Sick Jawfish?

[Stew18]

I have a blue spotted jawfish. Was doing awesome for a month. Had room in my tank for another fish and my daughter wanted a damsel. Bought the damsel - it was fat!! Well everyday when I fed the fish the damsel would eat 95 percent of the food. I even tried to put food in different parts of the tank. I guess stupidly i thought the jawfish would eventually get his food.

Well a week went by and I noticed he dug a small hole in the corner of the tank and has been there for 3 days getting skinny. I removed the damsel as soon as I figured out the jawfish wasn't eating. So I have turned off all the pumps and tried to spot feed him. The food just falls on top of him and around him. I can't get him to eat.

I am including picture. The white you see i believe is just sand. The brown on his body i am not sure what it is. His last hiding place was actually in a rock so i just wonder if he scraped his body

What should I do? Its sad to see? All my other fish are great.

 

[Saltwaterfishy]

Do you have a quarantine? If so you should move him there. This way there's no stress from the other fish and could get a closer look because he may be getting sick because he hasn't eaten in a while

 

[Stew18]

unfortunately I don't have quarantine. I will say no one is bother him at all. he just refuses to eat

 

[Saltwaterfishy]

unfortunately I don't have quarantine. I will say no one is bother him at all. he just refuses to eat

What have you tried feeding?

 

[Stew18]

I have frozen shrimp, mysis. I also have some salt water fish pellets. I have tried it all. I just wonder if he is too far gone? But when I go to think that I can stick my hand in the tank and he will swim away but just keeps going back to the corner. I would be happy to text you a video

 

[Saltwaterfishy]

I have frozen shrimp, mysis. I also have some salt water fish pellets. I have tried it all. I just wonder if he is too far gone? But when I go to think that I can stick my hand in the tank and he will swim away but just keeps going back to the corner. I would be happy to text you a video

Have you tried soaking food in garlic? If there's no signs of disease and no one is bothering him all you can do is make sure the water parameters are good, make sure there's no stress and keep trying. The garlic can entice fish to eat.

 

[Stew18]

I have garlic juice in the fridge. Is that ok to mix with the food? Nitrates are 5 and I just did a water change. All all other fish are awesome!

 

[Saltwaterfishy]

I have garlic juice in the fridge. Is that ok to mix with the food? Nitrates are 5 and I just did a water change. All all other fish are awesome!

It should be fine. I use garlic juice that u can buy at the fish store but I would look up if you can use what Ur using. If it's 100 percent garlic then it should be fine. Make sure to let it soak for like 5 minutes

 

[eatbreakfast]

Leave the pumps on when you feed. If the food is moving in the water, this can elicit a feeding response, instinctively they want to give chase.

Unfortunately, though in most cases of a hunger strike, the fish may not start eating again.

Also, blie spot jaws do better in cooler temps than most people keep their tanks. They do better in mid 60's to low 70's, otherwise their metabolism and life cycle is sed up.

 

[4FordFamily]

It is so hard to tell from photo but its slime coat does not appear to be very significant. This can be due to things as sinister as velvet or just simply stress.

I agree the white spots are sand.

I have tried one of these and it did not eat in quarantine and died. After hearing many people say they struggled I opted not to try again, although they ARE beautiful.

 

[Humblefish]

I currently have one in QT and he is eating LRS "Fish Frenzy" after refusing all other foods.

 

[melypr1985]

I had good luck with mine for about 8 months. He ate everything, was very outgoing and very entertaining. Then one day he developed a few red marks on his face and under his "chin". A very short time later he stopped eating and the next day he was dead. So sad. I'm still not sure what happened to him. I had also heard about them not having a very good survival rate in home aquariums. I wont be trying another.... it's just too sad.

I dont know what the dark body is about. I agree that it looks like his slime coat is abnormally thin. If you dont get him eating soon, I'm afraid he wont make it long. I'm sorry sweety.

 

[Humblefish]

FYI... These fish even have their own disease, of which little is understood. It's simply called "Blue Spot Jawfish Disease".

If the disease is bacterial in nature (as what is thought), then treating with this concoction of meds would be best: Furan-2, Kanaplex and Seachem MetroPlex (or Metro-MS).

However, I've also read about people just adding vitamin supplements (Selcon, Zoecon, Vita-chem) to the fish's food and that sometimes works. Probably boosts the immune system enough to fight it off naturally.

Below are two threads about it:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-dreaded-blue-spot-jawfish-disease.94731/

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/tiny-red-dots-white-soars-not-ich.205690/

 

[Breakthecycle2]

unfortunately I don't have quarantine. I will say no one is bother him at all. he just refuses to eat

Then you should go get one.

 

[Stew18]

unfortunately he died this morning. I have had fish die but this sucked. I just felt like he suffered for a few days. He was great one day and just stopped eating the next.

Thank you for all your help and advice. I love this forum and it has been so helpful. I feel like I ask to many questions though

 

[melypr1985]

unfortunately he died this morning. I have had fish die but this sucked. I just felt like he suffered for a few days. He was great one day and just stopped eating the next.

Thank you for all your help and advice. I love this forum and it has been so helpful. I feel like I ask to many questions though

You can never ask too many questions. Keep on asking away, it's what we are here for

I'm sorry for your loss.

 

[Humblefish]

Sorry for your loss.

 

[DanoNielO]

I have frozen shrimp, mysis. I also have some salt water fish pellets. I have tried it all. I just wonder if he is too far gone? But when I go to think that I can stick my hand in the tank and he will swim away but just keeps going back to the corner. I would be happy to text you a video

Get garlic guard if that doesn't work try live mysis but these guys are so susceptible to diseases lost mine to fungal infection. By the look of it its tail isnt as full as it should be Little guy could be getting sick. Gill flukes, fin rot, pop eye, anything. But sounds like hes sick. Personally I think they get gill flukes or general problems with their gills cause of all the digging they do with their mouths. It's like licking your bathroom. They also stress easily hence being jumpers. All i can say is keep up with water changes add an air bubbler, and keep a close eye on it. Want to catch the issue before it becomes a fatal problem. And I wouldn't stress him by trying to catch and water difference and surroundings by quarantining. Might do more harm than good I definitely get your filter back up and running. Good luck I hope it turns out okay

 

[MERKEY]

Get garlic guard if that doesn't work try live mysis but these guys are so susceptible to diseases lost mine to fungal infection. By the look of it its tail isnt as full as it should be Little guy could be getting sick. Gill flukes, fin rot, pop eye, anything. But sounds like hes sick. Personally I think they get gill flukes or general problems with their gills cause of all the digging they do with their mouths. It's like licking your bathroom. They also stress easily hence being jumpers. All i can say is keep up with water changes add an air bubbler, and keep a close eye on it. Want to catch the issue before it becomes a fatal problem. And I wouldn't stress him by trying to catch and water difference and surroundings by quarantining. Might do more harm than good I definitely get your filter back up and running. Good luck I hope it turns out okay

It died Nov 17th....

 

[mattzang]

It died Nov 17th....

2015 no less