timid foxface/rabbit

[billy mitchell]

I have 2 foxface fishes in my quarantine tank along with a lawnmower fish
question is that I had to separate the foxface because they were nipping at each other...very aggressive...
they both looked stressed changing colour to their pajama's mode but would eat everything I put in the tank
they would just be at the glass divider spikes up and would try and bite each other through the glass divider ..so after a week I thought bugger this and during the night took out the divider and great no nips or bites just a bit of tail slaps.....
but still look stressed with any movement,then off to hide but if food is there out they come with great colour cruise about then back to hiding
also noticed that PH was down to 7.7 but I just did a partial change of 10ltrs
(hospital tank is 80ltrs) so I got the PH back to 8.5 and they seem a bit better...at least no fighting and swimming sort of
so is this normal for foxface to be like this ...skittish.....

 

[usingthejohn]

Foxfaces are very timid fish. They change colors to blend in with their environment. Sounds pretty normal.

 

[shesacharmer]

They may never get along. Foxface are extremely nervous fish. I hope you have a really big DT or this will not end well. The least aggressive is likely to take ill and die from the stress. You really should only have one.

 

[billy mitchell]

thanks for that info ...tank size 5s 220+gal so enough room when i take them out of QT:bounce1:

 

[shesacharmer]

Fingers crossed they get along in QT then. GL!

 

[billy mitchell]

an update on the foxface fishes...entirely different fishes now...are inseparable..can see them waiting to be fed ...hang out at the top of the tank waiting for dinner
they are pigs... eat everything....dry food brine shrimp and grape caulerpa...nothing is safe
just another thing I want to find out
have 3 blue legged hermits...2 weeks ago there was a hermit crab remains on the bottom of the tank...looked and there are still 3 hermits there and just yesterday another hermit crab remains was on the bottom of the tank but there are still 3 there
only ever put in 3 so where did the dead 2 come from

 

[VAReefDog]

Hermit molted so what you thought was dead crab was its shed molt.

 

[Crooked Reef]

Hermit molted so what you thought was dead crab was its shed molt.

This. All shrimp and crabs molt. It is how they get bigger.