Sick clowns, best treatment?

[wubaguba]

My tank has been up for about 3 weeks now. just started adding some life last week...1 domino damsel and 2 ocellaris clowns, then added about 10 turbo snails and some hermits. about 3 days ago i woke up to find my domino covered with small white spots and not moving to well. i quickly setup a hospital tank (10 gal with nothing but trickle filter and water with same chem/temp as my main tank) and moved the damsel. I then assumed that he had ick so i treated him with rid-ich and had to go to work. i came back at lunch time to check on him and he had died...covered in a white film, especially on the head and eyes. man, was that quick.

Now i'm wondering what to do with my clowns. can someone with experience treating clowns recommend a treatment? they are just starting to show some small white spots. i know that i have to remove all livestock from the main tank for at least 30 days so i'm going to move them to the hospital tank tomorrow morning. doing some research on this board...looks like most people treat with fw dips and hyposalinity. Could someone with experience please verify this is the proper course.

Thanks in advance. -Bill (reef newb)

 

[Simon1]

Have you checked your water chemisrtry? You could have an ammonia spike.

 

[wubaguba]

Yes, thanks. I have checked chem: .25 ammo, 0 nitrites, 0 nitrates. temp is steady at 78 and salinity at 21.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Wubaguba,
Copper, copper, copper. For fish only in a QT tank. Then, after you are done, you'll have to wait for about 28 days for it to clear in your main display tank. Ich stuff won't work. Make sure you understand how to use copper before you apply. Too little will not be effective, and too much will kill your fish. Chances are, if your fish are breathing heavy, and you purchased these guys at a p--c- or equivalent, they have amyloodinium. You can do a search at google for that, and I'm sure others around here will point you to a dozen links on it. This, along with "marine ich", travel together, and is a deadly combo if it's not taken care of.
HTH,
~wings~

 

[wubaguba]

Update: I moved my clowns into a QT tank about 12 days ago and have since tried FW dips along with hyposalinty (down to 1.014 now). Everything has been fine...white spots gone, fish eating well...and then today, they both were covered in white spots again. Also, they had lost about half of their color. So...today, I'm switching to copper for treatment. Added it this morning. All parasites have dropped off and they are eating again. I'm concerned that their vision may be affected. Both had numerous white spots in their eyes before the copper was added. I'll post another update when anything changes. Latest chem: .25 ammo, 0 nitrites, 0 nitrates, temp 78 and salinity at 1.014 (and going up).

Thanks for the advice. -Bill

 

[Anonymous]

Hmm.. copper at this stage of the game may not be good, because it does take a good wack at their immune system. But what you said about the white spots and "eye cloud" is typical. You may see them (white spots) "drop" off during the day, only to see more the following morning. Do some research to understand the life cycle of the protozoan.

FWIW, FW dips work well with other parisites, but copper in this case is going to be your best defense. Of course, IMHO.
All the best... This can be very trying.
~wings~

 

[ChrisRD]

Copper can be very effective, but be very cautious with it. IME it's fairly easy to kill the wrong stuff with it (ie. your fish).

 

[Revstarky]

I would stick with the hyposaline treatment. In order for it to be effective, you need to lower it to 1.009. Not only will a hyposaline bath knock out the Cryptocaryon, it will help rehydrate the clowns.

 

[spoonhandler]

What concentration of copper are you using to treat the clownfish? I've read that some are more sensitive to copper than others and that you need to use a lower concentration over a longer time period to treat them.

Could others comment on this?

Also, is there any chance this is Brooklynella and not ich/velvet? I ask because copper may not resolve the problem.