HELP! Fish Bladder Disease? Flagellates? Treatment?

pgsonier

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So my clown has been acting weirder than usual. He lays on the sand bed all day and when he does swim it’s usually not more than a few seconds. He’s not really eating either. I just fed him some mysis and he took maybe three bites while most of the rest of it just floated around the tank and then went to the crabs. He used to be a really active swimmer, but I’m looking to get some advice from veteran reefers about this. I know clownfish are weird to begin with, but I’ve noticed a change in behavior and eating habits compared to how he usually was acting previously. Here’s a photo of what I’m talking about. If you have any advice, it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Just did water testing and everything is fine...
Ammonia = 0ppm
Nitrite = 0.05ppm
Nitrate = 2ppm
pH = 8.2
Salinity = 1.026sg
Temperature = 78.9°F

B0E01977-D306-4BA8-AADF-6FF7E8CA83F6.png
 
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pgsonier

pgsonier

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hi,how old is tank?,how long have you had clown? answers for experts.. ;)lets call some help..
@ReefSquad @Jay Hemdal @vetteguy53081 ..best wishes
Hello! The tank is just under six months old. I’ve had him for about six weeks and he’s the only fish in my 25gal tank. My parameters look good, but I’m currently dealing with brown algae, or dino’s as others have put it.
 
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Jay Hemdal

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Swim bladder disease is pretty rare in fish, at least rarer than people think it is. However, this does appear to be that. A video take under white light might help us confirm that though. The decreased food intake is disturbing as it indicates that the problem is systemic - involving more of the fish.
Do you have the ability to dose antibiotics in a different tank? If not, there isn't much you can do for it. If you can move it, you could try Erythromycin (Maracyn 1).

Jay
 

vetteguy53081

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Hello! The tank is just under six months old. I’ve had him for about six weeks and he’s the only fish in my 25gal tank. My parameters look good, but I’m currently dealing with brown algae, or dino’s as others have put it.
You stated parameters look good. The zero readings for ammonia and nitrate are a little odd. Are you by chance using API TEST KITS?
 
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pgsonier

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Swim bladder disease is pretty rare in fish, at least rarer than people think it is. However, this does appear to be that. A video take under white light might help us confirm that though. The decreased food intake is disturbing as it indicates that the problem is systemic - involving more of the fish.
Do you have the ability to dose antibiotics in a different tank? If not, there isn't much you can do for it. If you can move it, you could try Erythromycin (Maracyn 1).

Jay
I do not have a hospital tank at the moment. I’ve heard of people putting one together last minute, but I’m not really sure how to go about doing that. I just want to know how this happened. He was fine a week ago and I’ve had him for over a month and he was eating fine and swimming normally and he’s the only fish in the tank. I don’t wanna lose him, but he just seems to be getting worse.
 
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pgsonier

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You stated parameters look good. The zero readings for ammonia and nitrate are a little odd. Are you by chance using API TEST KITS?
All of my test kits are from Red Sea. Ammonia is zero and Nitrates came back 2ppm, so not exactly zero for Nitrates, but close.
 

Jay Hemdal

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I do not have a hospital tank at the moment. I’ve heard of people putting one together last minute, but I’m not really sure how to go about doing that. I just want to know how this happened. He was fine a week ago and I’ve had him for over a month and he was eating fine and swimming normally and he’s the only fish in the tank. I don’t wanna lose him, but he just seems to be getting worse.
In some cases, the actual cause of a disease cannot be determined. The common bacteria to infect fish are found on virtually every tank- just under stress they become infectious.
You might consider antibiotic dips - double the dose of erythromycin in a bucket of tank water with a small heater and an airstone - put the fish in there for 3 hours, twice a day and replace the water daily. Not sure it will help, but it is an option....
Jay
 

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