Yellow Watchman Goby treatment plan advice, please

[Sierra_Bravo]

I've had a YWG for almost a year now paired with a Randal pistol. All has been well until recently when I noticed he was not out at normal feeding times. He would eat if he was present, but just wasn't showing up and I was a bit woried about how much food he was getting.

Yesterday morning he left his burrow and did not return, swimming around in the top third of the water column. He rested exposed on the sandbed last night and stayed out in the water column again today. He did not eat when I fed the tank. Appearance-wise I see nothing out of the ordinary externally with the exception that he is maybe a bit darker, duller yellow than normal.

As a precaution I moved him to a hospital tank. I am planning to put him through a round of metro/kanaplex as a precaution. I am going to leave the QT barebottom with some PVC pipe in lieu of a tupperware of sand. Any thoughts or other suggestions?

 

[Flippers4pups]

#reefsquad? What have you been feeding it?

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

What have you been feeding it?

You and Crabs McJones answer faster than anyone else on the forum.

Display tank gets pellets in the morning and mysis or LRS in the evening. Generally he is standing guard over the burrow and eats the way he's supposed to. He just hasn't been showing up at the normal feeding time. Right now he's sitting at the bottom of the QT tank and just ate two pellets I managed to get near him. Quite frankly I don't know if eating is the problem or a symptom or nothing at all. . .as a goby they usually disappear a day here or there anyway. I was more concerned about abandoning the burrow, swimming around the water column and staying out in the open for nearly two days.

Pistol shrimp is still in the burrow. Maybe she kicked him out after finding he had a mistress shrimp.

 

[Flippers4pups]

You and Crabs McJones answer faster than anyone else on the forum.

Display tank gets pellets in the morning and mysis or LRS in the evening. Generally he is standing guard over the burrow and eats the way he's supposed to. He just hasn't been showing up at the normal feeding time. Right now he's sitting at the bottom of the QT tank and just ate two pellets I managed to get near him. Quite frankly I don't know if eating is the problem or a symptom or nothing at all. . .as a goby they usually disappear a day here or there anyway. I was more concerned about abandoning the burrow, swimming around the water column and staying out in the open for nearly two days.

Pistol shrimp is still in the burrow. Maybe she kicked him out after finding he had a mistress shrimp.

I try the best I can! Lol

I believe they can do this, leaving their borrow for short periods of time. Placing it a QT for a period of time for observation is okay. See if you can get it to eat.

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

I try the best I can! Lol

I believe they can do this, leaving their borrow for short periods of time. Placing it a QT for a period of time for observation is okay. See if you can get it to eat.

Sounds like you'd hold off on preventative antibiotics?

 

[Flippers4pups]

Sounds like you'd hold off on preventative antibiotics?

Let's get others to respond on that.
#reefsquad

I wouldn't treat unless it's absolutely needed, not sure yet.

 

[Big G]

Do you have any bristle worms in the tank? Has the fish been treated prophylactically for worms, flukes, etc.?

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

Do you have any bristle worms in the tank? Has the fish been treated prophylactically for worms, flukes, etc.?

Bristle worms are present. I'm not seeing any mark where he may have been stung, however. He went through a full quarantine procedure when I first acquired him - around June/July of last year. There have been no recent additions to my display tank other than coral - a single acro frag.

 

[4FordFamily]

I’d like to see a photo. I wouldn’t treat with meds without a diagnosis. The only exception perhaps that it wouldn’t hurt to do some General Cure or Prazi treatments to be safe.

 

[Big G]

There have been no recent additions to my display tank other than coral - a single acro frag.

Was the coral QT'd? When was it added to the tank?

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

I’d like to see a photo. I wouldn’t treat with meds without a diagnosis. The only exception perhaps that it wouldn’t hurt to do some General Cure or Prazi treatments to be safe.

One photo of the most grumpy-looking YWG ever coming up:

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

Was the coral QT'd? When was it added to the tank?

Coral (milli frag) was not QT'd. It was clipped from the base, dipped, put on a new plug and on the rack on the other side of the tank. I wouldn't rule out that something hitchhiked in on the coral, of course, but I think the chances to be small.

 

[4FordFamily]

One photo of the most grumpy-looking YWG ever coming up:

Doesn’t look happy but I don’t see any definitive issue. Have you witnessed a BM?

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

Doesn’t look happy but I don’t see any definitive issue. Have you witnessed BM?

No. But I'll watch for white stringy eliminations.

 

[4FordFamily]

No. But I'll watch for white stringy eliminations.

It doesn’t look like a blockage but I’ve had a YWG act as you describe with a blockage. It cleared up on its own within a few days to a week.

 

[Big G]

Little baby bristle worms are hard to digest . . . .

 

[saltyhog]

Mine will abandon his burrow and swim in the water column for the better part of a day every so often but two days is worrisome.

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

OK - so back to the game plan:

• Observe in the QT for a day or two without treatment.
• If there is a decline I'm going to treat with a metro/kanaplex combination.
  
• If I see signs of internal parasites I'll soak the food and bind with Focus.
  
• If no decline I'll keep him in the QT for at least a week and make sure he eats, then return to the DT and see what happens.

 

[Sierra_Bravo]

@4FordFamily @Flippers4pups

Well, two days later and he's not swimming in the water column anymore since I put him in QT. He's moving around the bottom, but still seems listless to me. He does not look like he's any worse or better than the other day and I'm not seeing him actively eat even if I put pellets or mysis directly in front of him. Any thoughts at this point?

 

[Flippers4pups]

Hum, @4FordFamily what do think?

I would try some meaty foods like Rods or LRS. Spot feed, what it doesn't eat suck out of the tank.

Lets see what others say.