Hunger strike

[Kaptain-LokI]

Hi, I have a female Gold Stripe Maroon Clown (Premnas biaculeatus), who somehow got what I believe to be a bacterial infection. White fuzzy patches at the base of her dorsal fin. I wasn't particularly worried at first because she still seemed to have a healthy appetite and was swimming around normally, and her mate did not get sick either. So I changed the water, and about a week went by and her condition started to get a little worse, the fuzz started to spread to her face, so I bought a broad spectrum antibiotic and tricked her into a net with food and put her in a 10 gallon hospital tank. The hospital tank has no substrate, has lava rock with holes in it for her to hid in, and only a mechanical filter, because the antibiotic will kill any biological filtration anyway. After putting her into the hospital tank she made a bee-line for one of the holes in the lava rock near the corner and has been hiding there ever since, she only will poke her head out when I am around, but when I am where she cannot see me she will venture about 6 inches away from the rock. I put her in the hospital tank on Sunday night and it is now Tuesday 1:10PM, and she, to the best of my knowledge, hasn't eaten anything since I put her in the tank. The infection appears to have cleared up and she is hovering waggling her fins like a clownfish does in her little hole but she still refuses to eat. Coincidentally her mate back in their home tank is eating very little as well and seems to spend most of his day looking for her in the caves in the various rocks and behind them and such. Even though the mate is not sick should I maybe catch him and put him in the hospital tank as well to end the hunger strike? Will hunger finally force her out of her hole? Should I just not worry? Is there some kind of food that Maroons find absolutely irresistible that might lure her out and back into eating? I would hate to lose her to a hunger strike for treating what seems like a minor infection. I cannot remove her and put her from the hospital tank and put her back into the main tank because the antiboitic says to treat a minimum of 5 days. Any ideas?

[leebca]

Thanks for posting. Just some observations first:

1. The fish seems not to be totally used to you, indicating a lack of familiarity with you the keeper. Not too good. Spend more time with the fish.

2. An ill fish eating, no matter how well,needs treatment. Take it to a human level: Your son, daughter, mother, or ? has a fever but keeps on eating. Is it okay to do nothing?

3. Fish stressors are not readily observed by hobbyists. What you think is a healthy, 'happy fish' is rarely the case. Avoid putting human characteristics onto your pet.

4. Not all antibiotics affect the biological filter. The biological filter is made up of mostly Gram Positive bacteria. Most marine fish bacterial diseases are caused by Gram Negative bacteria. Thus the proper antibiotic to start with is one that affects Gram Negative bacteria, which would not interfere with a properly established biological filter.

5. At no time should rock be used in the QT. It may, unknown to you, contain elements which interfere with treatment or releases small quantities of contaminants. Not worth the risk. If you would like decorations, use plastic that is suitable for marine life. A piece of PVC pipe, properly prepared for the QT is suitable enough for a hiding place. Plastic plants and rocks may be added.

6. Diseases are not 'natural' and considering it okay for a fish to be ill is a bit off track. As soon as you have or see an ill fish you need to find out how it got ill and why it isn't healing itself. In this scenario, if the diagnosis was correct, your system has water quality or environmental problems coupled with a possible fish diet that is below the fish's nutritional requirements.

Some ideas:
7. Don't put the two fish together. Mother Nature requires that the female dominate and badger the male to maintain gender. This is stressful to both fish. Putting them together will just add to the stress of the female.

8. The female isn't eating for some stress related problems. What are you doing to maintain water quality in the QT? Are you testing with a kit (not sticks) daily or twice a day for ammonia and nitrites? Are you making water changes daily or twice a day? Are you sure that rock isn't introducing a small mount of poison or contamination to the water?

9. No food will make a stressed fish eat. If the fish takes in the food and spits it out, then it doesn't like the food and such a fish may be tempted with a different food. If the fish is refusing to eat, there is still some stressor at work -- maybe the fish isn't cured; maybe a water quality issue as suggested above; or maybe the cure (antibiotic of choice) is stressing the fish. You didn't mention the exact antibiotic you used.

10. A healthy and properly nourished marine fish will live weeks without food. Don't be too concerned about the current status BUT find and reduce or remove the stressor(s) that are causing the fast.

11. Even after the antibiotic treatment, she is to be kept in quarantine for 4 more weeks. Get used to requiring patience. You want to keep her separate and verify her cure before returning her to the display. Keep her in quarantine 4 weeks after the treatment for observation and verification that she is indeed cured. Take this time to find out and correct problems in the main display system.

12. You don't mention food, tank size, or other system information. If this fish isn't in the proper environment and getting the proper nutrition, then sickness will likely reoccur. See 6. above. Find and correct system problems; review your maintenance schedule; look to poisons finding their way into the water. Please read this: What is Water Quality,

13. All fish have different thresh-holds for pathogen tolerance. It isn't just environment and diet, it is also physiology and genetics. So the fact that one fish is ill and the other isn't, doesn't mean water quality and/or diet is okay.

Good luck! Ask if you have more questions. We're here to help.

[Lance]

Did the male seem to get more active after you removed the female? Do you know your water readings?