Clownfish suddenly breathing rapidly and didn’t eat today

[Raazka]

Hello everyone,

My female Clownfish has been breathing rapidly as of this morning, didn’t even care about food (both pellets and frozen) and stays in one corner of the tank. Pretty anxious about this since in my freshwater tanks it often resulted in the fish passing away.

She doesn’t have any new spots, missing scales, torn fins or mucus on her body. Everyone else in the tank, her mate included, is doing fine and look healthy.

Parameters have not changed at all ;
pH : 8.0-8.2
Ammonia : 0ppm
Nitrites : 0ppm
Nitrates : 2-3ppm
Phosphate : >0.10ppm

I have 1 Orange stripe prawn goby and 1 Urchin Clingfish that have been in the tank for a week now, the clownfish have been there for almost 3 weeks. 3 corals that have both been dipped and sourced from trusted stores.

Anyone can help me figure out if she’s just having a bad day or if she could have developed something?

Much appreciated.

 

[fridmani]

How many clowns do you have? If they are not bonded pairs then the other ones may be bullying the other one.

 

[Raazka]

How many clowns do you have? If they are not bonded pairs then the other ones may be bullying the other one.

2 Clowns only, the female (who is the one not feeling well) was actually pretty rough on the male at first but they’ve become a lot more docile. My other clown is very submissive to her and isn’t even bothering her right now.

 

[hexcolor reef]

2 Clowns only, the female (who is the one not feeling well) was actually pretty rough on the male at first but they’ve become a lot more docile. My other clown is very submissive to her and isn’t even bothering her right now.

That could be the issue, the female may bully the male through out the day or night. How’s the flow in the tank/o2

 

[fridmani]

Any white stringy poop? Might be good to set a hospital tank.

 

[Raazka]

That could be the issue, the female may bully the male through out the day or night. How’s the flow in the tank/o2

They’ve calmed down a lot over the last week, I don’t think that this is a bullying issue since it’s the female that’s not feeling well and the male is doing fine and not bullying her.

Flow is high in the left part of the tank and medium towards the left. Lots of surface agitation and a bit of bubbles because of my breeding box (Fluval HOB breeding box).

Unfortunately I can’t find any O2 tests in any stores but all livestock other than her are breathing fine.

 

[Raazka]

Any white stringy poop? Might be good to set a hospital tank.

No poop that I was able to see this morning, they’ve been having normal ones since they’ve been added.

 

[fridmani]

Try taking the other clown out for a day or two to see if the other feels better. Usually they start breathing like that when the parameters are off or they are being bullied.

 

[vaguelyreeflike]

This is tell tale signs of bullying despite not witnessing anything, possibly either her mate is turning female and rejecting her and you didn’t see the initial behavior, or another fish in the tank is picking on her. If it was oxygen/parameter issues then both would be doing this. If she had the option, she’d leave the other’s territory but the furthest they can get is the corner of the tank, causing them to hover there and stress out which translates to heavy breathing.

I would put the male in a breeder box (not a separate tank as this might accelerate the process if he’s turning female) for a few days and see if she perks up, if not it’s a different culprit. Clowns are mean and fast about it, and they’re even worse when we’re not near the tank drawing their attention.

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Hello everyone,

My female Clownfish has been breathing rapidly as of this morning, didn’t even care about food (both pellets and frozen) and stays in one corner of the tank. Pretty anxious about this since in my freshwater tanks it often resulted in the fish passing away.

She doesn’t have any new spots, missing scales, torn fins or mucus on her body. Everyone else in the tank, her mate included, is doing fine and look healthy.

Parameters have not changed at all ;
pH : 8.0-8.2
Ammonia : 0ppm
Nitrites : 0ppm
Nitrates : 2-3ppm
Phosphate : >0.10ppm

I have 1 Orange stripe prawn goby and 1 Urchin Clingfish that have been in the tank for a week now, the clownfish have been there for almost 3 weeks. 3 corals that have both been dipped and sourced from trusted stores.

Anyone can help me figure out if she’s just having a bad day or if she could have developed something?

Much appreciated.

Unlikely just to be a "bad day" - can you post a video?

Jay

 

[Raazka]

This is tell tale signs of bullying despite not witnessing anything, possibly either her mate is turning female and rejecting her and you didn’t see the initial behavior, or another fish in the tank is picking on her. If it was oxygen/parameter issues then both would be doing this. If she had the option, she’d leave the other’s territory but the furthest they can get is the corner of the tank, causing them to hover there and stress out which translates to heavy breathing.

I would put the male in a breeder box (not a separate tank as this might accelerate the process if he’s turning female) for a few days and see if she perks up, if not it’s a different culprit. Clowns are mean and fast about it, and they’re even worse when we’re not near the tank drawing their attention.

Alright, I’ll place him in my box to see if it helps her relax.

If she does get better, what would be the best next step? Place him back to see if they could match again or choose one to keep?

 

[cdemoss01]

Hello everyone,

My female Clownfish has been breathing rapidly as of this morning, didn’t even care about food (both pellets and frozen) and stays in one corner of the tank. Pretty anxious about this since in my freshwater tanks it often resulted in the fish passing away.

She doesn’t have any new spots, missing scales, torn fins or mucus on her body. Everyone else in the tank, her mate included, is doing fine and look healthy.

Parameters have not changed at all ;
pH : 8.0-8.2
Ammonia : 0ppm
Nitrites : 0ppm
Nitrates : 2-3ppm
Phosphate : >0.10ppm

I have 1 Orange stripe prawn goby and 1 Urchin Clingfish that have been in the tank for a week now, the clownfish have been there for almost 3 weeks. 3 corals that have both been dipped and sourced from trusted stores.

Anyone can help me figure out if she’s just having a bad day or if she could have developed something?

Much appreciated.

Could be possible that shes getting older, sounds like stress, or bullying.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hello everyone,

My female Clownfish has been breathing rapidly as of this morning, didn’t even care about food (both pellets and frozen) and stays in one corner of the tank. Pretty anxious about this since in my freshwater tanks it often resulted in the fish passing away.

She doesn’t have any new spots, missing scales, torn fins or mucus on her body. Everyone else in the tank, her mate included, is doing fine and look healthy.

Parameters have not changed at all ;
pH : 8.0-8.2
Ammonia : 0ppm
Nitrites : 0ppm
Nitrates : 2-3ppm
Phosphate : >0.10ppm

I have 1 Orange stripe prawn goby and 1 Urchin Clingfish that have been in the tank for a week now, the clownfish have been there for almost 3 weeks. 3 corals that have both been dipped and sourced from trusted stores.

Anyone can help me figure out if she’s just having a bad day or if she could have developed something?

Much appreciated.

Please post a video under white light intensity for clear assessment. There can be many guesses but can be as simple as stress, aggression and more

 

[Raazka]

Please post a video under white light intensity for clear assessment. There can be many guesses but can be as simple as stress, aggression and more

Video I took before leaving for school

 

[vetteguy53081]

Video I took before leaving for school

Fish is a little distant in pic but I suspect based on breathing and swim behavior, early stage brooklynella. There has been good results with use of brooklynella and clownfish treatment as many of what clowns contract are covered by treatment of brook. Copper has come into debate but assure also that ammonia and nitrate as well as aggression from others in tank do not play a role with this

 

[Raazka]

Fish is a little distant in pic but I suspect based on breathing and swim behavior, early stage brooklynella. There has been good results with use of brooklynella and clownfish treatment as many of what clowns contract are covered by treatment of brook. Copper has come into debate but assure also that ammonia and nitrate as well as aggression from others in tank do not play a role with this

Can clownfish contract it this late being in a tank? If so, how do I treat her? Should I also do the same to the male?

No copper, ammonia and nitrites in the aquarium. Very low nitrate.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Can clownfish contract it this late being in a tank? If so, how do I treat her? Should I also do the same to the male?

No copper, ammonia and nitrites in the aquarium. Very low nitrate.

As mentioned. . . ruby rally Pro will help with many clown issues. Chloroquine phosphate also works WHEN used precisely and formalin based meds which are harder to find

 

[MnFish1]

Do any of the other fish have any symptoms - and did you QT the fish (all of them) - and if so - what did you use? As to whether it's brooklynella or something else - it's hard to say. Since you don't see mucus, etc - makes me wonder about another gill issue potentially flukes or something else. (assuming it's not aggression/stress). The reason I asked what you QT'd the fish with is if you did a full prazipro treatment that would make flukes less likely and Brooklynella is more common in clowns

 

[Raazka]

Do any of the other fish have any symptoms - and did you QT the fish (all of them) - and if so - what did you use? As to whether it's brooklynella or something else - it's hard to say. Since you don't see mucus, etc - makes me wonder about another gill issue potentially flukes or something else. (assuming it's not aggression/stress). The reason I asked what you QT'd the fish with is if you did a full prazipro treatment that would make flukes less likely and Brooklynella is more common in clowns

Didn’t do a quarantine as I don’t have the space nor approval to have another tank for QT.

None of the other fish have symptoms, all are eating well, no difficulties breathing or strange things on their body (mucus, spots, etc.) The other fish weren’t in tanks with Clownfish in them when I bought them.

 

[MnFish1]

I guess I would go with the Ruby Rally Pro - though it's unclear exactly what is being treated. Another option would be to wait a day or so - and try to get a better handle on progression/aggression, etc. BUT - I would have a treatment ordered/on the way.