new clownfish concern

[johnastig]

Hey all. I just purchased a clownfish yesterday after cycling my 12 gallon aquapod for just over 3 weeks. Yesterday, I noticed my clownfish was swimming only around the bottom corner of my tank. Today, I noticed he has moved around to different parts of the tank but most of the time just swimming in the corner. The main thing that concerns me is I just noticed that he has constantly been swimming with his mouth open (did not observe this behavior yesterday). I have tried to feed him Tetra flake food but he has not attempted to swim up to the surface to eat it. I have also noticed he has not attempted to grab at things to eat that have been floating around him as he was doing so yesterday. Should I be concerned about these behaviors? If so, what can I do. This is the first fish I have put in my new tank. Thanks for the help.

 

[johnastig]

by the way, i have also just done a water quality test and all levels read 0 (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)

 

[charlesr1958]

Clownfish will pick an "area" to host (hang around in) as part of their natural behaviour just as they do with an anemone.

I did not see any mention that you used a quarantine procedure for this fish which is a critical step after the purchase of any creature to avoid introducing pathogens into the tank as well as using it as an acclimation to capitivity and being trained to eat prepared foods.

The mouth open behaviour may be quite normal, or it may be an indication of worse things to come, any number of parasites usualy attack / attach to the gills of fish first which reduces the gill's ability to extract oxygen from the water. Or your tank may not have enough aeration provided.

I would remove the fish to a quarantine setup and start training it to eat any of the frozen prepared foods or even just some chopped up mysis shrimp. Am not a big fan of dry foods, they add far to much algae fuel to the water. This will also give you a chance to observe the fish closely and take any treatment action right away if the need arises. Clownfish are notriously susceptable to brooklynella.

Chuck

 

[coralseas]

mouth not closeing could be gill fluke

 

[steve-s]

There are a few issues that will cause a fishs' mouth to stay open but given the genus, Brooklynella would be at the top of the list. A. ocellatum or poor nutrition (goiter) can also be causes.

Are there any additional symptoms, ie excess skin mucus or cloudy appearance, turbidity of the skin, red marks or lesions, faded color, stringy bits hanging from it's body or gills, odd swimming motions or so on.

Not eating right away is not a concern. Fish often need to "learn" where food comes from when newly aquired. Feeding dried foods to clowns is asking for trouble though. I would at the very least suggest you hold the flake underwater for a few seconds to allow them to sink/float in the water rather than on top of it. I agree with Charles at the next opportunity, I would suggest you buy a frozen preparation that incorporates both meat and veg at the same time.

Cheers
Steve

 

[johnastig]

today i just noticed that there is a small sort of reddish/brownish discoloration behind his right eye, in the white section of his body. also there is 1 weird black dot marking under his left fin, the marking is very very faint and does not seem to be raised. no mucuous or anything or things hanging/dangling from him. he seems to be a bit more lethargic than he was the first time i got him but now is swimming more around the tank. thanks for all the help guys

 

[steve-s]

Do you know if the clown was wild caught or not?

Cheers
Steve

 

[johnastig]

im not sure.. but i think im losing him quick.. his eye looks cloudy now too..

 

[charlesr1958]

Hopefully, by this being photo heavy, it may be easier to figure out for you than trying to go by just descriptions.

Fish Disease Identification and Treatments

Chuck

 

[steve-s]

Cloudy eye can be a sign of parasite activity or poor water conditions. Given the symptoms so far, I would actually lean towards Brooklynella. It can be a quick killer. The cure is relatively easy, works very quickly and would provide almost immediate relief if so. You will need to get some formalin.

http://www.petsforum.com/personal/trevor-jones/formalinbaths.html

Treat as a long SW bath (45-60 min) providing the clown does not become overly stressed. Add 20 drops/gal of the formalin and aerate well with an aerstone at least ½ and hour ahead and be sure the temp does not exceed 78°. keep the aeration going during the bath and once the time is up have another unmedicated SW bath ready to rinse the fish before it goes back in the tank.

Cheers
Steve