pink tailed trigger fish not moving?help?

[andrewsky]

my pink tailed trigger fish is not moving. not sure why, i did a freshwater dip to get the flukes that he had off of him at the store and they came right off i saw with my own eyes. we put him back into saltwater and he looked better then he did before. then i got home and put him into another fw dip because i saw some spots. the spots came off so i put him into my tank and he swam right behind the rocks and wedged himself fin between rocks and had the shrimps clean him. i called up the guy that helped me setup the tank and he said their hardy fish and if hes wedged between rocks hes not gonna really move just yet. the shrimps stopped cleaning him and he is not moving but hes breathing, but he looks like he wants the move the way his/her eyes are looking you can like tell. whats wrong with him? is he shocked? nervous? will he make it through?
thanks

 

[miketay89]

Is he stuck? The way I read it, it sounds like he's wedged himself in and cannot get out? If so, move the rocks so that he can move. He was maybe in a panic and wanted to hide so badly that he is now caught on the rockwork.

 

[andrewsky]

ok i will try, but he moved like an inch though i put him in at 6:30 and he was stuck in one spot till 7:30 and then he like moved like an inch or two but thats it. but ya maybe he is stuck so i will try.

 

[125G Reefer]

Dude, sounds like you stressed the crap outta him. Leave him alone for a few days. Also, if you have cleaner shrimp in the tank, why would you fw dip him? The shrimp will take care of him.

 

[duncantse]

Might be stressed. Give it a couple of days.

 

[Sk8r]

Cleaner shrimp are more apt to annoy him. This is why qt in bare tank. If you can delicately move one rock to be sure he's able to move, do it, but don't move a lot. Turn the lights down to twilight and just let him rest. This is a very rough treatment, like you being ducked as long as you can survive it. He needs to rest. I advise against another dip for a number of days.

 

[andrewsky]

hes fine now the cleaners did clean him alot. he had a fluke on him thats why i did a fw dip even though i have shrimp. he was swimming around but everytime i come close to the tank he swims back into the rocks so i think hes still a little stressed and nervous.
thanks for the the info

 

[Chris27]

That's token reef safe trigger behavior (pinktail, x-hatch, blue throat). They take a few days, sometimes weeks, to get comfortable with their human caretakers. When scared they go hide, most times wedging themselves into the rockwork, while laying on their side.

 

[andrewsky]

ahh, yes that explains it, lol. thanks that makes me feel less dissappointed

 

[usctrack]

Just curious. How do these pink tails do with the cleaning crew? Snails and crabs?

 

[MrTuskfish]

Just curious. How do these pink tails do with the cleaning crew? Snails and crabs?

Like almost any trigger, they will eat them. Small fish too.

I agree with completely with Sk8r---just leave him alone for a while.
Wedging in rock, and erecting their "trigger" dorsal is common behavior for triggers. BTW; cleaner shrimp ( or fish ) will do nothing to eliminate ich or similar parasites. The parasites are buried under the skin, they are not the "white spot" you see. They may help a bit with flukes, but I doubt it. The dips should have gotten enough of the flukes to allow him to acclimate with no problem. This fish should be in a QT; you've introduce his flukes to all your fish.