why did my clownfish die and what should I do next?

N

niki000

New member
A week ago I added two clownfish (from the LFS) to my tank (which I started on 8-20-11). All of my water parameters were fine (lfs tested and I tested), I acclimated them in the bag for around 45 minutes and then added them to the tank. They seemed fine, two days ago one wasn't eating much, and last night he wouldn't eat at all. I thought that maybe he was eating the copepods in the tank and wasn't hungry. The other ate fine, but then sort of vomited some of the pellets I was feeding them. I noticed two white dots that looked like salt on the one that wasn't eating and his pelvic fins were sort of clamped, unlike the other one. This didn't match any of the ich pictures I saw online. Also, all of the water parameters were fine, but to be safe I changed the filter and did a 2 gallon water change and checked the parameters of my empty quarantine tank in case I needed to move him. I also had an internet order of some corals coming that I planned to quarantine so the tank was already set up. This morning both fish seemed ok... they were hanging out at the surface but thats sort of normal for them.

At around 10AM, I came home to pick up the coral and the fish that wouldn't eat had died. I feel awful!! Did I do something wrong, why did he die and should I be thinking of do anything for the other one (which seems fine right now)?

Here are my water parameters:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate:0
Salinity: 1.023
Temp: 76-78
water flow: Moderate

Tank: standard biocue 29

Contents: 2 (now 1) ocellaris clown fish, live rock, one hermit crab, maybe some bristle stars in the rocks and one star poylp.

Thank you for your input.
 
Do you have any pic's of the sick fish? If it wasn't ich it could be Brook.
Was it eating at the LFS? If he wasn't who knows how long he'd gone since eating last.

That QT tank should have been used with these fish before putting them in the display tank though. If they do have parasites on them they're now in that tank forever. (or until you take the fish out for 9 weeks which will seem like forever)
 
Probably acclimated in the bag for too long, just reaing sk8r's thread on this problem.. Maybe do a search for it or ask him really nicely :) (might even be in the 'acclimation' sticky at the top)
 
Here ya go...(sk8rs work, not mine)
WHY should a creature 2 days in a bag alive suddenly die when the bag is opened?: poop. Respiration. In shipped livestock, or during a trip home from the store, the waste from the fish/invert hits the water and you have ammonium and co2 in that water. The moment you open the bag, you release the co2 and ph climbs. This ph change converts the harmless ammonium in the water to deadly ammonia. The longer the fish is exposed to ammonia (remember it's drinking it as well as breathing it) the more damage its internal organs take. Too long in the opened bag and the fish takes too much damage to live very long. <br />
--------<br />
First, you should know (phone) at what salinity your shipper ships certain livestock. They'll tell you. You should have a qt tank ready AT THAT SALINITY if you've got a fish. You can put inverts straight in.<br />
----------<br />
Step 1: DO NOT OPEN THE BAG. Float it for 15 minutes. This handles temperature.<br />
Step 2: open bag and test the water to be sure you were told accurately. AS OF THIS EXACT POINT (look at the clock) YOU HAVE 30 minutes OR LESS to get that critter to a qt tank, if fish, or to your tank, if invert, and to dip it and set it safely on the bottom of your tank if coral. Remember acclimation is all about salinity. Be accurate. Be fast. If salinity matches within .001, that fish is good to go into that qt water. <i>Instantly</i> as you open the bag if you've got a near match!<br />
Full procedure given here: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1939508
 
Tin_Whistler said:
Do you have any pic's of the sick fish? If it wasn't ich it could be Brook.
Was it eating at the LFS? If he wasn't who knows how long he'd gone since eating last.

That QT tank should have been used with these fish before putting them in the display tank though. If they do have parasites on them they're now in that tank forever. (or until you take the fish out for 9 weeks which will seem like forever)
Click to expand...

Sorry, no pics. I thought about putting the fish in the quarantine tank, but the fish were in the LFS tank for at least several weeks before I purchased them and they said I didn't need to quarantine. Since they also bred and raised this particular fish and had been watching them for some time I just trusted their judgement. But you're right, I should have quarantined them first.

I didn't see them eat, I was too shy to ask to see them eat before purchasing.
 
Don't be shy. You're the customer. You have the power to walk out if you don't like the answers, and I'm not impressed by an lfs that says 'no need to quarantine.' My tank is perfectly clean, but I'd advise anybody that got a fish from me to qt anyway---just because it's a good idea.

Plus, it's kinder to the fish than dropping them into a strange, textured, noisy tank under bright lights, with nooks and crannies that could hide predators. A qt should be a place to rest and eat and get fat with little going on.
 
Sk8r said:
Don't be shy. You're the customer. You have the power to walk out if you don't like the answers,
Click to expand...

Seconded. I used to work at a LFS and you're not a pain in the butt unless you try asking for specific feeder goldfish.

Somebody asking to make sure a fish is healthy before they buy it tells me they will more than likely take good care of that fish after it leaves the store.

When somebody comes in and points a finger and says "that yellow one" I got the feeling that fish was doomed.
 
I had a clown who did the same and I have had Ich in the past, in my experience ich doesnt kill that quick and you normally have enough time to cure it

My money would be on brook as well

Peter
 
Exact same thing happened to mine, I believe It's Brooklynella...

Exact same thing happened to mine, I believe It's Brooklynella...

niki000 said:
A week ago I added two clownfish (from the LFS) to my tank (which I started on 8-20-11). All of my water parameters were fine (lfs tested and I tested), I acclimated them in the bag for around 45 minutes and then added them to the tank. They seemed fine, two days ago one wasn't eating much, and last night he wouldn't eat at all. I thought that maybe he was eating the copepods in the tank and wasn't hungry. The other ate fine, but then sort of vomited some of the pellets I was feeding them. I noticed two white dots that looked like salt on the one that wasn't eating and his pelvic fins were sort of clamped, unlike the other one. This didn't match any of the ich pictures I saw online. Also, all of the water parameters were fine, but to be safe I changed the filter and did a 2 gallon water change and checked the parameters of my empty quarantine tank in case I needed to move him. I also had an internet order of some corals coming that I planned to quarantine so the tank was already set up. This morning both fish seemed ok... they were hanging out at the surface but thats sort of normal for them.

At around 10AM, I came home to pick up the coral and the fish that wouldn't eat had died. I feel awful!! Did I do something wrong, why did he die and should I be thinking of do anything for the other one (which seems fine right now)?

Here are my water parameters:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate:0
Salinity: 1.023
Temp: 76-78
water flow: Moderate

Tank: standard biocue 29

Contents: 2 (now 1) ocellaris clown fish, live rock, one hermit crab, maybe some bristle stars in the rocks and one star poylp.

Thank you for your input.
Click to expand...


Yea, I think its Brooklynella (A.K.A Clownfish Disease) . Mine passed away from it this morning :sad2:
 
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