Clownfish problem?

[sedrostyle]

So in the past probably 4 days... Since I got my new powerhead. Id have to check the dates.
But my clown fish has seemed sluggish. Not as active maybe?
Just seems funny.
Well today i noticed he has some spots on his tail fin that are almost see thru.
I feed him everyother day, ocean nutrition formula two pellets.
I probabl give him 6 or so.

Another thing, his mouth is moving really fast these few days. Dunno whats going on.

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[leena2674]

My first suggestion would be to start with water changes, then analyze what might be causing the problems. First step is to try to improve conditions immediately to prevent further stress on your livestock.

 

[Am3gross]

Is this fish in qt? The spots may be the beginnings of ick... Do you have any other fish in the tank?

 

[sedrostyle]

nope, only fish i even have.
And he must have been growing? Because the spots got a little worse then better?

Im going to do a waterchange tomorrow. All my parameters check out fine

 

[leebca]

Thanks for posting. Those spots look a little too big to be Marine Ich. Normally such spots if due to the parasite would drop off and then reappear in different areas later on. So just keep an eye on what they are doing overtime. Based upon your description of how the spots are changing, I would have to say that the greatest probability is that the fish's diet is not good

Concerning the fishes diet: the choice of food is not the best, and the frequency of feeding is below-average. Fish cannot eat and digest wheat products which you will find is used as the binding agent in pellets. Marine fish eat almost constantly throughout the day. In captivity, the Marine fish needs to be fed at least three times each day. In addition, Anemonefishes like your clownfish, need to be fed marine algae.

It would help a lot to feed your fish properly. If the current condition is an injury or poor nutrition it would heal quicker and better if the fish was fed properly. Take a look at this post for feeding guidance: http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/f15/feeding-marine-fish-fish-nutrition-rev-1-a-27014/

 

[sedrostyle]

I did get some frozen shrimp today and fed that to him.
At petco they couldnt explain it either, they explained to me fin rot usually started from the outside.
I took it upon myself to maybe change his diet.

Im glad you replied and explained to me the down side to pellets.
I will take the time to read the link you sent me.

Hopefully me changing his diet will help the feller out.
Thanks again!!

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[sedrostyle]

Wow... A lot of information to take in. So at 35% veggie diet and the rest whole marine.
What would you suggest i start giving my clown from here on out?
I appreciate your expertise lee.


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[leebca]

Anemonefishes are omnivores. You want to find packaged foods that do not contain land products, but contain a mix of whole sea foods and macro algae (or spirulina in place of the macro algae). The food should be advertised as omnivore food or foods for Anemonefishes.

Read the ingredients. Avoid foods that contain brine shrimp. Look over the list in the post as to what are the preferred 'whole' foods.

I don't recommend any specific food, rather I try to 'arm' the reader with the information they need to know in order to choose the best foods that their LFS have available. The best whole foods include the whole organism, like krill and ocean plankton for the meat side, macro algae and/or spirulina, for the veggie side. Don't hesitate to also offer macro algae itself. Many fishes will eat it, though Anemonefishes tend to shy away from it. I have found though that most female Anemonefishes will eat it, whereas the male tends to ignore it. Either way, make sure it is in their food. These are some other posts you should read through:
http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/f15/how-feed-macro-alage-marine-fishes-41649/
and
http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/f15/different-forms-marine-fish-foods-30026/

Good luck!

 

[leena2674]

New Life Spectrum pellets are supposed to be some of the best on the market with regard to nutrition and feeding finicky fish. You may give that a try if you prefer to use pellets as part of your fish's diet. I use them in addition to frozen, live food, and macro algae. Even my Long Tentacle Anemone likes them when he manages to snag one.

 

[leebca]

There is no 'good' low quality food. They can't be saved regardless of their hype and advertising. Pellets and flake foods is like humans trying to live on fast foods from second rated chain outlets. Read the label. They contain wheat. Wheat is not digested by marine fishes. In addition, the wheat is part of the protein analysis. So if the product claims x% protein, your fish isn't getting that protein at all. No pellet is good. They are fast and easy for the hobbyist but not the best for marine fishes. The wheat product just pollutes the tanks and feeds algae and nuisance bacteria.

I have never heard of any land farmer complaining about marine fishes raiding their wheat crops and devastating their fields. Our marine fishes are on a strict seafood diet. The more we respect that and follow that principle, the healthier our fishes will be. Next is trying to choose the optimal form of that food.

The low-end foods for marine fishes are brine shrimp (even the ones that are gut loaded); pellet foods (all kinds); and flake foods (all kinds); freeze-dried foods that are touted as being good for marine and freshwater fishes. Use these foods sparingly (if you feel the need to use them at all), like once every 12 to 24 feedings each.

 

[sedrostyle]

I must have mistaked brine shrimp with mysis shrimp.
I now have my clown on brine shrimp, i also bought some green marine algae today, says 100% natural dried seaweeds. Marine macroalgae

He didnt like it.
Should i lengthen my lights? So i can feed him shrimp at 530am when i go to work, then again at 245pm when i get home and then around 6 when the lights go off?

Right now my lights come on at 930am and go off at 6ish pm.

Or is it ok to throw food while hes asleep, he wouldnt be awake for 4 hrs when the lights come on.

I wish i could find some flat frozen mysis shrimp insted of the cubes. As i only have a 29 gallon with one clown.


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[leena2674]

My clowns won't touch macro algae foods. Hence the diversity in my feeding. My Blenny, Tang, and Damsel love the algae, but I can't get the clowns to eat it at all.

leebca, given the fact that my clowns won't touch algae foods, and I feed primarily frozen foods (variety), what else can I use to ensure they get their 'veggies' if any type of flake or pellet is inappropriate?

 

[Derbird]

I don't mean to hijack this thread but..........

I have never heard that brine shrimp are a bad food. I try to feed a good variety of foods. Every morning before work I give a mix of shrimp and spirulina pellets. Every other night I give my tank one of these three foods. Brine shrimp with spirulina, or Mysis shrimp, or Rod's food. Oh and every other day I put a quarter sheet of seaweed in for the wrasse and tang. My clowns have also never touched the stuff.

I want the best for my salt and fresh water friends is there something I should be doing diffrently?

Current livestock in my 125 salt tank

Blue Damselfish (Chrysiptera cyanea)
False Percula Clownfish -Amphiprion ocellaris X2
Dragon Goby, Amblygobius phalaena
Eight Line Wrasse (Pseudocheilinus octotaenia)
Bristletooth Tang (Ctenochaetus binotatus)
Firefish Goby (Nemateleotris Magnifica) X4

Plus my inverts and clean up crew of course

Sorry to take over this thread :bolt:

 

[leebca]

Leena,

It's not unusual for Anemonefishes to reject eating macro algae. I find that the female is more prone to eating it than the male, in a mated pair. What these omnivores will eat is a meaty food that also contains spirulina. Spirulina is a micro marine algae that has excellent nutritional value. Look for foods that contain this in a large quantity. In general, if the food contains this ingredient in a large quantity (over 15%) it will be green in color (unless it was artificially colored). If you do choose to use a brine shrimp food (I think one feeding of brine shrimp for every 12 to 21 feedings is okay) get the brine shrimp gut loaded with spirulina.

 

[leebca]

The hobbyists need to be wakened from the lull of advertising. Beef heart was once considered a great food for fresh and saltwater fishes. How many cow's have died in water and coughed up their heart to be eaten by fishes? You know how this came about?

North Americans don't eat cow hearts. They were going to waste. This was before it was put into animal feeds. Some very smart person took 100 pounds of beef heart, which cost about $5. at the time, ground it up, and packaged it as fish food. That 100 pounds sold for $2,000. to fish hobbyists in packages of a few ounces each. Huge advertising campaigns followed on how great beef heart was for fishes. It took decades to debunk this. You can probably still find it for sale. Profit margin has gone down since animal feed buyers now compete for it, but it still is a great money-maker for the sellers.

The point is that we, as hobbyists, are inundated with colorful, hype, advertising. I want us all to wake up and be diligent. Read labels. Now, let's look at brine shrimp.

The typical brine shrimp as the name implies, comes from brine pools. No marine fish or freshwater fish has ever seen, let alone ate, a brine shrimp in the wild. But there are lakes of these critters. Like the beef heart, someone very smart found a way to sell them and to whom to sell them. From Sea Monkeys to fish food, these critters have been hyped as everything from pets to a good fish food. BUT, just look at their analysis. They are a huge percent of water, packaged in water. The hobbyist is paying mostly for water. Knowledgeable marine aquarists know these brine shrimp are sacks of water. It was Anthony Calfo who I heard first use the term, 'sacks of water' to describe these almost nutritionally worthless creatures. The hobbyist is being robbed and the fish are not getting their proper nutrition.

Look at their analysis and compare their analysis to the analysis of mysis or krill or ocean plankton. You'll find a huge difference if you take the time to do the comparison. I have taken that time.

So what pods should be fed? Easy. Krill. All krill comes from seawater. Ocean plankton. There is freshwater and seawater plankton. So be sure it is saltwater plankton. Saltwater mysis (unfortunately there are a dozen pods that are commonly referred to as 'mysis.' You have to read labels to be sure they come from the sea). Krill and ocean plankton make the great thing to feed because they are a mix of sea life. Those are the real food pods readily harvested and available. The other pods, the kind that comes in with live rock are great too, but we can't grow enough in the home aquarium to feed our fishes. They don't reproduce fast enough AND they are only fed what we put into the tank, so their nutritional value eventually goes south.

For variety, you can add some meaty seafoods like shrimp tails, squid, scallops, clams, etc. but with the exception of clams, these are not whole foods. Our omnivore and carnivore ornamental marine fishes eat the whole organism, not just bits of it. They get a lot of nutrition from eating the organs of other sea life.

Anyway. . .I'll get off my soapbox. Thanks for reading.

 

[IPisces]

Thank you for reminding us all Lee. I've heard from too many people that they were told pellets are sufficient. This info really helps.

 

[DolphinLVR]

Thank you Lee!

I am definitely going back to making my own food

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[sedrostyle]

Yeah, im going to start making my food, with mysis shrimp, whole shrimp from the market, and maybe skallops.
Then get some vitamins to soak them in, and freeeze flat
thanks again lee

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