My clown fish is super aggressive and bites my hand!!!

[Crreef]

I have two clown fish in a 32 gallon bio cube and my female clown fish bites small chunks of skin off my hand every time I stick it in the tank. Sometimes it even nearly jumps out of the water. I have began to think it is because she might have laid eggs. I am thinking this because she sort of protects a area in the tank when I put my hand in. Does any body know why and how I can stop it from biting me?

 

[Crabs McJones]

I have two clown fish in a 32 gallon bio cube and my female clown fish bites small chunks of skin off my hand every time I stick it in the tank. Sometimes it even nearly jumps out of the water. I have began to think it is because she might have laid eggs. I am thinking this because she sort of protects a area in the tank when I put my hand in. Does any body know why and how I can stop it from biting me?

Keep your hands out of the tank lol!! That's about the only way you won't get bit. I have a mated pair with eggs in the tank, and she darn near took my arm off yesterday. And she almost jumped out to get me again after that. Its jyst the way they are, protecting their home.

 

[Crreef]

Keep your hands out of the tank lol!! That's about the only way you won't get bit. I have a mated pair with eggs in the tank, and she darn near took my arm off yesterday. And she almost jumped out to get me again after that. Its jyst the way they are, protecting their home.

Ok thanks!!!

 

[XNavyDiver]

Your delema is quite common. There a a lot of you tube videos of biting Clown Fish. I'm not sure of a fix, other than re homing the bitey offender.

 

[Maritimer]

Get some full-length rubber gloves.

She'll still bite you - but you won't care.

~Bruce

 

[Flippers4pups]

I have two clown fish in a 32 gallon bio cube and my female clown fish bites small chunks of skin off my hand every time I stick it in the tank. Sometimes it even nearly jumps out of the water. I have began to think it is because she might have laid eggs. I am thinking this because she sort of protects a area in the tank when I put my hand in. Does any body know why and how I can stop it from biting me?

If you need to put your hands in the tank, wear gloves. Problem fixed.

 

[Crreef]

Ok thanks!!!

 

[saltyhog]

As above, this is just what clowns do. Mine loved to wait till I was not expecting it and then hit me! Didn't really hurt but it always made me jerk.

What species of clowns do you have?

 

[Crreef]

@saltyhog I have nothing really special, but I have one snowflake ocellaris and one standard ocellaris.

 

[SashimiTurtle]

I got extremely lucky and my female clown only nibbles at me to ask where the food is. Absolutely no aggression from her, or her mate. Mine seem to be the exception, tho, as many people post here about their clowns drawing blood and I even read one thread a few months back of a clown jumping out of the tank to bite one member in the eye.

 

[Crreef]

I got extremely lucky and my female clown only nibbles at me to ask where the food is. Absolutely no aggression from her, or her mate. Mine seem to be the exception, tho, as many people post here about their clowns drawing blood and I even read one thread a few months back of a clown jumping out of the tank to bite one member in the eye.

You are so lucky!!!! When my clown bites it hurts bad. That is so crazy a clown could jump out of the water and bite someones eye!!!

 

[Bruce Burnett]

They can bite and almost always make you jump. I have one that always attacks my hand even when I am working other end of tank six feet away. It hurts some times, it will bite at my rings and pull hair on my hands,a couple times I expected to see blood. I have just leard to not jump.

 

[Fritzhamer]

15 years ago a friend gave me his Bi-Color blenny because it would attack him. After putting it in my tank I found that it also attacked me. Another friend was over and I was telling him about the nasty Bi-color blenny. He didn't believe it and put his hand in the tank. No attack happened! I couldn't believe it. The Bi-color blenny didn't hate people, he was just racist.

 

[4FordFamily]

It’s not uncommon as mentioned, some species are worse than others. I’ve found ocellaris to be less aggressive than many but any clown may bite.

My two worst offenders over the years were a giant fat pink skunk clown and a cinnamon clown female!

 

[BringingThatDottyback]

15 years ago a friend gave me his Bi-Color blenny because it would attack him. After putting it in my tank I found that it also attacked me. Another friend was over and I was telling him about the nasty Bi-color blenny. He didn't believe it and put his hand in the tank. No attack happened! I couldn't believe it. The Bi-color blenny didn't hate people, he was just racist.

I was at a guy's house holding a rock so he could frag a coral on it. His lawnmower blenny swam up and bit my knuckle.

 

[DSC reef]

Our lightning maroon literally rushes the glass when we approach the tank. Super mean. Our blacker ice almost eats from your hand. Clown fishes be crazy

 

[revhtree]

I have heard all the horror stories but have never owned clowns that would bite me. My current pair lay eggs and I can touch the eggs without them even taking a nip at my hand! They feel the love...

 

[Orcus Varuna]

Normal behavior, I echo everyone else and reccomend some shoulder length nitrile muck gloves. Can get them for about 10$ on amazon. Also, just be lucky it’s not a grandma maroon over 6” with a mouth full of 1/8” razor blades. The gloves don’t even save you and you can only stick your hand in the tank when a second person acts as the swatter keeping it at bay with a spatula.

 

[Katrina71]

Oh goody. I can hardly wait. So glad my son got a mated pair as a gift!

 

[Hosscooper]

My female goes after me but usually in certain areas of my tank. But they really don't mess with my other fish. Which I find strange though I've heard reports to the contrary. Seems to all depend on the fish. Like each one has their own personality. Though as a species they have certain tendencies or genetic behavioral tendencies.