dwarf lionfish help

[lacey]

Help! Yesterday I added 2 dwarf lions to my tank. It's a 50 gallon, live rock, some polyps and mushrooms, hermits, some peppermint shrimp that came in on the live rock, and two fairy wrasses. The fish were ordered in to The los two weeks ago. They have been eating and doing well. All water tests are good, or my guy at the store would never have let me bring these two home. Both dwarf lions are laying upside down in the bottom of the tank gasping. Any ideas, any way to help them???

 

[lacey]

Lfs...sorry

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Add oxygen if they're gasping. Do you have a picture of when you got them? There's probably not much to be done at this point, I'm afraid to say, but maybe I can see something in a picture.

Do you know what kind of dwarfs?

 

[lacey]

One is a fuzzy dwarf, one is a Hawaiian Turkey? I have a pic of now...but I don't know how to post it. How can I add oxygen to the tank? The fuzzy looks better than the Turkey if that helps.

 

[Shep]

To post it click on the "Go Advanced" button on the bottom right hand side, there will be an attachments area where you can up load.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

The oxygen would be from adding air with an airpump. If you don't have one, look into some Black Friday deals, because you'll need it in the future. Hawaiian turkey! If that's a sphex, I'm going to have a heart attack. Those are rare. Can you email me a picture?

 

[rayn]

Use a air pump and run a line into the tank. Sorry, it sucks.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

To post it click on the "Go Advanced" button on the bottom right hand side, there will be an attachments area where you can up load.

This is the best approach, rather than email, because others can refer to it as well. Either way will do.

 

[lacey]

added airstone...and trying to find a way to attatch pic.

 

[lacey]

He looks better right side up. he is breathing...

 

[lacey]

would adding a wave maker power head help?

 

[phillrodrigo]

Yes add it at the top. Check ammonia in the tank also

 

[lacey]

i addded the wavemaker....it is blowing my fish all over the tank. I cant seem to slow it down enough...there should be plenty of oxygen now though. the fish seem to be breathing faster, instead of barely. is that good?

 

[Lionfish Lair]

What other fish are in there? Don't have them blowing around, the airstone is enough. It will stress the lions more, as their fins are like kites. The lion in the front is a Dendrochirus zebra. Not sure if that's suppose to be the fuzzy or the Hawaiian. I'm going to mess around with the pic some, to see what I see.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

I think that's a Dendrochirus barberi in the back..... so he would be the Hawaiian.

 

[lacey]

The one in front is the zebra, my lfs said it is a turkey hawaiian....and if that is wrong, its my fault, not his. he could tell me the exact scientific name if it wasnt a holiday and he is driving and not answering his phone. the zebra is currently under a rock hiding, but upright at least, and is in the better shape of the two. there are two fairy wrasses, one is hiding and i cant find it, the second is visible and looks fine. other tank mates, an urchin, vaious hermits, some peppermint shrimp, some mushrooms and polyps, feather dusters, a few snails. everything is fine except my lions, which of course this tank was built for. nothing else was going to be added until after the lions were in, happy, stable etc. :Cry:

 

[lacey]

sorry, typing fast...the fuzzy is under the ledge of a rock hiding, but upright, zebra is laying on his side

 

[lacey]

This is what I dont understand...the polyps, mushrooms, and feather dusters are good. The urchin is fine. The shrimp (which should be hiding so they arent dinner) are fine. The fairy wrasse that is visible is fine. Why is this specific to my lions? Wouldnt the inverts be the first to have a problem?

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Different critters can react differently to different things. Think of it this way.... some people can walk into one of those body lotion stores with no problem, others sneeze instantly and then there's others, like me, who cannot even go in. If you force those 3 groups to stay in there, I would be upside down, in sort order. I'm the same species as the sneezer and the other.... but I react differently. Does that make any sense?

Having said that, the zebra still has really nice coloring. Do you know where the LFS got them from?

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Are all their fins intact? Could they have been fighting. Could the zebra have gotten poked?