Jamie Posted August 3, 2006 Share Posted August 3, 2006 This morning I noticed that my black occelaris' jaw is hanging down and doesn't seem to work. when I fed him he was really trying to eat but couldn't. He's swimming around like normal and the other occel. is fine. they have been fighting a little over the new bta recently, could he have hurt his jaw in combat? I know something like this happened to djchristone one of his fish died and the other is sick. Is this the same thing? sorry for the really bad pics Edit: I just noticed that the wite stripe closest to his tail is turning dark grey; like someone rubbed him with charcoal. Should I move him to the hospital tank? Link to comment
BustytheSnowMaam Posted August 3, 2006 Share Posted August 3, 2006 Read here clownfish disease faq- check out the second question down, I believe. Could this be the problem (isopod in mouth)? Otherwise, click around on the site and you may find an answer. Post an update for us. Tasha Link to comment
Jamie Posted August 4, 2006 Author Share Posted August 4, 2006 I dont think it's an isopod, his mouth looks empty to me. It's starting to worry me because there were a few people on that site whose clowns had the same symptoms, and then suddenly died. I took his gf out because I didn't want her to bully him and I don't wan't her to catch the disease. Link to comment
CoolGuy77 Posted August 4, 2006 Share Posted August 4, 2006 This happened to my clownfish before. I had one healthy clownfish and I added a second one. The second clownfish within a few days got this open mouth thing you are talking about. I had no idea what to do and I ended up losing it. Then within a day or two the second one got the same thing and also died. I had other fish in the same tank and none of them seemed to get sick. Then I waited 3 or 4 months and put two more clowns in and they lived fine. These are some symptoms I saw with all the clownfish that did not make it. First they started to have their mouths open a little. Then their mouths seemed to be stuck wide open. The last thing that happened would be instead of their normal wiggling swimming motion they started swimming only with the two side fins. I think it may be an internal parasite that only for some reason affected clownfish. If it is still trying to eat you might want to try feeding it something that treats internal parasites. I’ve heard of stuff called Gel-Tek Ultra Cure PX. It’s a liquid food that stays in drops in the water and the fish eats them. I’m not entirely sure if this is the right diagnosis but I figured this might help someone else come up with the right diagnosis. Link to comment
Jamie Posted August 4, 2006 Author Share Posted August 4, 2006 Welcome to nano-reef.com CoolGuy77 Thanks for the advise. I will try to go to the lfs tomorrow and get something. The clown can still eat by sucking food into its mouth and then swallowing so hopefully I can cure it. Link to comment
djchristone Posted August 4, 2006 Share Posted August 4, 2006 well good luck! apparently the ich i had in my tank hadn;t died in the 6 weeks i let my tank sit...because i woke up this morning and there were a few white spots that are now gone...*sigh* Link to comment
BustytheSnowMaam Posted August 4, 2006 Share Posted August 4, 2006 Is it a wild-caught clown? That would make it more likely that it has a parasite of some kind. I think it is a good sign that it is eating. In my experience, when they don't eat it means trouble. If I were you I would click around some more on the wetwebmedia.com website and see if any of the problems/solutions people describe there ring a bell. The site is by Bob Fenner and Anthony Calfo, two of the most knowledgeable people in reefkeeping. Link to comment
Jamie Posted August 4, 2006 Author Share Posted August 4, 2006 Both clowns are cb and the anem is a clone so it couldn't have gotten them sick. The clown looks a little better today. It looks like it can close it's mouth, but it's lower lip is still white and swollen. Link to comment
ezcompany Posted August 4, 2006 Share Posted August 4, 2006 probably an internal parasite. a fresh water dip while its healthy should help. this will definitely kill protozoans and such. Link to comment
Jamie Posted August 4, 2006 Author Share Posted August 4, 2006 Well, Mr. Clownfish is having a fw dip right now. Is 15 min. long enough? Should I put him back in the tank when I'm done, or does the tank still have parasites in it? If so, how long should I wait before putting fish back in? Thanks for all the help so far. Link to comment
BustytheSnowMaam Posted August 4, 2006 Share Posted August 4, 2006 I think 10 minutes is a good amount of time (??)- not for sure. I think that the parasites stick to the host, so once you get rid of them during the dip, you shouldn't have more in the tank (ideally). Tasha Link to comment
djchristone Posted August 4, 2006 Share Posted August 4, 2006 no i no longer try to give fw dips. it significantly weakens them to the point of near death Link to comment
Jamie Posted August 5, 2006 Author Share Posted August 5, 2006 The clown is doing well. it may have had an isopod in it's mouth because after the fw dip it's mouth looked 100% better. during the dip he went carpet surfing but luckily I saw him make his exit. unfortunatly he hurt his eye on the carpet and it is a little puffed up, but that should heal. Right now he is in the qt tank and the girl is moved back to the display. Link to comment
idog Posted August 5, 2006 Share Posted August 5, 2006 Clowns do lock jaws sometimes when battling for dominance. Don't rule out that this may be physical damage from a fight, and stressing him with meds and dips may be further weakening him. Link to comment
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