New clowns... please help me do this right.

[michellejy]

I have two juvenile black and white ocellaris clowns that I just brought home. They are probably the size of a quarter. I did all of the research I could think of before bringing them home, but of course, now that they are here, I'm second guessing everything I thought I knew.

So I have questions for the experts.

They are being drip acclimated now and will soon be going into a QT with a SG that matches the SG at the LFS. I will slowly raise the SG over the next several weeks of their quarantine until it matches the level of the display tank.

I also bought the food that they were eating at the LFS to hopefully stress them a bit less. However, if anyone has specific recommendations for food that seems to keep their clowns happy, I'd love some opinions.

Now what I am worried about is if it is best to treat them preventively with cupramine and prazipro or if I should leave them be unless they show some sign of illness and then treat. With their size, I worry about waiting for a sign of illness in case it's too late by then, but obviously I worry about the treatment stressing them out.

Help!

 

[sml41]

these are hardy fish ; I normally use some of main tank water in QT and I give an initial dosage of quick cure and then use garlic food. These fish adjust fast to food and are not as fussy eater, vary food, flakes, spirula flakes, frozen shrimp etc . Fish stores feed cheaply for profits

 

[michellejy]

I bought the frozen food they were being fed at the store, but even if I thaw it and cut it into the smallest possible pieces, it is too big for their mouths. To be honest, I have no idea how the fish store was getting the fish to eat this stuff at all. They pick at it as it's floating around the tank, but I'm not sure how much is actually being eaten.

I think due to their size, a flake food that can be crushed up might be even better. Is there are certain type you would recommend?

Oh, and I haven't seen quick cure mentioned before. What does it treat?

 

[LisaJill]

I got tiny, tiny clowns from Rod and feed them Rod's food. They eat flake too. Some of the larger pieces of Rod's was a bit too much, but they'd tear it apart if they wanted. And they ate the smaller pieces with relish.

Just an option. There are smaller foods out there as well, you could look for a thread on breeding clowns and see what types of foods they go through as they get older.

 

[1337TANKHAX]

try brine shrimp or maybe bloodworms, they should both be small enough.

 

[michellejy]

Thank you for the suggestions. I had a clown years ago, but he was probably 3 times this size when I got him so I never worried about if food was too big.