Clownfish. Got sick, died within a day. What happened??

[hanabata]

Hey all,
I noticed last night that one of my clownfish’s mouth was open and had milky white color around lips. It also was hanging out toward bottom of tank instead of up toward the surface where it usually swims with my other clown
This morning, it’s mouth was closed but still has white color. Also white stringy poop. Swam a bit but then just basically laid by a rock and didn’t move that much. I didn’t notice fast or labored breathing. Went out to buy medicine. Came back and it was dead.
Water quality is good
Added fish 4 days ago
I have no corals, just rock and sand

I’m guessing it had Brook, maybe?? But there wasn’t any spots of white on body, just the discoloration around its mouth. Any ideas?

Blue picture was from last night. Last two pictures from this morning.

Thanks in advance!

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hey all,
I noticed last night that one of my clownfish’s mouth was open and had milky white color around lips. It also was hanging out toward bottom of tank instead of up toward the surface where it usually swims with my other clown
This morning, it’s mouth was closed but still has white color. Also white stringy poop. Swam a bit but then just basically laid by a rock and didn’t move that much. I didn’t notice fast or labored breathing. Went out to buy medicine. Came back and it was dead.
Water quality is good
Added fish 4 days ago
I have no corals, just rock and sand

I’m guessing it had Brook, maybe?? But there wasn’t any spots of white on body, just the discoloration around its mouth. Any ideas?

Blue picture was from last night. Last two pictures from this morning.

Thanks in advance!

Im seeing pitting around the face and flared gills and discoloration likely from mucus suggesting brooklynella did play a role. If this is a new tank, that too may have played a role. How did you cycle tank and for how long?
What is current ammonia and nitrate level?
Did you noticed elevated/labored breathing rate?

 

[hanabata]

Im seeing pitting around the face and flared gills and discoloration likely from mucus suggesting brooklynella did play a role. If this is a new tank, that too may have played a role. How did you cycle tank and for how long?
What is current ammonia and nitrate level?
Did you noticed elevated/labored breathing rate?

Thanks for your insight. I’m new to reefing so I didn’t notice the flared gills and pitting.

I cycled the tank for just about 2 months before adding two clown fish. Used dr Tim’s bacteria ( can’t remember the name) and feed it ammonium. Ammonia and nitrites spiked and went to zero before I got fish. A week or so before I got fish I got a few hermit crabs and snails, which are doing fine.

Ammonia is at zero. Nitrite is at zero. Nitrates are around 20 to 30.

I looked for elevated and/or labored breathing, but I didn’t see any. Again I am new to the hobby, so maybe I’m not looking at the right thing. I imagine the gills and the mouth would be moving rapidly?

 

[Lavey29]

Looks like brook to me also. Tank will need to fallow for 76 days before adding fish back. Current fish in the tank will need medicated treatment in QT tank.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Thanks for your insight. I’m new to reefing so I didn’t notice the flared gills and pitting.

I cycled the tank for just about 2 months before adding two clown fish. Used dr Tim’s bacteria ( can’t remember the name) and feed it ammonium. Ammonia and nitrites spiked and went to zero before I got fish. A week or so before I got fish I got a few hermit crabs and snails, which are doing fine.

Ammonia is at zero. Nitrite is at zero. Nitrates are around 20 to 30.

I looked for elevated and/or labored breathing, but I didn’t see any. Again I am new to the hobby, so maybe I’m not looking at the right thing. I imagine the gills and the mouth would be moving rapidly?

Cycle seems to be adequate. Assure your readings are true as You mentioned Nitrite which you can disregard in saltwater setting but also suggests you are using Api test kit which can vary with users and give false results
Take a water sample to a store that does NOT use Api kits and have them test your ammonia and nitrates and compare readings- then you'll know where your levels truly are at

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

It looks like Brooklynella to me as well. A video can help confirm that.

Jay

 

[hanabata]

Thanks for all your replies. I took a sample to the fish store and the readings were accurate. So the water seems fine.

So if it is Brook, the tank needs to be follow for 76 days? Are there any alternative ways to assure that the brook is out of the tank? Also, do hermit crabs and snails need to come out as well?

 

[slingfox]

How big is your tank?

An alternative to running the tank fallow is removing all livestock, rock, and sand and completely restarting the tank and cycle again. The challenge then is figuring out a reliable way to kill off everything on and inside the rocks (ie, hot boiling water, air dry for several weeks, bleach, height strength peroxide, muriatic acid, etc. etc.) and other surfaces. Probably best to not reuse the sand. Would need to figure out what to do with the inverts as well.

See https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/cont...-with-acid-for-a-saltwater-aquarium-reef-faqs

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Thanks for all your replies. I took a sample to the fish store and the readings were accurate. So the water seems fine.

So if it is Brook, the tank needs to be follow for 76 days? Are there any alternative ways to assure that the brook is out of the tank? Also, do hermit crabs and snails need to come out as well?

The fallow period from Brooklynella is 60 days. All invertebrates can remain in place, just no fish.

While restarting the tank is an option, I prefer to run fallow because that allows you to still have invertebrates during that time, and at the end of the period, the tank has a much more stable biome.

Jay

 

[hanabata]

OK, so I’m going to run the tank fallow. Moving forward. I will also quarantine everything I put in the tank. I have a 40 gallon breeder. Can I get away with a 10 gallon for quarantine or should I get a 20 gallon? I hear a 20 gallon is easier to maintain in regards to water changes and ammonia levels. But i’d rather have a 10 gallon just to have a smaller footprint.

 

[Jay Hemdal]

OK, so I’m going to run the tank fallow. Moving forward. I will also quarantine everything I put in the tank. I have a 40 gallon breeder. Can I get away with a 10 gallon for quarantine or should I get a 20 gallon? I hear a 20 gallon is easier to maintain in regards to water changes and ammonia levels. But i’d rather have a 10 gallon just to have a smaller footprint.

I like to have about 25% of the display tank's volume as quarantine space. So, a ten gallon fits that ratio, however, ten gallons are pretty small, and it is possible you might buy a fish that would be fine in a 40, but would be too cramped in a ten. Also, if you intend to buy a group of fish and quarantine them all at once, you'll want more space.

One other thing to consider - not all 20 gallons are equal. A 20 gallon high format really does not hold any more fish than a 15 gallon, and holds less than two ten gallons would....it's all about tank footprint, not volume.

Jay