percula clown not acting right

zensaiyan · 02-04-2004, 06:21 PM

my perc clown has been not acting as energetic as usual. i have posted before asking about a black looking dust on his skin, but everyone said that it was probably just him getting darker. sometimes he swims near the bottom slowly with his fins clamped against him. i have saw him flick his side a couple times too. i checked the parameters and the ammonia had a spike, and it doesn't seem to want to go away. can someone help me? any info would be of great assistance.

RanRoc · 02-04-2004, 06:55 PM

Have you tried water changes to help control ammonia? I can't recall the name of the clamped fin disease, but perhaps you could get a small tank to put it in; sort of a hospital tank. There you could monitor it and medicate if necessary...oh, get at least an airstone too. HTH
-RY

sambot · 02-04-2004, 06:57 PM

If you give us a little more info I'm sure someone could help. Ammonia reading, tank size, tank age, tank inhabitants, lights, filtration, lbs of rock if any, substrait. The first thing you need to find is the source of the ammonia and why it is not being taken out of the tank. Welcome.

Sam

CAT · 02-04-2004, 10:25 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by zensaiyan
my perc clown has been not acting as energetic as usual. i have posted before asking about a black looking dust on his skin, but everyone said that it was probably just him getting darker.

Sounds like Black-spot disease to me. Check out this site and see if that's what the clown has.

http://saltaquarium.about.com/cs/com...a/aa041701.htm

Water quality problems could certainly stress the fish out enough to make it sick.

Good luck.

zensaiyan · 02-05-2004, 12:25 AM

well i am running a 25 gal tank, with live sand and about 25 pounds of live rock. currently in the tank are my pair of perculas, two scooter blennys, a dragonet, and a chocolate chip starfish. i have an Emperor 400 filter, an airstone, a powerhead, and flourescent perfecto strip light with natural daylight eclipse bulb (just the normal you get from a pet store). i have had the tank up and running since about november. the ammonia readings are .5-1.0 ppm. does any one have an idea? thanks

nivek · 02-05-2004, 01:37 AM

Not sure about the perc but a cleaner shrimp could do wonders to external parasites like black ick. As for your ammonia readings, how often do you feed your fish and how much? I'm thinking of overfeeding here as a 25gal (without sump I presume) would definitely not provide much room for error.

Another thing to note is how long have you had the dragonet? Is it feeding ok? And lastly, why do you have an airstone in your tank? Any corals in there? Lighting is not sufficient for corals in your setup.

Check out some other threads on new tank setup to get more info. Hope to help.

zensaiyan · 02-05-2004, 02:05 AM

i was planning on adding a clean up crew this week or next. i was thinking some cleaner crabs and shrimp. does anyone have any suggestions? as for feeding, i feed them either garlic formula 2, brine shrimp, etc in the morning and evening, but only a little bit. i have had my dragonet for about a month and he seems to be fine. he has been eating off of the rocks in the tank. i added the airstone when i setup the tank, why is that a bad thing? i always added air curtains to my tanks. i don't have any corals or anything, unless they are randomly growing on my LR. i am having a small agae problem, just popped up. thats why i was getting the crabs.

nivek · 02-05-2004, 02:15 AM

I suggest you cut back on your feeding as this may be a factor contributing to your algae problem. Dragonet needs lots of copepod type food for survival. Your current setup may not have enough resources to sustain it over a long period of time. Its food source will deplete and will not have time to repopulate.

You might want to lean towards snails for your algae problem instead of crabs. As for airstones and air curtains, they are ok for FW but no no for SW.

One important question I forgot to ask is how long has your tank been setup?

zensaiyan · 02-05-2004, 12:55 PM

lets see, i have had my tank up and running since november. it has been cycled for awhile now. what does air do to sw tanks if you don't mind me asking? i mean i have taken it out, but i was wondering what they do.
do you also have any suggestions for my mandarin dragonet? i have saw that you can feed them live mysis, or things like that. what would be best to try to do to help him out? thanks nivek

caja · 02-05-2004, 04:38 PM

to be perfectly honest with you the dragonet should never have been purchased in the first place. they are voracious eaters and will quickly deplete your pod supply. very few dragonets will eat prepared foods as they prefer to hunt for pods. unfortunately if yours doesn't take to the mysis or other prepared foods it will slowly starve to death. any chance you can take it back and trade it in for an easier to care for fish?

Research is key before making a purchase. keep that in mind.

zensaiyan · 02-05-2004, 04:55 PM

actually, the place i bought my dragonet was feeding him frozen brine shrimp. he ate some when i was there. i am getting ready to go and see if i can feed him anything else, so i will let you know if he is going to stay in my tank. thanks.

nivek · 02-06-2004, 09:03 PM

zensaiyan, i would like to apologize for my wrong information on the bubbles issue (hey i'm only human

). This link should provide you with better information on the myths of bubbles.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-01/eb/index.htm

zensaiyan · 02-07-2004, 03:05 AM

actually my clowns seem to really enjoy the bubbles being gone. now they are constantly swimming the entire tank instead of just a portion. my dragonet is coming out more too. i seriously do not think they liked the bubbles. i will not put one in my new tank bc i see a serious increase in fish activity with it gone. i guess it is one of those things that works for some and not for others.

02-04-2004, 06:21 PM	#1 (permalink)
zensaiyan Bryozoan Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: boston Posts: 48 View Gallery Karma Komment	percula clown not acting right my perc clown has been not acting as energetic as usual. i have posted before asking about a black looking dust on his skin, but everyone said that it was probably just him getting darker. sometimes he swims near the bottom slowly with his fins clamped against him. i have saw him flick his side a couple times too. i checked the parameters and the ammonia had a spike, and it doesn't seem to want to go away. can someone help me? any info would be of great assistance.

02-04-2004, 06:55 PM	#2 (permalink)
RanRoc Scopas Tang Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Central Florida: GO KNIGHTS!!! Posts: 443 View Gallery Karma Komment	Have you tried water changes to help control ammonia? I can't recall the name of the clamped fin disease, but perhaps you could get a small tank to put it in; sort of a hospital tank. There you could monitor it and medicate if necessary...oh, get at least an airstone too. HTH -RY __________________ My Disclaimer for any Advice I Give: I Could Be Wrong... Randy's Rockin' Reef MANGROVE ROOT GANG

02-05-2004, 01:37 AM	#6 (permalink)
nivek Cabbage Leather Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Penang, Malaysia Posts: 367 View Gallery Karma Komment	Not sure about the perc but a cleaner shrimp could do wonders to external parasites like black ick. As for your ammonia readings, how often do you feed your fish and how much? I'm thinking of overfeeding here as a 25gal (without sump I presume) would definitely not provide much room for error. Another thing to note is how long have you had the dragonet? Is it feeding ok? And lastly, why do you have an airstone in your tank? Any corals in there? Lighting is not sufficient for corals in your setup. Check out some other threads on new tank setup to get more info. Hope to help. __________________ "Hey Yoda! Stop playing with my orange lightsaber!" - Master Nivek

02-05-2004, 02:15 AM	#8 (permalink)
nivek Cabbage Leather Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Penang, Malaysia Posts: 367 View Gallery Karma Komment	I suggest you cut back on your feeding as this may be a factor contributing to your algae problem. Dragonet needs lots of copepod type food for survival. Your current setup may not have enough resources to sustain it over a long period of time. Its food source will deplete and will not have time to repopulate. You might want to lean towards snails for your algae problem instead of crabs. As for airstones and air curtains, they are ok for FW but no no for SW. One important question I forgot to ask is how long has your tank been setup? __________________ "Hey Yoda! Stop playing with my orange lightsaber!" - Master Nivek

02-06-2004, 09:03 PM	#12 (permalink)
nivek Cabbage Leather Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Penang, Malaysia Posts: 367 View Gallery Karma Komment	zensaiyan, i would like to apologize for my wrong information on the bubbles issue (hey i'm only human ). This link should provide you with better information on the myths of bubbles. http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-01/eb/index.htm __________________ "Hey Yoda! Stop playing with my orange lightsaber!" - Master Nivek

02-04-2004, 06:57 PM	#3 (permalink)
sambot Fire Coral Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Cape Coral, FL Posts: 72 View Gallery Karma Komment	If you give us a little more info I'm sure someone could help. Ammonia reading, tank size, tank age, tank inhabitants, lights, filtration, lbs of rock if any, substrait. The first thing you need to find is the source of the ammonia and why it is not being taken out of the tank. Welcome. Sam

02-05-2004, 12:25 AM	#5 (permalink)
zensaiyan Bryozoan Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: boston Posts: 48 View Gallery Karma Komment	well i am running a 25 gal tank, with live sand and about 25 pounds of live rock. currently in the tank are my pair of perculas, two scooter blennys, a dragonet, and a chocolate chip starfish. i have an Emperor 400 filter, an airstone, a powerhead, and flourescent perfecto strip light with natural daylight eclipse bulb (just the normal you get from a pet store). i have had the tank up and running since about november. the ammonia readings are .5-1.0 ppm. does any one have an idea? thanks

02-05-2004, 02:05 AM	#7 (permalink)
zensaiyan Bryozoan Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: boston Posts: 48 View Gallery Karma Komment	i was planning on adding a clean up crew this week or next. i was thinking some cleaner crabs and shrimp. does anyone have any suggestions? as for feeding, i feed them either garlic formula 2, brine shrimp, etc in the morning and evening, but only a little bit. i have had my dragonet for about a month and he seems to be fine. he has been eating off of the rocks in the tank. i added the airstone when i setup the tank, why is that a bad thing? i always added air curtains to my tanks. i don't have any corals or anything, unless they are randomly growing on my LR. i am having a small agae problem, just popped up. thats why i was getting the crabs.

02-05-2004, 12:55 PM	#9 (permalink)
zensaiyan Bryozoan Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: boston Posts: 48 View Gallery Karma Komment	lets see, i have had my tank up and running since november. it has been cycled for awhile now. what does air do to sw tanks if you don't mind me asking? i mean i have taken it out, but i was wondering what they do. do you also have any suggestions for my mandarin dragonet? i have saw that you can feed them live mysis, or things like that. what would be best to try to do to help him out? thanks nivek

02-05-2004, 04:38 PM	#10 (permalink)
caja Cabbage Leather Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Northern VA Posts: 371 View Gallery Karma Komment	to be perfectly honest with you the dragonet should never have been purchased in the first place. they are voracious eaters and will quickly deplete your pod supply. very few dragonets will eat prepared foods as they prefer to hunt for pods. unfortunately if yours doesn't take to the mysis or other prepared foods it will slowly starve to death. any chance you can take it back and trade it in for an easier to care for fish? Research is key before making a purchase. keep that in mind.

02-05-2004, 04:55 PM	#11 (permalink)
zensaiyan Bryozoan Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: boston Posts: 48 View Gallery Karma Komment	actually, the place i bought my dragonet was feeding him frozen brine shrimp. he ate some when i was there. i am getting ready to go and see if i can feed him anything else, so i will let you know if he is going to stay in my tank. thanks.

02-07-2004, 03:05 AM	#13 (permalink)
zensaiyan Bryozoan Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: boston Posts: 48 View Gallery Karma Komment	actually my clowns seem to really enjoy the bubbles being gone. now they are constantly swimming the entire tank instead of just a portion. my dragonet is coming out more too. i seriously do not think they liked the bubbles. i will not put one in my new tank bc i see a serious increase in fish activity with it gone. i guess it is one of those things that works for some and not for others.

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