eating on Tuesday so I did the inevitable.
Took him out of qt and in the display. I figured,
1) came from a healthy tank(was)
2) older, aged in the tank
3) zero signs of any problems other than not eating.

And wouldn't you know, my whole tank got ich the next day.














Kidding, ha!

It was out and eating the next day. Fit right in with the rest of the crew.
I'm always worried about my purple tang not excepting new comers but she has not rejected anyone. I'm quite amazed really. I've had her for 8 years now.

I forgot to take pics, forgive me.

IMHO this was the right move. The current qt obsession probably kills as many fish as it saves. It's a long-term captive in a tank with no recent additions, so it obviously doesn't have velvet and extremely unlikely to have uronema. No visible signs of ich. I guess if you had a truly ich free tank maybe it would be worth possibly killing the fish, but only if you go so far as fallow quarantining all corals and cleanup crew too. My experience is that most tanks have sub-symptomatic ich. Healthy well fed fish that aren't too stressed can typically fight off an awful lot. I've had PBTs that are healthy for years, have a few white spots on them one day and a week they are gone without treatment. I think a healthy reef tank with appropriate structure and microfauna is pretty important. What's required to truly be ich free is just so intense and I don't see most people doing that.