Disease experts

[ReefQueen]

I'm looking at you @Humblefish and @melypr1985 lol, as well as anyone else who wants to chime in because diagnosing fish illnesses is not my forte. In an unending chain of bad luck it seems I can't catch a break. My female clown has developed these black spots and patches overnight. I am assuming black ich, but again not my strong area, so I am hoping I am wrong and it is some sort of wound from something in the tank. Of course I don't have my QT set up at the moment but I'll get it going tonight. She is eating as voraciously as ever and is not showing any signs of stress, or any different behavior period. I have had her since before she was a she (she was the he of my pair previously until I lost the female to a rockslide over a year ago), so I would be pretty sad to loose her. My other clown and the mandarin are not showing any symptoms as well. Any guesses on ID and course of action? Thanks guys

Darn it i can't upload the pics. Give me a few and I'll see if I can get them up.

 

[CFC_Surge]

It could very well be coral stings from hosting Euphillias or similar corals. If she is acting healthy as ever it's nothing to worry about.
Posting pics for us would also help.

 

[ReefQueen]

It could very well be coral stings from hosting Euphillias or similar corals. If she is acting healthy as ever it's nothing to worry about.
Posting pics for us would also help.

I'm working on it lol. The site won't let me so I'm gonna try the app even though it always posts them sideways and upside-down lol. And she has never hosted anything. Unless she decided to give it a try last night.

 

[CFC_Surge]

You haven't seen her in a torch or zoa bed before?

 

[ReefQueen]

Sorry not the greatest I can try and get better if needed. And if you see any white specs, it is food as I had just fed the corals and whatnot, she doesn't have any white spots on her body.

 

[ReefQueen]

 

[maroun.c]

+1 Those are common when clowns chose to host in Euphilias...
if its eating and doen't look stressed will give it few days of observation before taking any action.

 

[ReefQueen]

You haven't seen her in a torch or zoa bed before?

She will occasionally bump some zoas with her fins that are on the left side of the tank during feeding time. But all the euphyllia is on the right side of the tank and I have literally never seen her go past the middle of the tank. The clowns prefer to stay behind the rock work unless they are hungry. She has also never gotten near the anemone.

 

[ReefQueen]

+1 Those are common when clowns chose to host in Euphilias...
if its eating and doen't look stressed will give it few days of observation before taking any action.

I seriously hope I am wrong and she decided to give it a try in the middle of the night. Thanks

 

[CFC_Surge]

BTW: nice work keeping a keen eye on your livestock.

 

[ngvu1]

My clowns had those black dots but because they host (or being hosted by) a bubble tip anemone. They call that anemone stings effect but the clowns don't have any issue with that

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Look up Clownfish hyper melanization

 

[ReefQueen]

BTW: nice work keeping a keen eye on your livestock.

Haha thanks, but I can't say that I am always this observant. Luckily it just happened on a day I am off. I am also really glad I only have 3 fish, but if I have to qt them all, I will worry about the mandarin and the lack of pods.

 

[ReefQueen]

Look up Clownfish hyper melanization

I'm sorry I should have tagged you as well not thinking clearly today (or any day for that matter lol). You know what's funny is I was reading about this a little bit last night as light reading before bed. Obviously it did not sink in because I totally forgot about it until you mentioned it! This is definitely a possibility! Now I am going to go back to the page I was reading and reread it to remember what it even is lol.

 

[ReefQueen]

Look up Clownfish hyper melanization

Oh wait this goes back to hosting something correct? Yet I have never seen her try and host anything (or have anything host her I suppose).

 

[melypr1985]

If your truley worried that this may not be mild sting marks, then you can give the clown a FW dip. If the black dots fall off in the dip then you have "black ich" which would be treated with prazipro fairly easily. Doing the dip is easy, free and not as stressful on the fish as most people claim. I've done hundreds with success and have only lost the few that were past saving anyway.


Freshwater Dip: Provides temporary relief for Brooklynella, Flukes, Marine Velvet disease (Amyloodinium); possibly even Ich & Uronema marinum (both unproven). Can be used to confirm the presence of Flukes.

How To Treat - Fill a bucket with RODI water, and use a heater to match the temperature to the water the fish is coming from. Aerate the water heavily for at least 30 minutes prior to doing the dip, then discontinue aeration while performing the dip. Fish aren’t overly pH sensitive for short durations like this, but you can squirt a little tank water into the dip just before the fish goes in to help bring it up.

Place the fish in the freshwater (FW) dip and observe closely. It is not unusual for them to freak out a little at first. Also, tangs are notorious for “playing dead” during a FW dip. The important thing is to watch their gills; they should be breathing heavily at all times during the dip. If breathing slows, it’s time to exit the dip. Dip the fish for no longer than 5 minutes. Multiple dips may be done, but it’s important to give your fish a day to recuperate in-between dips.

For flukes, use a dark (preferably black) bucket so you can see if tiny white worms fall out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 minute mark. The worms will settle to the bottom, so you can use a flashlight to look for them there as well.

Pros - Provides temporary relief for a wide range of diseases in a chemical free environment. Can “buy you more time” until a proper treatment can be done.

Cons/Side Effects - Not a permanent “fix” for any disease, as FW dips are not potent enough to eradicate all of the parasites/worms afflicting the fish. Some fish can have an adverse reaction to a FW dip by appearing unable to maintain their equilibrium once returned to the aquarium. If this happens, hold the fish upright (using latex, nitrile or rubber gloves), and gently glide him through the water (to get saltwater flowing through the gills again). It is also a good idea to place the fish in an acclimation box until he appears “normal”.

 

[ludnix]

Oh wait this goes back to hosting something correct? Yet I have never seen her try and host anything (or have anything host her I suppose).

For what it's worth I have caught my clownfish hosting my Hammer Coral via web cam, but not when I'm in the room. If I'm around it's in the front of the tank begging for food, picking at rocks, or harassing my other fish. The pictures look like the Hypermelanization my old pair would get from hosting various corals, especially when they first touched a new coral, once acclimated to it they didn't seem to develop the dark spots anymore.

 

[ReefQueen]

If your truley worried that this may not be mild sting marks, then you can give the clown a FW dip. If the black dots fall off in the dip then you have "black ich" which would be treated with prazipro fairly easily. Doing the dip is easy, free and not as stressful on the fish as most people claim. I've done hundreds with success and have only lost the few that were past saving anyway.


Freshwater Dip: Provides temporary relief for Brooklynella, Flukes, Marine Velvet disease (Amyloodinium); possibly even Ich & Uronema marinum (both unproven). Can be used to confirm the presence of Flukes.

How To Treat - Fill a bucket with RODI water, and use a heater to match the temperature to the water the fish is coming from. Aerate the water heavily for at least 30 minutes prior to doing the dip, then discontinue aeration while performing the dip. Fish aren’t overly pH sensitive for short durations like this, but you can squirt a little tank water into the dip just before the fish goes in to help bring it up.

Place the fish in the freshwater (FW) dip and observe closely. It is not unusual for them to freak out a little at first. Also, tangs are notorious for “playing dead” during a FW dip. The important thing is to watch their gills; they should be breathing heavily at all times during the dip. If breathing slows, it’s time to exit the dip. Dip the fish for no longer than 5 minutes. Multiple dips may be done, but it’s important to give your fish a day to recuperate in-between dips.

For flukes, use a dark (preferably black) bucket so you can see if tiny white worms fall out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 minute mark. The worms will settle to the bottom, so you can use a flashlight to look for them there as well.

Pros - Provides temporary relief for a wide range of diseases in a chemical free environment. Can “buy you more time” until a proper treatment can be done.

Cons/Side Effects - Not a permanent “fix” for any disease, as FW dips are not potent enough to eradicate all of the parasites/worms afflicting the fish. Some fish can have an adverse reaction to a FW dip by appearing unable to maintain their equilibrium once returned to the aquarium. If this happens, hold the fish upright (using latex, nitrile or rubber gloves), and gently glide him through the water (to get saltwater flowing through the gills again). It is also a good idea to place the fish in an acclimation box until he appears “normal”.

I was thinking of doing just this, but I am wondering if I should hold off. It certainly looks more like stings then black ich to me. I am going to get the qt up just incase as well. As luck would have it I have 2 consecutive days off, so if it worsens I can dip tomorrow. Unless you think I should do it anyway in which case I will catch her during my wc tonight.

 

[ReefQueen]

For what it's worth I have caught my clownfish hosting my Hammer Coral via web cam, but not when I'm in the room. If I'm around it's in the front of the tank begging for food, picking at rocks, or harassing my other fish. The pictures look like the Hypermelanization my old pair would get from hosting various corals, especially when they first touched a new coral, once acclimated to it they didn't seem to develop the dark spots anymore.

I was just thinking of setting up one of the 3 unused tablets laying around to do some snooping lol.

 

[melypr1985]

I was thinking of doing just this, but I am wondering if I should hold off. It certainly looks more like stings then black ich to me. I am going to get the qt up just incase as well. As luck would have it I have 2 consecutive days off, so if it worsens I can dip tomorrow. Unless you think I should do it anyway in which case I will catch her during my wc tonight.

I wasn't able to really tell either way from the pictures, so it's up to you. If it would make you feel better knowing what it is then do the dip. It's not going to hurt the clown at all and you'd know for sure. Either way I dont think this is a dire situation at all, so you've got the leeway to just watch him and see. If they are mild stings from a coral, they will heal and if the clown chooses to host that coral, it will build up a resistance to the sting.