Clownfish... parasites?

[Cheems]

Hello, I somewhat recently set up a saltwater aquarium (around 2 months), its my first saltwater tank after many years of freshwater and one of my clownfish seems to be doing not so good. The tank consists of live rock, a skunk cleaner shrimp, a firefish goby, and 2 clownfish. I used to have a golden head goby but one day it died randomly without cause or explanation about a week after I bought it at a lfs. Tank parameters are really good, 0 nitrate, 0 nitrite, 0 ammonia, around 8.2 ph. I probably should have hesitated buying the golden head goby at the store since it was just hiding and didnt look too good but unfortunately I didnt. This was about a week ago. Also this sick clownfish was added a few weeks ago, and then the mocha storm one around a week ago

Anyways after that background knowledge that brings us to my clownfish, who is just sitting at the bottom not doing anything. I have guessed its because of a parasite the golden head goby passed on but maybe any of you have another diagnosis that would be better. He seems to have a bit of tattered fins but it may be due to the new clownfish. He was doing fine with the new clownfish and very healthy and active but then once the golden head goby died he just went downhill in like 2 days. I treated the water with API general cure and im going to do a freshwater dip but maybe any of you have another idea. (he is the black and white clownfish with the orange face) He is also breathing very quickly

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hello, I somewhat recently set up a saltwater aquarium (around 2 months), its my first saltwater tank after many years of freshwater and one of my clownfish seems to be doing not so good. The tank consists of live rock, a skunk cleaner shrimp, a firefish goby, and 2 clownfish. I used to have a golden head goby but one day it died randomly without cause or explanation about a week after I bought it at a lfs. Tank parameters are really good, 0 nitrate, 0 nitrite, 0 ammonia, around 8.2 ph. I probably should have hesitated buying the golden head goby at the store since it was just hiding and didnt look too good but unfortunately I didnt. This was about a week ago. Also this sick clownfish was added a few weeks ago, and then the mocha storm one around a week ago

Anyways after that background knowledge that brings us to my clownfish, who is just sitting at the bottom not doing anything. I have guessed its because of a parasite the golden head goby passed on but maybe any of you have another diagnosis that would be better. He seems to have a bit of tattered fins but it may be due to the new clownfish. He was doing fine with the new clownfish and very healthy and active but then once the golden head goby died he just went downhill in like 2 days. I treated the water with API general cure and im going to do a freshwater dip but maybe any of you have another idea. (he is the black and white clownfish with the orange face) He is also breathing very quickly

It will be near impossible to assess a fish with lighting this dark. Please provide pic(s) under white light "only" intensity
Is fish breathing normal or rapid?

 

[Cheems]

It will be near impossible to assess a fish with lighting this dark. Please provide pic(s) under white light "only" intensity
Is fish breathing normal or rapid?

I dont know why my light is picking up as so dark on my phone but its actually very light in person, I will bump the blue light down to 0 for a minute to take a picture. And the fish is breathing very rapidly

 

[Cheems]

It will be near impossible to assess a fish with lighting this dark. Please provide pic(s) under white light "only" intensity
Is fish breathing normal or rapid?

heres the photos, in person I dont see anything on the gills but I do see those white spots on his back/head
also I will add when he wants to move, either to the top or he is being chased by the storm clownfish he is able to move and he doesnt seem TOO lethargic then

 

[ravila101]

Looks like fin rot?

 

[Cheems]

Looks like fin rot?

hmm, could be but hes kinda struggling a lot if its JUST some fin rot. Plus water parameters are fine and he was really healthy 2-3 days ago. He was super healthy then its kind of been a crash. Also as of writing this he seems to be up and moving which I havent seen him do a whole lot of so far. I am still readying the freshwater dip that may help with any parasites so we will see.

 

[vetteguy53081]

heres the photos, in person I dont see anything on the gills but I do see those white spots on his back/head
also I will add when he wants to move, either to the top or he is being chased by the storm clownfish he is able to move and he doesnt seem TOO lethargic then

This fish high development of brooklynella disease and secondary bacterial lesions often confused with ich
If fish is not breathing heavy which I can guess it is…. A freshwater dip for 5 minutes with aeration will offer it temporary relief
Treatment generally is a formalin based medication
General cure has a small content but I find ruby rally pro more effective but it takes 2-3 days to take effect

 

[Cheems]

This fish high development of brooklynella disease and secondary bacterial lesions often confused with ich
If fish is not breathing heavy which I can guess it is…. A freshwater dip for 5 minutes with aeration will offer it temporary relief
Treatment generally is a formalin based medication
General cure has a small content but I find ruby rally pro more effective but it takes 2-3 days to take effect

well, I called a few local fish stores and they dont carry it. I ordered it online and it should get here in a few days. Until then I am going to do freshwater dips and treat with api general cure. I hope this fish makes it but ive heard a lot of bad things about clownfish disease. A little upset with the lfs for selling me a sick fish without notice and recommending me that. Especially when they know they have had clownfish disease before. Although my fault for not quarantining it first

 

[vetteguy53081]

well, I called a few local fish stores and they dont carry it. I ordered it online and it should get here in a few days. Until then I am going to do freshwater dips and treat with api general cure. I hope this fish makes it but ive heard a lot of bad things about clownfish disease. A little upset with the lfs for selling me a sick fish without notice and recommending me that. Especially when they know they have had clownfish disease before. Although my fault for not quarantining it first

Quarantine offers an advantage but this often affects wild caught clowns versus tank raised
Freshwater dips C are a temporary measure so not too frequent which can add stress

 

[Cheems]

Quarantine offers an advantage but this often affects wild caught clowns versus tank raised
Freshwater dips C are a temporary measure so not too frequent which can add stress

unfortunately the clownfish passed away this morning despite me giving him a freshwater dip and treating with API general cure, I still have ruby reef pro on the way in case any of the other fish get it

what would be the best course of action from here? should I treat the whole tank/remove the clownfish/firefish? I have another 10 gallon that I was cycling but I set the carbon filter pads from my main tank in there so the bacteria dont die so it probably has some traces of brooklynella in it. I also dont want this clownfish to be without a partner for too long so how long should I wait before introducing another clown?

right now what I am planning is to move the firefish and clownfish to the 10 gallon and treat the 10 gallon so none of them are exposed to too much brooklynella but the tank isnt exactly fully cycled yet, ive still got some nitrite

idk I feel terrible about the clownfish and I just dont want the other fish in the tank to suffer the same fate. If you have any suggestions let me know, they seem to be perfectly healthy so far.

 

[vetteguy53081]

unfortunately the clownfish passed away this morning despite me giving him a freshwater dip and treating with API general cure, I still have ruby reef pro on the way in case any of the other fish get it

what would be the best course of action from here? should I treat the whole tank/remove the clownfish/firefish? I have another 10 gallon that I was cycling but I set the carbon filter pads from my main tank in there so the bacteria dont die so it probably has some traces of brooklynella in it. I also dont want this clownfish to be without a partner for too long so how long should I wait before introducing another clown?

right now what I am planning is to move the firefish and clownfish to the 10 gallon and treat the 10 gallon so none of them are exposed to too much brooklynella but the tank isnt exactly fully cycled yet, ive still got some nitrite

idk I feel terrible about the clownfish and I just dont want the other fish in the tank to suffer the same fate. If you have any suggestions let me know, they seem to be perfectly healthy so far.

Treat the tank with ruby rally pro or best is to leave tank fishless for at least 6 weeks

 

[Cheems]

Treat the tank with ruby rally pro or best is to leave tank fishless for at least 6 weeks

ok, I will be treating the whole tank, if I am treating the tank do I still have to wait the 6 weeks to add a new fish?

 

[Cheems]

Treat the tank with ruby rally pro or best is to leave tank fishless for at least 6 weeks

unfortunately brooklynella has killed every fish in my tank except my storm clownfish who I am trying very hard to save, I just got ruby rally pro in today and im trying so hard to save this little clownfish, I am quite attached to this one and im hoping I can save it, it is very healthy although showing a few symptoms like staying near the powerhead (a little better now that he is in the quarantine tank)

I have treated my main tank with ruby rally pro and then I did a freshwater dip and moved my clown into a quarantine tank that im also treating with ruby reef pro, is there anything else I can do to try to increase this guys odd even more? he looks healthy so far but I feel terrible about my whole tank and I just want to save my last clown

My only large worry currently is my nitrites are quite high in my quarantine tank (around 2-5+) is there any way I can lower them quickly besides water changes as it seems nitrites just bounce back up after the water change

also I thank you so much, I wouldnt have known what medication to buy

 

[vetteguy53081]

unfortunately brooklynella has killed every fish in my tank except my storm clownfish who I am trying very hard to save, I just got ruby rally pro in today and im trying so hard to save this little clownfish, I am quite attached to this one and im hoping I can save it, it is very healthy although showing a few symptoms like staying near the powerhead (a little better now that he is in the quarantine tank)

I have treated my main tank with ruby rally pro and then I did a freshwater dip and moved my clown into a quarantine tank that im also treating with ruby reef pro, is there anything else I can do to try to increase this guys odd even more? he looks healthy so far but I feel terrible about my whole tank and I just want to save my last clown

My only large worry currently is my nitrites are quite high in my quarantine tank (around 2-5+) is there any way I can lower them quickly besides water changes as it seems nitrites just bounce back up after the water change

also I thank you so much, I wouldnt have known what medication to buy

Maintain good water quality and diet and ruby will t6ake a couple of days to take effect but works well and safely

 

[Cheems]

Maintain good water quality and diet and ruby will t6ake a couple of days to take effect but works well and safely

so ive been treating the clownfish with ruby rally pro in a 10 gallon quarantine, but he kind of started struggling once I redosed today because it says to add daily, hes kind of sitting more on the bottom but as far as I can see, regular breathing and he looks healthy

im wondering if this is because of water quality because of high nitrites, or something else, I have been trying my best to keep water quality up, but its difficult with my RO unit only being able to produce about a 5 gallon bucket a day (2 buckets if I run it unsupervised) due to it being super slow and I dont have a tight seal so it leaks

when should I reintroduce the clown back into the 29 gallon? I know its recommended 6 weeks but honestly im really struggling to keep the 10 gallon mantained because I need a better RO unit, and it wasnt cycled yet, I am wondering if its possible to reintroduce the clown before 6 weeks since I am treating the 29 gallon. I would HOPE that would kill off the parasites

 

[vetteguy53081]

so ive been treating the clownfish with ruby rally pro in a 10 gallon quarantine, but he kind of started struggling once I redosed today because it says to add daily, hes kind of sitting more on the bottom but as far as I can see, regular breathing and he looks healthy

im wondering if this is because of water quality because of high nitrites, or something else, I have been trying my best to keep water quality up, but its difficult with my RO unit only being able to produce about a 5 gallon bucket a day (2 buckets if I run it unsupervised) due to it being super slow and I dont have a tight seal so it leaks

when should I reintroduce the clown back into the 29 gallon? I know its recommended 6 weeks but honestly im really struggling to keep the 10 gallon mantained because I need a better RO unit, and it wasnt cycled yet, I am wondering if its possible to reintroduce the clown before 6 weeks since I am treating the 29 gallon. I would HOPE that would kill off the parasites

Increase aeration with an airstone and yes, assure ammonia is not elevated. No need to change water daily unless levels are that bad. It takes Ruby Rally 2-3 days to start taking effect

 

[Cheems]

Increase aeration with an airstone and yes, assure ammonia is not elevated. No need to change water daily unless levels are that bad. It takes Ruby Rally 2-3 days to start taking effect

yeah ive got a airstone, this 10 gallon was already cycling because I set it up for a red banded goby I want to get some day, so I had the nitrite levels super high to cycle, even when I did a large water change when I added the clownfish

I want to leave him in for as long as necessary but im just worried because hes kinda just sitting there, I just hope its because hes not used to the tank, however I still would like to get him back in the normal tank ASAP, so im thinking of leaving him in for only a couple more days, idk if thats a good idea to move him back into the main tank so quickly though

 

[Cheems]

ok the clownfish is looking perfectly healthy, no symptoms, im trying to decide whether to redose the medication or not and im leaning towards not, ive dosed for 3 days which is recommended on the bottle and last time I added the medication it seemed to stress the clownfish a lot, possibly more than it was worth since he is seeming perfectly healthy and only ever showed slight symptoms

im still deciding on when to readd the clownfish but what I may end up doing is doing the molly test by adding a molly to see how it goes, and then treating the molly if it is sick, although with me treating the main tank I feel as if it wouldnt take as long to be safe compared to if I wasnt treating it, anyone disagree? im not super experienced so any advice would be helpful

 

[Cheems]

actually I started noticing some symptoms again, build up of slime like the white spots, so I decided to continue the treatment, very active and very vigorous though and has been treated with ruby rally pro for the past 3 days, so its odd to me that it could develop like this (assuming this is development, its hard to tell, it could just be normal spots, thats why im adding the photo)

 

[MnFish1]

ok the clownfish is looking perfectly healthy, no symptoms, im trying to decide whether to redose the medication or not and im leaning towards not, ive dosed for 3 days which is recommended on the bottle and last time I added the medication it seemed to stress the clownfish a lot, possibly more than it was worth since he is seeming perfectly healthy and only ever showed slight symptoms

im still deciding on when to readd the clownfish but what I may end up doing is doing the molly test by adding a molly to see how it goes, and then treating the molly if it is sick, although with me treating the main tank I feel as if it wouldnt take as long to be safe compared to if I wasnt treating it, anyone disagree? im not super experienced so any advice would be helpful

I would redose the medication. Doubling a dose of multiple medications (and noone should do it) should not hurt