Starfish help asap please!!!

[aadams22]

I think my chocolate chip star is sick or dying. Hes been refusing to eat his krill for 2 weeks. I thought he might be finding something in the tank, but he seems to be getting thinner. He also keeps getting into odd body positions, the last two mornings i found him on his back on the bottom and i thought he was dead!

I have him in a 30 gallon tank, 0 nh4 or no3, SG 1.022, temp 74

Could it be something in the tap water? My friend and the LFS use unfiltered city tap (i have a water softener) all the time and their coral etc doesnt seem to care. I also treat with seachem which should neutralize copper/heavy metals anyway

Any ideas? How to euthanize him if nothing can be done?

 

[sam.basye]

Not sure about the star, but definitely don't use straight tap water. Conditioned water is better but not 100%. Acceptable for freshwater tanks, not sw as they are much more demanding for good parameters to sustain life.
If you can't afford, or want to shell out a bunch of money on an RO/DI unit, you can get 5 gal of uv treated RO water at Walmart for $1.90 (37¢ a gallon plus tax) after you buy the bottle. There's of course no guarantee the filter is changed regularly other than the signatures on the quality card.
Start with identifying the root of the problem and work your way up, then you will know why the starfish is acting weird. Good luck.

 

[hotelbravo]

Any ideas? How to euthanize him if nothing can be done?

They have no brains so if you feel you must "dispatch" him then just remove and smash his center with something. They dont feel pain so anyway to "euthanize" will work. See if you can get him to recover though.

 

[Calappidae]

Not sure about the star, but definitely don't use straight tap water. Conditioned water is better but not 100%. Acceptable for freshwater tanks, not sw as they are much more demanding for good parameters to sustain life.
If you can't afford, or want to shell out a bunch of money on an RO/DI unit, you can get 5 gal of uv treated RO water at Walmart for $1.90 (37¢ a gallon plus tax) after you buy the bottle. There's of course no guarantee the filter is changed regularly other than the signatures on the quality card.
Start with identifying the root of the problem and work your way up, then you will know why the starfish is acting weird. Good luck.

This^

I can't begin to even narrow down potential issues with the star, the water quality you're using is a MAJOR factor, even when conditioned there is still possible pathogens that can end up in the water, including copper from the pipes!

I suggest getting your water tested for copper, and purchasing yourself a RO/DI system, cause you'll go broke purchasing indivigual bottles of the stuff.. but also because like above said, you're very reliant on the label of any sold products.. you don't know how careful it's processed or packaged. Instead of 99.9% RO water at home.. you can purchase 97% RO, 3% contaminated water.. which adds up.

LFS often can supply the same water and are usually much more reliable on handling it having the full understanding of careful handling and since it's specific on the hobby, they're not going to just toss it through any random copper pipes and not take it seriously like drinking water.

Oh yeah, 30g is really small for a CC btw. Indivigual is fine, but a foot diameter star will be a little difficult to fit when it reaches that size.

They have no brains so if you feel you must "dispatch" him then just remove and smash his center with something. They dont feel pain so anyway to "euthanize" will work. See if you can get him to recover though.

If I need bone cutters to detach a leg, then smashing it is not such an easy task although I would remove it cause they are ammonia nukes when they melt.. and they stink. For me, at first sign of melting or "turning inside out" they go in the trash sealed air tight.

 

[aadams22]

Ok, i agree with you that it could be the water quality. I guess the problem i have is that 30 gallons of rodi saltwater will cost 3x what the starfish is worth and may still not fix the issue. Also all the other inverts seem to doing fine, but i know the starfish are more sensitive

 

[Calappidae]

That's why an RO/DI filter can be purchased and provide a constant supply of the water. The filters are expensive at first, but when you factor in the deaths of livestock from tap, gas to the store to purchase them, gas to pick up prefiltered water, buying the prefiltered water, and the effort, it pays for itself withen a month. I only change the filters for mine like every 6 months and it makes me a gallon per day.

It could still be something else with the starfish but I cannot emphasize how important it is for you to switch your water quality.. otherwise someday when everything suddenly starts dropping you'll know why. Just because something's worked for so long, doesn't mean it won't accumulate over time.