Please help!!!! Bi colored angle fish is going to die!!

J

jlbiggs11

Guest
I'm new to the hobby so I don't know much about diseases and treatments but my bi colored angle fish, which I bought 2 days ago, is now laying on it's side,swimming upside down or squishing itself between rocks so it can stay still. I turned my power head off because it seemed like it was blowing him around! Please help idk what to do. He is right now breathing exteremly hard and laying on a rock propping it's self up. I haven't seen it eat since I got it, trying to feed it marine flakes and brine shrimp. It was swimming fine 3 hours ago! My tank levels are ammonia 0 ppm nitrite 0 ppm and nitrates 20 ppm salinity is at 1.023 and ph is at 8.5
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
I am in no way versed in disease and treatment wish I was and I need to learn more.
I am going to move this post to the disease and treatment forum so that maybe one of the people that frequent that area to help you out.
Mike
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
How did you acclimate him? What are his tank mates? Any spots, torn fins or red areas? Please describe his behavior and appearance the best that you can.
 
J

jlbiggs11

Guest
Well I drip acclimated him over a periodic 5 hours. He actually did have a couple red spots. It almost looked like just the fleshy part of his gills so I figured it was normal but he had another small spot right beside his gills and that's about it. By the time I noticed he had a torn fin I think it was because he was running into the rocks because his side looked pretty beat up too.
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
5 hrs. is a long time to acclimate did you test the water in the vessel you were acclimating the fish in during the 5 hrs.
 
beth

beth

Administrator
Staff member
From the info you provide, I am leaning toward aggression from another fish. Can you isolate him?
 
J

jlbiggs11

Guest
Well as I was acclimating the store water was at 1.030 so since it was alot higher then mine I wanted to acclimate him to my saltwater slow. And I'm pretty sure it wasn't aggression since I have only 2 clowns and they are alot smaller and seemed to ignore him? he ended up dieing over the night, but I still would like to try and find out what's going on with it.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jlbiggs11 http:///forum/thread/387379/please-help-bi-colored-angle-fish-is-going-to-die#post_3408213
Well as I was acclimating the store water was at 1.030 so since it was alot higher then mine I wanted to acclimate him to my saltwater slow. And I'm pretty sure it wasn't aggression since I have only 2 clowns and they are alot smaller and seemed to ignore him? he ended up dieing over the night, but I still would like to try and find out what's going on with it.
Hi,
I think his red spots were from running into the rocks himself, as well as his torn fin. For the first year I had a saltwater tank I couldn't keep a dwarf angel (Flame) alive for nothing on Earth. I paid $89.00 for the first one and $119.00 for the second one, each lived a single day. This was long before SWF.com and they have much better prices on them by the way.
My book says mature tanks only....I have no idea why, because since being on this site... lots of folks with new tanks get them with no problems. I was one of those that couldn't, and maybe your tank is the same. I also had the exact test readings you did, my nitrates stayed at 20, but fish don't care about nitrates....that was the only not so bad number, I had corals too, and they were fine.....my nitrates were at 10 to 20 for years and years.
I love dwarf angels, they have such glorious color. It might have been sick at the LFS, or maybe it just arrived there, and the move from there to your house was just too much stress too soon. Running into rocks over nothing would indicate that it was freaked out over something. I'm sorry for the loss...maybe wait a few months and try purchasing from another source...maybe SWF.com they have a 14 day guarantee. Use a QT...if the fish gets in the rocks and the CUC gets him you have no proof if he dies too...
 
deejeff442

deejeff442

Active Member
dwarf angels are tough for an experienced person. 1.030 ? no way that can be right.in fact lfs keep their salt at like 1.020 -1.022 to save money on salt.if you plan on buying another fish there i would have them show the test of their water salinity when you are there.i dont blame the lfs in this instance(although imo 90% of lfs are retarded with the info they give out) dwarfs are just a tough fish to keep.
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
Not every store runs their water the same so it is a little hard to say that the water couldn't have been 1.030. It very well could have been. I think that you made the right choice trying to acclimate him slowly so as to not have him go into acclimation shock. You really didn't have to acclimate him for quite that long though, three hours or so would have done the job. But now you know for next time. Dwarf angels are known for picking off of the rocks. They are recommended for mature tanks only because new tanks do not have much natural growth for the angel to feed from, and also because they cannot take parameter swings as well as some other fish can. A mature tank is more stable.
It sounds to me like he may not have been well to begin with. You mentioned red fleshy spots by his gills. That could be from ammonia burn, if it was the gills themselves, or a bacterial infection. The torn tail could have been from him wedging himself into the rocks, or the clowns. Clowns are sneaky and will attack quickly without you seeing it. This is one reason why it is always a good idea to put new fish into a quarantine tank. The fish feels much more comfortable, because it is alone, and if there is some medical issue you can take care of it without infecting the display. I hope that you have better luck next time
 
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