cleaner shrimp won't clean

[fishfreek]

I've had him in my 45g for about three months. I added him after the last one died on me. I have a false perc, a baby regal tang(temporarly tilli get a larger tank) and a algae blennie. The shrimp seems to set up a cleaning station but when the tang swims by to be cleaned, but the fish is ignored. Any ideas why? I just thought this was strange because in the past, all of my cleaners constantly cleaned my fish.

 

[total]

fishfreek,
Have you put your hand in the tank to see if the shrimp will clean your hand? My three cleaners B-line strait to my hand as soon as it goes in. Also I find they clean anything I move in the tank. Rocks, corals, sand. But at the same time my purple tang and my two Percs won't let them selfs get cleaned. They seem to be afraid of the shrimp.
I hope this help.
TTFN

 

[fishfreek]

total, thats whats weird. I put my hand in the tank and hes all over it, picking and searching for food. I don't understand it. I just wish he would be as anxious to clean my fish like he cleans my hand.
Any other thoughts?

 

[pufferlover]

I too have 3 shrimps in my reef and I never see them near the fish. My thoughts are they grab a fair amount of the food when I feed and are well fed. Second (and I make myself believe this one) the fish are to healthy to need attention. Whatever they are happy shrimps and they add much to the tank if they do nothing else but sit around waving their antennas.

 

[dlight692000]

mine only cleans rocks, and my clam, i bought a cleaner wrasse and he cleans some fish, i like him tho.

 

[perky percula]

I have had my two cleaner shrimp for about 3 months also. They used to avidly clean the bi-color and the domino damsel. Now when the fish come up to them they act like they dont exist. Instead of sitting up on rocks where they used to, they now hide in the back of the tank in the LR. I checked my specs, calcium everything. I dont know why they suddenly got so surly and standoffish, they were not like that a few weeks ago. The biggest stumper is I cant figure out why they started acting like this, NOTHING has changednull