clownfish help please

[jhouse]

ok my clownfish that i have had for almost two yrs now has holes going right through his tail fin i dont know what it is or what to do for him i am trying to get him to come out of his hole so i can get a pic but i am open to ideas and questions until i can get a pic thank you all or your help

 

[Dave VG]

What other fish do you have in there?

 

[fatrip]

Other fish and inverts?
Parameters of the tank?
Tank size?
Corals?
Filtration on the tank?

 

[jhouse]

it a 55 gallon tank with live rocks and a blue green damsel and the clown fish is a gold banded maroon it is just the two of them in the tank they each stay in their own ends there are some feather dusters in the tank also

 

[jhouse]

i have a canister filter

 

[jhouse]

let me say this it looks like someone picked my fish up and stuck needles right through the middle of his tail fin

 

[Dave VG]

Damsels can be very territorial and mean. I would not put it past it to be nipping at the other fish. Without a picture it tough to tell I mean it could even be some type of fungous. How long have both fish been in there? The feather dusters are the only inverts in there?

 

[fatrip]

well it doesn't sound like fin rot or a bacterial infection. Could be a fungous, have you posted in the fish disease forum? I would suggest to try the question there.

 

[TripleT]

Got pics?

What are you feeding, and how often?

 

[jhouse]

i have a pic but i cant get it upload for some reason i have had the clownfish for about two yrs and the damsel for about seven months yes the feather duster are the only other thing in the tank with the i feed brine shrimp and these pellets if you have a email address i can send a pic thank you all so much for the help

 

[TripleT]

You should test and post all of your water parameters here.

If you haven't done a water change recently, start prepping some water now. Mix your salt for at least a day.

Have you kept up maintenance with your canister filter? You might want to rinse it well, using old tank water (after a water change) if you want to preserve more beneficial bacteria.

Only feed brine if it is enriched. It will say this on the packaging, and the ingredients will say more that just brine. Otherwise, toss it in the garbage.

I'd buy some PE mysis (spend the extra few $), and a couple of different frozen preparations marked for omnivores.

If you are feeding pellet, use a better brand such as New Life Spectrum.

I'd also soak food overnight, at least a few times a week. Selcon, Zoe+Zoecon, or similar. Shot glasses work very well for this. Freeze dried foods (including brine) soak up supplements readily.

Feed 2-3 times a day, and keep it varied.

All of this can help reduce stress, and boost his immune system.

 

[jhouse]

best pic i could get

 

[TripleT]

best pic i could get

Very hard to tell from that picture. I'd try to take some more.

But a large water change, and improving his diet (today!) are the first things you can do to help him out. Refer back to my last post, and don't forget to soak food in supplements.

You might also do some research on Brooklynella (aka Clownfish Disease), and become familiar with the symptoms and treatment options. But do not treat without a positive identification. This is one of the deadlier afflictions that occur in marine fish, and it acts very quickly.

http://www.google.com/images?q=Broo...&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi&biw=1327&bih=760

By addressing water quality and food immediately, other potentially dangerous treatments can possibly be avoided.

 

[jhouse]

from what i have read about this disease it cant be that as he would be dead already he is acting just like he always does he look healthy other then the holes right through his tail and i just cant figure out what happened to him

 

[Dave VG]

It looks like it could still be from the Damsel (devil fish) nipping at it. If it was Brooklynella you are correct it would be dead by now. Just keep track of it to make sure it does not get any worse. If it is acting normal most likely it's ok. It's been 2 days now and most diseases in this hobby are quick killers. Unfortunately most of the time we never really know what is wrong until it is to late and can only guess as to what happened unless it was very obvious what the problem was such as ich, broke and so forth. Keep us posted as to how it is doing and good luck to ya.

 

[jhouse]

thank you so much i think that what is wrong with him is that he is doing it to himself as he sweeps the sand out of his cave i think the rocks are cutting up his tail i was watching him last night and he was going crazy everytime the sand land back in the cave

 

[Dave VG]

No problem hope all goes well for ya.