saltcats
Active Member
Timeline: I added 1 firefish to the tank 1/20/24. Ate well, really bold and calm. On 1/28/24 I added a Hector's goby. This fish yawned and flashed a couple of times, and then the firefish began to yawn as well so I dosed with PraziPro following directions on this forum (first dose 2.5ml on 1/30; follow up dose 2.5ml on 2/7). Haven't noticed any yawning or flashing since then, both fish were doing really well.
The firefish especially eats great; hector's goby doesn't seem to take anything I offer but he has plumped up significantly since I got him and looks in good condition, active and swims well.
The fish were due to move from this QT tank to my big tank on 3/13 after a 45 day observational period, but this got delayed when the main display developed ostreopsis dinos (resolving well with UV).
Sometime last week the firefish didn't seem to be eating quite as well but still good - he was still very vigorous in his pursuit of food and ate enthusiastically, but would maybe only eat 3 pieces of frozen food and then lose interest whereas up until then he would keep eating until I decided he'd had plenty (his stomach would get big).
He started hiding a lot and only coming out when I offered food. A couple of days ago he stopped coming out at all and I was very concerned; he came out finally yesterday but was breathing very heavily and did not take any food I offered (tried frozen mysis and cyclopod).
He seemed to have some difficulty swimming but stayed upright, and then rested on the sand for a while but up on his fins. I could not see any sign of injury on him, or any cloudiness/spots. I wouldn't say he was breathing rapidly, just very heavily with a very open mouth.
No pics or video unfortunately, and I haven't seen him this morning.
The other fish seems fine as far as I can tell.
Last wet thing I added was 3 coral frags on 3/16. Before that nothing since 1/25.
I have had one of the 2 outputs on the tank directed towards the surface the entire time, and have had an airstone running in the back chamber since the initial prazi dosing to help with oxygenation; I moved the second nozzle to also point upwards yesterday when I noticed the heavy breathing just in case it was an oxygen issue.
One final note on this tank: I did have a hector's goby in there previously (added 11/24/23; died 12/22/23). He also went from being very active and normal looking to acting reclusive and then not eating, seeming to struggle with swimming. I posted at the time and it sounded like it was most likely either an injury (if he startled and rammed into the glass or something?) or something like a liver failure... That's why I didn't allow a full 6 week fallow period, since it didn't really sound like a disease.
The fact that I'm now seeing something kind of similar again has me scared, but I don't know if the timeline makes sense for that.
The hector's that died and the firefish that is currently doing poorly are from 2 different shops, although the second hector's is from the same place as the first one. I am including a video of the current hector's from this morning.
Aquarium Parameters:
Aquarium type: It's my QT tank but it's set up like a reef with live rock and sand. Using for observational QT and to make sure they're feeding well.
Aquarium water volume: 12ish gallons (Fluval EVO 13.5)
Filtration type: built in
Lighting: built in
How long has the aquarium been established? Originally set up 11/25/22 with wet rock from my LFS; moved and set up with same rocks October '23.
Digital image of the whole aquarium under white light
Water quality (be sure to indicate what measurement units you are using, as well as the test kit brand)
Temperature: 78.5 (checked with 3 thermometers)
pH: 8.2 API
Salinity / specific gravity: 1.025
Nitrate: 0 API
Phosphorus: 0 Salifert
In-depth information:
Have you lost any fish to this problem yet? (see below)
Are any invertebrates affected? No; I have 4 hermit crabs in the tank which are completely normal. Also corals normal.
Respiration rate of affected fish (in gill beats per minutes, count for 15 seconds and multiply by 4)
Are the affected fish still feeding? No.
What remedies have you tried so far?
Digital image of the fish with the health issue, taken under white light -
- if needed, indicate by drawing a line around the area in question.
A short video of the fish (linked YouTube videos work well) - this is perhaps the best information that you can supply, as long as the video is clear.
EDIT TO ADD SOME ADDITIONAL NOTES: I am pretty confident in the accuracy of the nitrate test; I use the same kit on my main display where it reflects changes in nitrate due to my dosing with values that are consistent and sensible. I use this exact kit at least once a week so I am comfortable with the testing procedure/that it isn't expired/that it is shaken sufficiently.
I never saw anything like fish swimming into the current. When I did see the firefish out yesterday he looked great aside from the fact he was breathing heavily and not swimming well; physically there was no sign of damage or faded colour.
The firefish especially eats great; hector's goby doesn't seem to take anything I offer but he has plumped up significantly since I got him and looks in good condition, active and swims well.
The fish were due to move from this QT tank to my big tank on 3/13 after a 45 day observational period, but this got delayed when the main display developed ostreopsis dinos (resolving well with UV).
Sometime last week the firefish didn't seem to be eating quite as well but still good - he was still very vigorous in his pursuit of food and ate enthusiastically, but would maybe only eat 3 pieces of frozen food and then lose interest whereas up until then he would keep eating until I decided he'd had plenty (his stomach would get big).
He started hiding a lot and only coming out when I offered food. A couple of days ago he stopped coming out at all and I was very concerned; he came out finally yesterday but was breathing very heavily and did not take any food I offered (tried frozen mysis and cyclopod).
He seemed to have some difficulty swimming but stayed upright, and then rested on the sand for a while but up on his fins. I could not see any sign of injury on him, or any cloudiness/spots. I wouldn't say he was breathing rapidly, just very heavily with a very open mouth.
No pics or video unfortunately, and I haven't seen him this morning.
The other fish seems fine as far as I can tell.
Last wet thing I added was 3 coral frags on 3/16. Before that nothing since 1/25.
I have had one of the 2 outputs on the tank directed towards the surface the entire time, and have had an airstone running in the back chamber since the initial prazi dosing to help with oxygenation; I moved the second nozzle to also point upwards yesterday when I noticed the heavy breathing just in case it was an oxygen issue.
One final note on this tank: I did have a hector's goby in there previously (added 11/24/23; died 12/22/23). He also went from being very active and normal looking to acting reclusive and then not eating, seeming to struggle with swimming. I posted at the time and it sounded like it was most likely either an injury (if he startled and rammed into the glass or something?) or something like a liver failure... That's why I didn't allow a full 6 week fallow period, since it didn't really sound like a disease.
The fact that I'm now seeing something kind of similar again has me scared, but I don't know if the timeline makes sense for that.
The hector's that died and the firefish that is currently doing poorly are from 2 different shops, although the second hector's is from the same place as the first one. I am including a video of the current hector's from this morning.
Aquarium Parameters:
Aquarium type: It's my QT tank but it's set up like a reef with live rock and sand. Using for observational QT and to make sure they're feeding well.
Aquarium water volume: 12ish gallons (Fluval EVO 13.5)
Filtration type: built in
Lighting: built in
How long has the aquarium been established? Originally set up 11/25/22 with wet rock from my LFS; moved and set up with same rocks October '23.
Digital image of the whole aquarium under white light
Water quality (be sure to indicate what measurement units you are using, as well as the test kit brand)
Temperature: 78.5 (checked with 3 thermometers)
pH: 8.2 API
Salinity / specific gravity: 1.025
Nitrate: 0 API
Phosphorus: 0 Salifert
In-depth information:
Have you lost any fish to this problem yet? (see below)
Are any invertebrates affected? No; I have 4 hermit crabs in the tank which are completely normal. Also corals normal.
Respiration rate of affected fish (in gill beats per minutes, count for 15 seconds and multiply by 4)
Are the affected fish still feeding? No.
What remedies have you tried so far?
Digital image of the fish with the health issue, taken under white light -
- if needed, indicate by drawing a line around the area in question.
A short video of the fish (linked YouTube videos work well) - this is perhaps the best information that you can supply, as long as the video is clear.
EDIT TO ADD SOME ADDITIONAL NOTES: I am pretty confident in the accuracy of the nitrate test; I use the same kit on my main display where it reflects changes in nitrate due to my dosing with values that are consistent and sensible. I use this exact kit at least once a week so I am comfortable with the testing procedure/that it isn't expired/that it is shaken sufficiently.
I never saw anything like fish swimming into the current. When I did see the firefish out yesterday he looked great aside from the fact he was breathing heavily and not swimming well; physically there was no sign of damage or faded colour.
Last edited:
I've had him since April last year.
