Turning black and...

[saltysteven]

False percula
Tank crash due to no power, he was the only survivor.
Put in a 10 gal with only 5 gal in it.

He got tail and fin rot within a week.

Did a complete water change due to very dirty water from old tank and medicated for a week.

He has no tail and an open wound on his side.

He's breathing heavy, I think because the salinity. Not used to a filling the water myself. The larger 120 he came from was auto everything.

He's turning darker on top fading to bottom. Why is he turning blackish??

And what can I do to help him??
I did a strip test and everything looked good except pH looked low. I have to do a real test this weekend. I'm in between homes at the moment so everything is all over.
He has plenty of appetite.
Here is a picture before he started turning darker. I ll have to get another one up of him now tonight.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

 

[WaffleWalffle22]

OMG, poor little thing!

If you can, adjust the flow rate to where it is lower, then put in an airstone to provide maximum oxygen. Turn off the lights because all they do is stress them out. Not sure why this issue would have caused fin rot and an open wound. :uhoh2:

It's good that he's eating. That means there is a chance of recovery. Not sure what the turning black may be, but I've notice that at night, all of my orange clowns turn paler and my black ocellaris turn brown. It's kinda strange actually. How long ago did he start turning black? Has the affected area grown or become darker?

If he's not lethargic and is eating, I don't see why he will die, but then again, he has an open wound. If that gets infected, he's a goner. Don't flush him, but let him suffer through it. When I let my clowns suffer through it, it always turns out for the best.

I recently had an incident with one of my female ocellaris. She got her head stuck in a rock and she wouldn't come out. I had to push and pull, and finally I just got the pliers and cut the rock open. Even then, it took two people to get her out. She had scars on the top of her head, but they healed up within a few days. Her tail and all major fins were also rotting, and were half way rotted off, but the rotting stopped and it grew back.

Keep feeding your clown. Feed the crap out of her/him! Just make sure everything that goes in to the tank gets eaten so you don't directly foul the water.

If you want her to recover, you need to be doing everything you can. If you want to be a successful reefer, test strips won't cut it. I use $30 test kits that have to be replaced every few months, however I understand how that is kinda pricey for test kits, even I don't want to pay that. Try API. They make cheap test kits that are better than strips. Get the full kit, which is what is important for the fish, and if you have or you plan to get corals, get the alk/ca/mag test kits. It's a small fee of around $40 to get all of the beginner test kits you need, which is worth it. YOU NEED TO DO WATER CHANGES!!! You can't have any substantial amount of ammonia, nitrate or nitrite at this time!!! If you can, buy RO water and a bag of Reef Crystals and make your own saltwater. It's a bit more costly, but it's worth every penny.

Run some carbon and phosphate absorber if you can. The carbon will remove any harmful organic substances, while the phosphate absorber will cut down on phosphate, making the water less "toxic" (in a sense) for your fish.

Good luck, and please keep up updated!!

 

[Joe S]

In my experience, whenever a clown gets into a very stressful situation (e.g., extreme aggression from a mate, WQ problem, mechanical injury), fin rot is sure to follow. The bacteria et al. that cause these rots are always present in the tank and on the fish, but only start affecting the fish when is it stressed out and thus more vulnerable. The above photo of fin rot is one of the worst I have seen!

I have always had good luck with MELAFIX as a remedy for fin rot. If there is anything else you can do to minimize stress, do it. As Waffles mentioned, low light, frequent water changes, and constant good water quality are your best friends.

Regarding the color change, it is likely induced by the stressful situation of the fish (no caudal fin!). I would only worry about the fin rot now, and the color will probably take care of itself as the fish heals. Definitely keep us updated.

 

[saltysteven]

I have other test kits which I'll be using soon. Water was dirty from last tank and needed a serious change but then power went out I think bad water in the new 5 gal spiked ammonia. He's fighting so I'm fighting for him. I'm not going to change water I think but add another 5 gallons of new.
According to the browning of the live rock it appears the tank is also in the middle of cycling.
It has the smallest water pump in it which I can turn down but I thought he needed the flow?
He does sleep or go to the corner with the least amount of flow. Maybe I should turn it down.
There's also a film on top of water is think due to meds.
So you think add water and carbon no lights and turn down the flow?
Also I can never find ph up for salt water

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

 

[saltysteven]

Melaflex, that's what I'm using.
So just keep using it? Can't use it with carbon so what should I do. Continously med with small water changes or stop med and use the. Carbon???

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk