Copper reaction in QT?

[Falconer298]

I have a pair of mocha storm clownfish in QT and they are on day 7 of Cupramine being at the therapeutic dose of 0.5mg/L One clown is about 1.75 inches and is eating like a hog the other is smaller 1.25 inches and has barely eaten since the cupramine was ramped up. Seems to bite at food then spits it out. Today it’s parking on the bottom and breathing fast. No visible parasites, 25% of the water in the 40g tank has been changed about every 3-4 days and redosed with cupramine, Salifert test shows pretty clearly 0.5 mg/L to my eyes. Doses measured to the 100ths of a cc in syringes.

Big one seems 100% fine but I wouldn’t be surprised to loose the little one soon. Tried 4 different types of food even with garlic guard no feeding, was eating before the copper.

Should I do a big water change and dilute the copper out? Maybe a copper sensitive fish?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Clownfish are just not sensitive to copper like that. Pulling copper is virtually always a mistake. Your little clown may have an internal issue not treatable by copper, the rapid breathing is a sign of systemic disease. Did the clowns come from the same system at the dealers?
Jay

 

[Falconer298]

Clownfish are just not sensitive to copper like that. Pulling copper is virtually always a mistake. Your little clown may have an internal issue not treatable by copper, the rapid breathing is a sign of systemic disease. Did the clowns come from the same system at the dealers?
Jay

I got the fish the day after they arrived at my LFS I watched them for about 45 min. They fed them for me and they ate, we’re looking great. I just picked up a Hannah HR copper tester, it’s at 0.31 so I’m bumping it up to 0.5 and keeping it there. Little one is still fighting but I doubt it can last long breathing that fast. Trying to read the Salifert copper test is a joke.

 

[Falconer298]

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I got the fish the day after they arrived at my LFS I watched them for about 45 min. They fed them for me and they ate, we’re looking great. I just picked up a Hannah HR copper tester, it’s at 0.31 so I’m bumping it up to 0.5 and keeping it there. Little one is still fighting but I doubt it can last long breathing that fast. Trying to read the Salifert copper test is a joke.

 

[Falconer298]

And I’m an idiot! I dosed the two 10 gallon water changes that I did with the half dose. On the bottle it starts with a half dose of 1ml to 10.5 gal. I put 0.95ml in each 10 gallon water change so only half the concentration.

 

[Falconer298]

Clownfish are just not sensitive to copper like that. Pulling copper is virtually always a mistake. Your little clown may have an internal issue not treatable by copper, the rapid breathing is a sign of systemic disease. Did the clowns come from the same system at the dealers?
Jay

Little one was about to pass so I eased the suffering and conducted a necropsy. Nothing jumped out at me under the microscope but this is the first fish I’ve gone hunting for parasites on and it was quite a delicate little thing to take apart. Got a good look at the GI tract and gills, maybe spent hours hunting around getting the most for my $120 fish, just the way I am!

What is the most intelligent move for the other one that seems fine in QT? Get the copper up to therapeutic level and leave it in the same tank? I just got stuff to set up a second QT was planning to use it for inverts.

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Sorry to hear. Since we don't know what the first clown died from, it does make the course of action a bit murky. I think I would go up to full copper, at least for two weeks.

I'm only able to make a good conclusion in about half my necropsies - and that's after 35 years of doing them. The trouble is that gross necropsies really only determine external protozoan and worm diseases, and a few internal gut diseases. That leaves the whole suite of bacterial and viral diseases undetermined.


Jay