Clownfish Locked mouth onto other

[Sick_man]

Hi, so I have a pair of clowns and they have been fine up til now and even sleep with each other. My black clownfish grabbed onto my other ones fin and would not let go for a good 20 seconds. It keeps nipping at him now as well. I noticed that the bullied clown has developed a pale lip and I'm not sure what to do. They have always been fine and were the first fish to add to the tank. I made sure the black one was bigger so that it lowered the chance of two males. What should I do?

 

[Neuratox]

How old is the tank? How long have you had the fish in this tank? Did you buy them at the same time or were they introduced separately? Do you have any other fish in the tank and what size is it?

 

[fishguy242]

isolate black ,fin grabbing,is trying to kill other

 

[Sick_man]

How old is the tank? How long have you had the fish in this tank? Did you buy them at the same time or were they introduced separately? Do you have any other fish in the tank and what size is it?

Tank is a few months old and the bullied clown was the first fish to add. One week later the black came in. The tank is 20 gallon long and it houses a gramma and a firefish. The clown only started to attack the other clown though. The fish have been here a while, like right after it cycled so I'm not 100% sure.

 

[fishguy242]

try isolation box in tank ,give time to mellow/mature,put dominate in box

 

[Sick_man]

isolate black ,fin grabbing,is trying to kill other

is this just a short term solution? If i isolate it, will it be fine after it is released back in? Or is he going to have to be removed completely?

 

[Neuratox]

I'd have to agree. If you added these separately then there is a very real possibility that they're both females and they're being territorial. I think its time to remove one.

 

[ScubaFish802]

try isolation box in tank ,give time to mellow/mature,put dominate in box

+2, try an in-tank isolation box before returning one, see if they will calm down, or give them space to figure out who will be dominant before trying again.

 

[fishguy242]

yes temp,may have to do a couple of times ,larger is turning female ,

 

[Sick_man]

yes temp,may have to do a couple of times ,larger is turning female ,

The black one has always been larger and the bullied one always submits to it by doing that shaking thing. Theyre both still juveniles im sure. They've stopped fighting for now so should I just keep an eye out for now or isolate it asap?

 

[ScubaFish802]

The black one has always been larger and the bullied one always submits to it by doing that shaking thing. Theyre both still juveniles im sure. They've stopped fighting for now so should I just keep an eye out for now or isolate it asap?

If you are seeing torn fins etc . . I would try to isolate

 

[Sick_man]

If you are seeing torn fins etc . . I would try to isolate

No tearing but the other one has a pale bottom lip so i'm not sure what that means

 

[fishguy242]

yes ,need to separate asap,lip locking,especially fin grabbing will kill ,lil guy

 

[Sick_man]

yes ,need to separate asap,lip locking,especially fin grabbing will kill ,lil guy

I dont have a breed box what should I do? Is there a quick diy way?

 

[Dark_Knightt]

try isolation box in tank ,give time to mellow/mature,put dominate in box

@Sick_man you can buy these almost off of every website, probably your best choice if you dont have a QT for one or an extra tank with no clowns in it.

 

[Sick_man]

@Sick_man you can buy these almost off of every website, probably your best choice if you dont have a QT for one or an extra tank with no clowns in it.

Thanks I know they are fairly cheap but I'm looking for a solution right now and itll take a couple days for it to arrive and i dont want to risk my clown dying within that time

 

[PicassoClown04]

Petco/petsmart Carry Breeder/net boxes. Get one immediately and separate. The black clown will kill the little one no doubt

 

[fishguy242]

yes ,use a bowl w lid with plenty of holes in it,use someting like chunk of styro to float it,your in chi town,you can find an isolation box/breeder box pretty quick

 

[PokeFish]

I would use a small plastic box that you dont need, and drill some holes in it. Then rinse it and attach it to the side of your tank and put the fish in there

 

[Sick_man]

Thanks everyone, how will I know when the right time is to let the clown out though?