PLZ help, Clown fish went blind last night

[cheebman]

hey fella's,

about 2-3 days ago i noticed that my clown had what looked like "dried" skin or slim on its front 1/3 of its body, and noticed that he lost his appitiete. now last night i noticed he wasnt on his mushrooms that he host to were he is 100% of the time after dark. i turned on the light to see if he was okay and he wasnt/not alright. He swims around and just smashes hard into the rock work. i have a wooden skewer i use in the tank and i was messing with him and he cant see it. i have to touch him with it for him to realize it's next to him.. i bought him about 6 months ago as a little guy and now he's huge. Also it seemed as the night went on his face/mouth area seemed to turn pale/white

what happened? is this a common desiease? also is it contagous? i have other yellow clown which is okay at the moment.

is there anything i can do to save the injured clown? and should i remove him from the tank to save the other one?

Tank parms:
28gal bowfront
wet/dry sump
moderate flow (magdrive 7, hydor korialla 1)
tank is 6months old
i feed brine shrimp once a week and a few sinking pellets twice a week
hes has been very healthy until now. tripled in size in 6 months.
water parms are normally dead on were they should be. ill get it tested again today to make sure..

thanks alot guys.

 

[lcstorc]

Well I moved the thread to fish diseases and treatment.
Give as much information as you can. Pics will definitely help. Size and age of tank. Current parameters. Other tankmates. Feeding routine. Just about anything you can think of. That will help the disease gurus help you much better.

 

[leebca]

Some observations from your original post:

1. You are equating size with health. If that were true, then very large humans would be healthy and dwarfs would be sick/ill. Not true of course.
2. The foods you are feeding are not sufficiently providing the variety and nutrients this fish needs. This fish is an omnivore. It needs veggies. Brine shrimp are nutritionally starving the fish. Pellets contain wheat and wheat products (please read the ingredients list on our pellet food). Wheat and wheat products are not digested by marine fishes and goes through them, into the marine system to feed undesirable bacteria.

3. The quantity and frequency of the feedings is too low for this fish.

4. The tank is overcrowded -- not only by marine fish size, but also for a reef tank. There is no room for anything to grow and even though the fish is now large, it has space stress working against it. With so many inverts, I would expect them to be fighting at least a chemical warfare, releasing toxins into the water to fend off their neighbors. The fish can suffer from this 'war.'

5. The fish is probably going through a latent case of brooklynellosis. Many Anemonefish carry this disease. It can sometimes remain latent until the fish is stressed to the point where it can get a foothold. The original name for brook was the 'stress disease.'

6. Maybe blind temp or permanent, because of the absence of the right kinds of nutrition. Vitamin A and D are essential for maintaining good eye sight. However, eyes can heal and the fish can eventually 'see' in a partial sense, again.

Although the fish is treatable, putting it in that environment will just mean the stress will continue. If you choose to treat this fish then I would recommend you put it in a larger display tank or trade it to your LFS or someone in a nearby marine aquarium fish club.

The fish needs to be moved to a quarantine tank for treatment. You perform a series of either FW baths or Formalin baths. Formalin is better, but the FW will work. The procedure for the FW bath is given here: http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/fish-diseases-treatments/31523-freshwater-dip-process.html

You give the fish a FW bath as directed above, every two days for a total of 5 baths. Then hold the fish for observation for 4 more weeks. If the fish begins to eat, start feeding it better foods.

I'm sorry, but at this stage, the fish may not recover. A fish that has been eating a proper diet can go without food for several weeks. This fish will likely not do that.

 

[cheebman]

hey leebca,

thanks for the info. as for #4 thats not entirely true. all of my corals have plenty of space to grow and spread. Everything im my tank is thriving. Even though i have alot of corals i didnt pay more then $30 each so there relitively small. i can see where the food wasnt the right thing. i just took my LFS advise on the food for him. which i should have researched like i did every other aspect of the tank.

thank you very much for your help. so u think i could be brooklynellosis? is there a medication that will treat multiple things, incase it's not brooklynellosis.

thanks..

im going to qt him shortly.

 

[Irishrose302]

tank parameters for fish also include:
ph
nitrate
phosphate
ammonia (if a newer tank)

if you include corals then it is:
ca
mg
alk

Definately need to change the diet, brine shrimp lack proper nutrition (its like people eating only chips or candy) the pellets may have just kept him barely going. They need a meaty diet along with a veggi diet that can include, spectrum pellets, marine quisine, line line carnivour, mysis shrimp, pieces of krill, some spirolina(sp).

good luck but as it has already been stated, the fish may not make it.

 

[cheebman]

hey leebca,

ive been reading on setting up the qt tank.. it says that i need a simple sponge filter. but it says that the sponge need to sit in the display tank for 4-8 weeks. i need to start the qt today. what do you suggest i do? cut a peice off my sponge thats in my wet/dry?

thanks

 

[leebca]

Out of curiosity, what happened to your Boxfish?

I still disagree with your opinion on #4. Many of those inverts take over many square yards on the reef, in the wild. In my opinion those marine lifeforms do not have room to grow in that setup. You say the aquarium has been setup for 6 months. Does that mean the fish were added then, at the outset? You had this fish for 6 months? Was it in that tank? That some of these inverts were added then? There are some points that don't seem to jive.

Others with reef tanks may have some more specific guidance with regards to the number and variety of inverts you have in the 28 gallon display.

To respond to your other concerns:
There is no 'gunshot' medication for marine fish diseases (unfortunately). There are more than a few dozen common and a few hundred less common parasites and pathogens. There is no single treatment for even more than three of the common ones. However the FW bath will address many parasites, which I don't believe apply here.

You do seem to be reading and that is very good.

The 'emergency' quarantine tank setup can still be handled. Although the biological filter isn't functional, you can make large water changes twice a day and/or use chemicals to control ammonia and nitrites to compensate until the bio filter is established (2-5 weeks).

Using the filter material from your current setup will help (anywhere from a little to a lot), but the bacteria just have to multiple and settle in. Still get and use a sponge filter. Try to use the bit of filter from your display such that QT water will pass through it at a slow-to-medium flow. (Can you get a large enough piece of this filter and is it flexible enough to loosely wrap around the sponge part of the sponge filter?) Be prepared to make water changes and/or use the chemical filter until the bacteria spread and are working. If the fish isn't eating, the pollution will be small, but of course you don't want this to be the case.

You'll need to test the water for ammonia and nitrites twice a day (more if the fish is eating), using a test kit (not a dip stick). Any trace of either of these on a test kit is cause for a large water change. Perform your large water changes according to this post: http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums...7-how-make-safe-water-change-marine-fish.html

You also, during this time, want to use the best 'source water' you can, for water changes in the quarantine tank. This is information about that: http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/fish-diseases-treatments/34041-source-water-discussion.html

Ask if you have any other concerns or questions. You're welcome!

 

[cheebman]

hey lee,

thanks again for your replys.

1st. the tank cycled for about 3weeks with nothing in it. This clown that is haveing trouble was added after those 3 weeks.

2nd. It does seem like it could be the brooklyn thing. im thinking about doing the Formalin bath.

3rd. I try to research as much as i can. Obvously not the food for the clowns.

4th. I always use the same ro water from my LFS that tests between 0 - 5 ppm

good news: i dont have a computer at home. After hearing from u and reading on whats wrong with my clown, i went home to QT him in a big bowl with an air stone until my LFS opens. it seems like he is looking alot better.. the dried skin looking stuff is gone, he's seems not to be very pale and he can see again. so i dont know whats going on. im still going to set up a QT tank anyway to make sure he is going to be okay.

Doesnt that seem weird? he can defenitly see again. when i put the skewer next to him he gets out of the way verses last night he didnt move until i touched him.. Last night i put him in the sump so he didnt keep smashing into the rock work and hurting himself.. that wouldnt have help would it?

thanks for your help.. I care very much about the tank's inhabitance's well being... i will do every thing i can to make sure he has the best chance of survival.

thanks lee

 

[leebca]

A change in location within the same marine system, improving the condition of the fish would eliminate most pathogens and most concerns about water quality.

It is possible that one or more of the other marine lifeforms is irritating the fish.

A Formalin treatment is touchy since you ave to control pH, temperature, and must provide an airstone. Some people find it hard to find Formalin. In addition, it has a short shelf-life so it must be fresh Formalin. But that is one type of treatment for brooklynellosis and I generally prefer it myself. It's harder for the hobbyist to do, however.

 

[lcstorc]

Jon,
I have sponges that have been in my reef for months for just this reason. give me a call and I will gladly let you have them to seed the qt.
I also have a wide variety of frozen food including homemade mush that I will gladly share. I have like 20 different varities of stuff since I feed a very varied diet.
Anyway I will be out for about an hour but after that you are welcome to come by.

 

[rmlevasseur]

Great analysis Lee

 

[leebca]

I really appreciate that, Robert.