Royal Gramma question

Rikerbear · Feb 15, 2013

My little royal gramma is kind of acting odd....I think. He seems to be making quick darting movements, and I can't tell if he is rubbing against the rock when he does it or not. If he were it would signal possible gill parasites I'm thinking.
He is so darn small, just at 1/2 inch, and the flow in my tank is pretty strong so it could also be that he is just struggling against the 'waves'.
He's still eating well and looks bright and healthy otherwise.
Is this normal behavior? I haven't been able to find anything on line much......

ritter6788 · Feb 15, 2013

Mine does odd things but it doesn't ever appear to be scratching.

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Aquaph8 · Feb 15, 2013

Sounds like parasites to me

Rikerbear · Feb 15, 2013

Dang it! Thanks.....gonna keep an eye on him and maybe get a cleaner shrimp :neutral:

FragBuddy · Feb 15, 2013

I see my purplefire goby darting around but I don't think it's parasites I just make sure there's no ammonia and pH is stable. I usually just freshwater dip any fish I see scratching or that have ich.

Rikerbear · Feb 15, 2013

Thanks....he has only been in the tank a few days. I did do a FW dip before he went in, but maybe not for long enough.
He has just started coming out more as he is adjusting to the tank, so I have no real background on his behavior.
Maybe I should have mentioned all of that in the opening post LOL
:tongue:

FragBuddy · Feb 16, 2013

Every time they have ich I just dip them for 3 mins in RO water. I never use any chems.

Rikerbear · Feb 16, 2013

FragBuddy said:
Every time they have ich I just dip them for 3 mins in RO water. I never use any chems.

Well right before bed last night I managed to get a better look at him, and it is definitely ick :sad:
I will try and catch him today and do another dip, just hope he'll go into the trap....lord knows the peppermint shrimp will LOL
I will also be getting some garlic and vitamins to try and boost his chances of fighting back....I don't have a QT sadly
And I did not do a 3 min dip.....In all my years of fowlr tanks I have only done about a minute, and have had mixed results.
I will take your advice and go for the full 3 min.
Thanks so much for your advice.

robby2782 · Feb 16, 2013

Before I gave mine away, he used to get ich every six months. I'd just make sure he ate plenty, parameters were stabile, and let it pass. Those are some of the toughest fish I ever owned next to vlamingi tang.
If you could catch him, it may not be a bad idea to qt him just to ensure you don't have any flukes or anything that you could pass to your other fish.

robby2782 · Feb 16, 2013

Oh and I know I'm the minority here, but I have terrible luck with dipping. Maybe I don't know the technique, but it seems I always just stressed the fish out more.

Rikerbear · Feb 16, 2013

robby2782 said:
Oh and I know I'm the minority here, but I have terrible luck with dipping. Maybe I don't know the technique, but it seems I always just stressed the fish out more.

That's pretty much how I have felt about my dips in the past.....the fish always look so freaked out that I pull them out of the FW and get them back into SW

robby2782 · Feb 16, 2013

I know some local stores who dip EVERY fish that comes in with buffered fresh water, but majority of them go in a copper system and they're usually not already infected.
I just quarantine my fish to save the headache.

Rikerbear · Feb 16, 2013

robby2782 said:
I know some local stores who dip EVERY fish that comes in with buffered fresh water, but majority of them go in a copper system and they're usually not already infected.
I just quarantine my fish to save the headache.

I am a bit shocked by this ick outbreak, since I have been dealing with this LFS for over 20 years, and I KNOW they take very good care of their livestock.
Guess it's just one of those things sadly

Aquaph8 · Feb 16, 2013

I've had a few come through lately that copper has zero effect on, even after a 5 week treatment.

Rikerbear · Feb 16, 2013

Well he ate the garlic and vit-c laden flake food....he spit out the first couple pieces but than started to gobble it up. Nice to see his appetite is good.
My watchman goby ate it up as well so if this spreads maybe I can head it off.
I sure hope this works....I have read of many successes and just as many failures.

ShannPeach · Feb 18, 2013

robby2782 said:
Oh and I know I'm the minority here, but I have terrible luck with dipping. Maybe I don't know the technique, but it seems I always just stressed the fish out more.

Do you match up the pH?

Rikerbear · Feb 18, 2013

ShannPeach said:
Do you match up the pH?

I can't say that I have actually....only been concerned with temp. Hmmmmmmm

FragBuddy · Feb 19, 2013

no need to match the ph...pH is only harmful if there's ammonia...just keep the fish in the net while dipping for 3 mins then straight back in the tank

Rikerbear · Feb 20, 2013

Well he is doing a lot better it seems. I am not seeing any of the tiny spots anymore and he doesn't seem to be 'darting' at the rocks any more either.
I suppose it is WAY to soon to really tell anything but I am happy none the less.

Rikerbear · Mar 5, 2013

Well sadly Prince has passed on.
He was out and eating just last night, but didn't greet me this morning. Tonight after work he was still not out in his normal spot, so I began peeking around. I found what the crabs apparently didn't want.
:cry:
I guess moving the tank last weekend was to much stress.....or who knows.
I'll wait a couple weeks after I get the tank moved back this weekend before replacing him.