Cleaner wrasse cleaning / question

[Raphael Dalmeida]

I got a cleaner wrasse have had him for a few months already.

He eats well prepared food with the other fish and I can see his little belly often full.

I often see my fish coming close to him to ask for a clean and 95% of the time he doesn't clean them. I've only seen one time he gave a little nible, others he gives a quick look and leaves.

I've got 5 medium-large tangs and a juvenile emperor angelfish (transitioning).

Is this normal? Is he lazy or is it that the fish probably don't need cleaning, despite them seeking him?


I'm sure he's a cleaner wrasse as I've checked for the diffs with false one.

 

[Joj]

I have same as yours in my folwr with about 40+ fishes. He eats regular food and is a fatty and does identical moves as yours. Might just be how they are in captivity (being fed) and fishes are healthy. Even when I suspected flukes in my tank, he just usually do a once/twice over and moves on, even when the fishes are asking for it. Im just glad its eating. He is very aggressive among the giants around him too and always first to greet me at the surface.

 

[salty joe]

That's strange...
The only experience I have with a CR is way back when with a long horned cowfish. The CR picked at the cowfish's cuadal peduncle until it was raw, that poor fish did not make it.

 

[Jay Hemdal]

I got a cleaner wrasse have had him for a few months already.

He eats well prepared food with the other fish and I can see his little belly often full.

I often see my fish coming close to him to ask for a clean and 95% of the time he doesn't clean them. I've only seen one time he gave a little nible, others he gives a quick look and leaves.

I've got 5 medium-large tangs and a juvenile emperor angelfish (transitioning).

Is this normal? Is he lazy or is it that the fish probably don't need cleaning, despite them seeking him?


I'm sure he's a cleaner wrasse as I've checked for the diffs with false one.

Cleaner wrasse will sometime “over clean” other fish, but not in your case. Whenever I hear of fish posturing for a cleaner, but not much cleaning going on, I suspect small, gyrodactylus flukes. If who also see the fish flashing/twitching/scratching, I would say that confirms flukes.

 

[Largeangels]

One of my favorite fish. Mine don’t clean often nor are they asked to clean often. But constantly swimming looking for small food particles in the water column. Mine eat small pieces of mysis, pellets and flake food. 500-800 micron Golden Pearls and small TDO Chroma Boost seem to be the right sized particles. But will attack larger pieces of mysis during first feeding of the day.

 

[exnisstech]

I've had mine for 7 months. I feed several types of frozen, pellets and flakes and the cleaner eats them all. It even eats nori off the clip. I have 8 tangs, a CBB and several smaller fish. My wrasse doesn't do a lot of cleaning but my fish don't posture for the wrasse to clean them. It just goes in for a quick pick now and then. I take it as a sign my fish don't need to be cleaned.

 

[Raphael Dalmeida]

Cleaner wrasse will sometime “over clean” other fish, but not in your case. Whenever I hear of fish posturing for a cleaner, but not much cleaning going on, I suspect small, gyrodactylus flukes. If who also see the fish flashing/twitching/scratching, I would say that confirms flukes.

Thankfully none of my fish is flashing or scratching. I'm aware this means they could have some irritant or parasites.

Though I do observe as the cleaner wrasse passes by, some fish seem to offer themselves for a clean but the cleaner wrasse sometimes just looks at it a bit and nothing or just ignores it haha .

Still, could it be that the fish could have parasite? All fish seem healthy, nice and fat, active swimming and fighting for their food.

 

[salty joe]

I had a dragon wrasse that flared its gill wide open for that CR from way back when and that CR stuck its head right in there, it was super cool!

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Thankfully none of my fish is flashing or scratching. I'm aware this means they could have some irritant or parasites.

Though I do observe as the cleaner wrasse passes by, some fish seem to offer themselves for a clean but the cleaner wrasse sometimes just looks at it a bit and nothing or just ignores it haha .

Still, could it be that the fish could have parasite? All fish seem healthy, nice and fat, active swimming and fighting for their food.

Luckily, flukes take a long time to kill a fish, so you'll have ample opportunity to see if new symptoms develop. Watch for scratching, cloudy fins, rapid breathing or cloudy eyes.