Need help on clown and anemone..

[Trilogy]

Hi guys..i dont have any pictures of my current tank with my clown's and anemone..so i will just explain what is going on with them.About a week ago i got a pair of percula clown and anemone ..the problem is one of the fish died and the other one dont seem to eat anything for the past 1 week..I did some search about clownfishes and it says that wild caught fish is more likely not to survive because it might have problems with parasites..Well the thing is that i dont really know if the fish were caught wild or tank breed..Anyway i did 20% water change just to make sure everything so going fine..but nothing helps..

The anemone seem fine but it dont seem to eat the shrimp that i feed..is this normal or there is some problem going on..??

 

[greech]

Sorry to answer your question with more questions but not enough info:

What type of nem?
What size tank?
Lighting?
How long has the tank been up?
Any recent water tests? Results?
What type of shrimp are you feeding?

Can you explain what happened to the clown that didn't make it? Any signs/issues other than not eating?

 

[Trilogy]

anemone is white in color and has a purple tip
my tank is around 5 gallon
LED lighting
tank is currently 2 months
so far did a test on NO3..seems fine it shows 0
feed the anemone with normal shrimp..bought it at the market..(wash well before feeding)

before clown died it was showing some heavy breathing, not swimming normal, always sleeping under the anemone...The other clown does not show any of this but it just dont seem to eat.

 

[sante210]

First your tank is very new and small to be adding so much at once.

Have you tested your amonia/Nitrite/Nitrate's?

An anemone is not the easiest thing to keep and you're going to hear it from everyone that a tank should be running at least 6 months before adding. Also IMO your tank is way to small for an anemone.

 

[greech]

I am not blasting you but a 5 gallon is way too small for what you are trying to pull off. Its way too small for any species of hosting anemone and too small for even one clownfish. My guess your issue is stress related and nothing short of getting a 30+ gallon tank is going to change that. If you are not testing your water, you could have ammonia which reflects the lack of appetite and heavy breathing. Wastes build up really fast in a tank that size even when stocked appropriately.

Not sure what type of LED lighting you have but if is just a low powered LED, the nem will not survive. Again the tank is way too small for any hosting nem anyway.

My suggestion would be to return the clown and the nem and look into something like a clown gobie or neon gobies with some easy corals like zoas and shrooms.

Your tank is also pretty new at only 2 months.

HTH

 

[Conrad25]

Your tank is very small, very new and not to mention the LED's on the tank probably are not very powerful. You will need to get them out of there asap or nothing will survive. It needs to be a larger tank like stated above and even at that, with how new it is, it is unlikely it will make it. First thing to learn about this hobby is patience. Second is reading up on every single critter and coral you want before purchasing to make sure everything will do well in the enviroment you gue them.

Conrad

 

[Toddrtrex]

If possible, take the anemone back. Besides your tank being way too small, it sounds like you bought a bleached H. Crispa -- their track record for recovering is spotty at best, and pretty much non-existent in a tank that sized.

 

[Trilogy]

Can i give it a try ....just for a few days just to see if my clown is eating..if it do not show any improvement , i will try to think of getting a new tank..Anyway guys ..if i replace and add around 50% of natural sea water will it be better..?? Do you think i may help the clown to eat?

 

[greech]

WC's surely can't hurt but that isn't the point. Bottom line is these animals will not survive in your setup. They need to go back or given to someone that has an appropriate tank. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but its the right thing to do. Setup and cycle a bigger tank, read up on nems and clowns and go from there. Keep in mind that you will still need to wait 6+ months before you add a nem. The clowns cans be added much sooner though. HTH

 

[Conrad25]

I have a 75 Gallon tank at the moment and will be getting a carpet anemone. I upgraded from my established 37 Gallon tank. I have waited 9 1/2 Months to get it as I wanted to make sure its very stable, conditions are perfect and everything as I wanted to give it the best shot it would have. I wouldn't even consider trying that in a small dinky tank like that. They won't make it. You will be lucky if the clown makes it. Anemone's are one of the hardest things to keep in this hobby. If you care about the hobby at all and want to be successful, you will either learn the lesson the hardway by not taking them back and everything perishing. Or you can take them back, get something for them probably and move up in tank size etc if you want to try this.

 

[Trilogy]

ok guys..i will go for a bigger tank maybe 20-30 gallons..before that i will try to see if my clown starts to eat..hope that little guy starts eating within this week..

 

[KeMo]

On such a small tank you are not going to be able to keep your water parameters were they need to be. Even with my 29 gal I have to check tank daily and do daily water top offs. Things take a long time in this hobby. But badd things can happen overnight or faster. It sounds like you got a bleached Anemone. As they are not white. With such a small tank , sorry to say it and your lack of experience that tank is going to be the death of them. As you will find most of us on ReefCentral Love are fishes and only want the best for all of them . So your going to get straight up answers when people feel you are doing something wrong. Witch is ok dont forget that we are all here to learn and we were all in your shoes at one time with little to no experience.
You should take all the fish and Anemone back to the store as if and when you get a new tank , it will have to cycle and you do NOT want livestock in the tank when doing your cycle. Plus like said before you also need to upgrade your lights.

 

[SwampyBill]

+1 on all the excellent suggestions so far. Bring anemone & clownfish back to LFS for store credit. If you want something to watch in a 5g tank, get a few hermit crabs & start your CUC...In the meantime, read, read, & read some more here on RC before making anymore purchases. Ask questions; we'll give you honest feedback & steer you in the right direction to make informed choices.

Personally, I'd change LFS...While they're all in it to make money, a reputable store wouldn't have sold 2 clowns & an anemone to a newbie with a 5gal tank.