sick clownfish???

[Salty Dog]

Hi everybody...this may not be serious, but my tank raised clown fish has not eaten in a few days. The first few days he was kinda swimming vertical, but seems okay now. I've read that "Ich" can cause a loss of appetite, there are like, two or three little tiny white spots on him, I don't know if that's what it is, I'm new to this hobby and haven't dealt with disease yet, what do ya say?

 

[michealprater]

How is he doing? Have the amount of spots increased any?

 

[Salty Dog]

Well, he still has one little tiny spot that I can see. He's swimming normal now, but still hasn't eaten...do fish ever starve themselves to death???? I'm kinda worried that's what's gunna happen if he doesn't eat here pretty quick...

 

[michealprater]

What are you feeding? Brine shrimp soaked in Garlic guard is hard for any fish to resist.

 

[Salty Dog]

Can you explain this garlic thing? How do I do that?

 

[michealprater]

seachem make a product called garlic guard. It is kind of a elixir. You soak you food in it before you feed. Check with the sponsors to see if they carry it.

 

[wrkalot]

My wife is in charge of feeding but ours can't get enough of Mysis (sp?). She has tried a variety of different foods, did her research on the nutritional value of each type and brand. We haven't had to resort to the garlic trick... yet.

Maybe try feeding some different types/brands of food?

 

[michealprater]

Garlic Gaurd is cheap and it is very good for all fish, not just the ones ailing.

 

[Salty Dog]

Yeah, thanks, I'll ask about that. He usually doesn't have a problem with eating, that's why I was concerned. Would he starve himself to death?

 

[michealprater]

Would he starve himself to death?

Unfortunately, yes, this is possible.

 

[Salty Dog]

He hasn't shown any signs of being starved...he's not thin at all considering he hasn't eaten in like...a week...How long would it take for him to starve?

 

[Salty Dog]

Well, unfortunately I think that's what happened... He died this morning. I found out from the LFS that one of the guys that works there got two clowns from the same batch...and they weren't eating either, so he called the breeder and found out that he was feeding it a different type of food. "Yeah, thanks for telling me now" I think he may have had the ich too. Regardless I got two new fish and they're doing great. I used the bucket/drip method of acclimation...much better!

 

[quarryshark]

Sorry for your loss. It can be tough. :|
Are you using qt for the new guys? If the deceased clown had ich, it now is most likely in you tank.