Clownfish sick don’t trust diagnosis

[dross9615]

Hi,

So I have a clownfish who has popeye and is showing signs of bullying and/or an infection of some sort. No one else in the tank appear to be showing any sort of symptoms
I have not witnessed any bullying myself. And I just don’t have the experience with reef tanks to diagnose. Some have suggested brooks but both clowns are captive bred from captive bred parents. And it just doesn’t appear to be flux to me either...

Stocking is a fluval 32.5
Barred dartfish 3”
Ocellaris 1/2”
Six line wrasse 1”

CUC:
2 nassarius and 8 trochus snails .
2 emerald crabs
2 dwarf blue hermit crabs
2 pepper shrimp

 

[BranchingHammer]

Looks to be popeye. It would be best to treat in a QT tank.

@Jay Hemdal, can you advise on treatment?

 

[dross9615]

Looks to be popeye. It would be best to treat in a QT tank.

@Jay Hemdal, can you advise on treatment?

Thank you I believe it is popeye as well but there are also small white "patches" that appear to be bacterial or nipping marks. definitely doesn't appear to be ich or velvet.

 

[Andreas' Reef]

Popeye, probably

hes not looking so good

 

[dross9615]

Popeye, probably

hes not looking so good

I agree...

 

[Cell]

I'd probably start with some epsom salt and wait to see if Jay stops in and verifies a bacterial component. I think generally, a single eye affected tends to be physical injury while both eyes would point more towards bacterial infection. But hopefully someone else more knowledgeable can confirm this general statement.

 

[dross9615]

I'd probably start with some epsom salt and wait to see if Jay stops in and verifies a bacterial component. I think generally, a single eye affected tends to be physical injury while both eyes would point more towards bacterial infection. But hopefully someone else more knowledgeable can confirm this general statement.

That leads me to wonder who is doing it or what caused the injury... they don't seem to bother each other though I have seen some light pecking between the clowns but this one is a bit larger than the other one...

Any tips on epsom salt? I am doing another water change tonight or tomorrow morning. So, should I add the epsom before or after the water change.

 

[Cell]

I would do it in a different tank, not the display tank.

 

[dross9615]

I would do it in a different tank, not the display tank.

This is coming from a complete noob but I was looking into it and other post suggest epsom salt is not effective?

 

[Cell]

One eye or both? Is the bulging eye clear or cloudy? You could try dosing Epsom salt to help relieve the swelling:

Epsom Salt: Treats eye and other injuries. Popeye in one eye usually means injury, but popeye in both eyes usually denotes a bacterial infection requiring antibiotic treatment. Cloudy eye can be a bacterial infection or flukes.

How To Treat - 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons of aquarium water. Repeat only once, if necessary. Use only “USP” grade Epsom salt.

Pros - Reef safe, as Epsom salt is just magnesium sulfate.

Cons/Side Effects - The effects of excessive sulfate in a reef aquarium are not fully known.

I'm no expert, but this guy is ^

 

[BranchingHammer]

I don’t think epsom salts work as a treatment when dissolved in water. I think that’s a freshwater fish thing. I do know that Epsom salts work in the fish’s diet, but not for popeye I don’t think. I think an antibiotic like erythromycin might work. @Jay Hemdal, please adise on medication.

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Epsom salts are the fourth highest component salt in marine salt mixes. Adding a bit more has no benefit, it is over extrapolation from a freshwater tonic. The deal is that many eye issues resolve on there own with no treatment, so adding Epsom salt may SEEM to work.
You can add Epsom salts to gel diet for its purgative affect.
I can’t see the white patches you are talking about, but for the eye, you could move the fish o a treatment tank and dose with erythromycin. Same deal though, maybe that doesn’t work either and the fish gets better on its own?
Jay

 

[dross9615]

Epsom salts are the fourth highest component salt in marine salt mixes. Adding a bit more has no benefit, it is over extrapolation from a freshwater tonic. The deal is that many eye issues resolve on there own with no treatment, so adding Epsom salt may SEEM to work.
You can add Epsom salts to gel diet for its purgative affect.
I can’t see the white patches you are talking about, but for the eye, you could move the fish o a treatment tank and dose with erythromycin. Same deal though, maybe that doesn’t work either and the fish gets better on its own?
Jay

So, I gather, I am best off just ensuring that water quality is good and removing the possible aggressor?

I'll see if I can get better pics tonight, but there are visible marks on it that appear to be nipping or some sort of bacterial thing? but I can't pinpoint it due to my inexperience with reef diseases and bacteria

 

[dross9615]

Epsom salts are the fourth highest component salt in marine salt mixes. Adding a bit more has no benefit, it is over extrapolation from a freshwater tonic. The deal is that many eye issues resolve on there own with no treatment, so adding Epsom salt may SEEM to work.
You can add Epsom salts to gel diet for its purgative affect.
I can’t see the white patches you are talking about, but for the eye, you could move the fish o a treatment tank and dose with erythromycin. Same deal though, maybe that doesn’t work either and the fish gets better on its own?
Jay

attached is an edited photo. These patches were not there when I got it.

 

[JoeM]

Would you do the magnesium sulfate treatment in the main tank or a quarantine tank?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

attached is an edited photo. These patches were not there when I got it.

Tough to see under blue light, but I see a hint of what could be Brooklynella. Any rapid breathing?
I hate to make excuses, but my second moderna shot has me really sick, I may be offline for a bit...
Jay

 

[JAC-]

That leads me to wonder who is doing it or what caused the injury... they don't seem to bother each other though I have seen some light pecking between the clowns but this one is a bit larger than the other one...

Any tips on epsom salt? I am doing another water change tonight or tomorrow morning. So, should I add the epsom before or after the water change.

As far as who may be beating it up, my money's on the 6 line. Delt with almost the same situation with my bigger clown and my 6 line. Hope you get it back to good health friend.

 

[dross9615]

Would you do the magnesium sulfate treatment in the main tank or a quarantine tank?

Tough to see under blue light, but I see a hint of what could be Brooklynella. Any rapid breathing?
I hate to make excuses, but my second moderna shot has me really sick, I may be offline for a bit...
Jay

As far as who may be beating it up, my money's on the 6 line. Delt with almost the same situation with my bigger clown and my 6 line. Hope you get it back to good health friend.

So, I don't want to get ahead of myself but I did a 50% water change yesterday and the popeye appears to be 99% gone and it seems to be back to normal in terms of behavior and hanging out with the other clown.

I am still going to keep an eye on things. I will say I have heard horror stories about 6-lines but I genuinely have not seen a single interaction with the the wrasse showing aggression and I have been keeping a close eye on them. I may set up a 24 hour camera just to be sure. I'd hate to take out the wrasse and still have the issue. On that note I have seen the two clowns bicker and pick at each other also, not sure if I mentioned it but ones is a perc and the other is an ocellaris