Orange Linka Starfish Help!

bzolnowski

bzolnowski

Member
hello, i added a starfish on friday morning. he had a solid movement on friday. the past two days he just doesnt look right. he has layed on a piece of coral all day with very minimal activity, i actually thought he was dead and touched him with a pole and he is still alive. he is somewhat curled up, any help? brian
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
how did you acclimate him and for how long?
info on your system latest water test last water change etc..
all these play a role with starfish they are very sensitive to many thing in the tank and in one thing changes to quickly it can damage the insides of the star.
Mike
 
bzolnowski

bzolnowski

Member
i laid him on top in the bag for 25 minutes to get the temp right. i then acclimated him for about 30 minutes with giving him some tank water every few minutes until the bag was full. i then had to summerge the bag under water and let him free since they can not be exposed to air. my amon is about 0, nitries up some and same with nitrates. any thoughts?
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
how old is the tank?
most linkias and that type of starfish eat a bacteria film on the rocks and in a young tank can starve to death from lack of food and you cant target feed them at all.
the one thing about stars that they need an extended acclimation time 2-4 hours using the drip method that way everything can level out to your water parameters.
if the ammonia is up any and the nitrites that could be a problem as well the are very sensitive to that and it can tear them up from the inside out.
was the ammonia and nitrites up before you added the star?
Mike
 
bzolnowski

bzolnowski

Member
the tank is about 3 months old. all the fish are doing well. its a 75 gallon hexagon. he was eating the algea off the side in which i made sure i left a good amount for him to feed off of. i added snails, crabs, and two shrimp the same day, they are doing well. my amn was 0 and my nitrite and nitrate up some before and after i added him. i did a water change this morning and brought them down some. i was under your recommendation that is for sure on the acclimation time. how do you usually do it, in a bucket?
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
I use an air tube ciming out of the tank with a knot in it letting it drip into a bucket or bowl slowly about 1 drip per second. if the water the star is in is at 1.023 and your water is at 1.024 when you add them the star can go into ozmotic shock and can take several months to start melting away.
and the 2-4 hours is right even a little change can shock there system to a point of no recovery
Mike
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
just watch him close. if its osmotic shock there are a few that make it through. its just a waiting game now. if thats the case the damage is done it just may not sow up for a while.
Mike
 
bzolnowski

bzolnowski

Member
stupid question, how will i know he is dead? will be float? he is on a piece of coral that is covered with brown algea and has eaten some off.
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
more than likely you will see it melting like wax starting with the legs and moving towards the oral disk. at this point there is nothing that can be done for it.
Mike
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
yeah but wait until you now for sure its a gonner some can still regenerate lost limbs so dont jump to fast but watch closely.
thanks aarone I forgot to add that .
Mike
 
lionstorm

lionstorm

Member
i lost my red general star fish recently the same way. Didn't acclimate properly and lost him to shock. When your starfish starts to go you can tell. Mine disentegrated in my QT tank, the poor thing. Only stars i keep now are brittles, i still feel bad :(
 
bzolnowski

bzolnowski

Member
i really feel bad, i liked him a lot! i am torn on should i get him out or not. he has been in the same area all day and not really moved except when i poked him to see if he was still with us. his arms are somewhat shrivelled. i guess he is on his way out.
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
I would leave him for a couple more days if he isnt melting yet then he still has a chance maybe not a great one but still a small chance. just take as a learning experience that way you dont do it again. thats about the only we can do when we make a mistake learn from it.
Mike
 
bzolnowski

bzolnowski

Member
i had to know if he was still with us. he left the world today unfortunately! it was sad! thanks for all your help!
 
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