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I think my clownfish is sick and I don’t know what to do


Ezekiel

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I bought 5 new small clownfish one seems to be sick or hurt. 4 are acting normal but this one is having a hard time breathing and its white stripe has starting to have a black shadow. I don’t know whether to separate it from the others or just let him be. He would always stay either near the oxygen or near a hole in the rock 

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Welcome to Nano-Reef.com.

 

How large is your tank?  And how long ago did you start it up?  Did you start with live rock (or what kind of biofiltration does it have)?  Have you tested for ammonia?

 

A clownfish harem is a fairly difficult thing to keep.  Usually we are much better off keeping them in a pair.

 

I'm no disease expert either, but a picture of the fish (and the tank) might help us help you.

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M. Tournesol
4 minutes ago, Ezekiel said:

 5 new small clownfish

5 clownfish? are you making a harem? 

The clown fish could be harassed by the other 4. clownfish normally fight each other to determine who will be the female.

 

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M. Tournesol
On 12/26/2015 at 2:09 PM, RIP Sebastian said:

Clownfish are hermaphrodites, which means they can change gender. At birth, they are gender neutral. The most dominant clown will become the female (she'll be the largest clown), and the next dominant will be the male (second largest). Then a pecking order will be established among the rest, who remain gender neutral.

 

Keep in mind that Clowns are the Goldfish of marine fish- they're popular, easy to care for, and are MESSY. You need a very, very well-cycled tank. Not to mention, your filtration must be excellent. An oversized skimmer is a must, as is a fuge. A reactor wouldn't hurt, either.

 

Now, there will be an original squabble for dominance. Even after the pecking order is established, the fish will nip each other-nothing serious, it's just a part of Clown nature.

 

To help reduce aggression, you need to overstock a tiny bit, kind of like a cichlid tank. Because of the large number of fish, the aggression will be diffused. Anemones will definitely reduce the fighting. YOU NEED A LOT OF NEMS. That way, everyone can have some territory. So if you have coral, I'd remove them or do an island aquascape with corals on one side and BTA's on another.

 

I also think that reading mobert's RC thread will give you some insight, as will BRS's series.

 

As for stocking, I'd do one clown for every four to five gallons. So no more than 20.

 

Getting the babies from the same clutch will help, too, because dominance has been (almost) asserted.

 

Make sure you have a good CUC, too. Once you start the harem, maybe some sand-sifting gobies would help take care of waste and other detritus.

 

You'll also need a heavy feeding schedule so that the Clowns don't fight over food. I'd say feed 4-6 times per day, so an auto feeder is a plus.

 

Thanks to all the food and fish waste in the tank, you will need to perform 50-60% water changes weekly.

 

I love Clowns (majority of my posts are on them).

 

Hoped this helped,

Nick

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