zebra dwarf lion problem!

[desolo]

for the past 3 weeks he has been swimming non stop, day and night, and skims the surface with his spines out of the water. he also sticks his face out of the water and lunges as if he wants to get out. he doesn't eat except for me having to force him to eat a piece of krill sometimes. i have enticed with ghost shrimp and various feeding techniques.

my water params are perfect as they have always been, my other fish are dogface puffer, green spotted puffer and a panther grouper. they all get along great and the lion ignores them. it's as if he has brain damage or is mentally ill.

advice? similar problems?

 

[spotfin]

How long have you had the lion? Any new additions to the tank since adding him? What are your water parameters?
Sounds like something is stressing the lion.

 

[desolo]

How long have you had the lion? Any new additions to the tank since adding him? What are your water parameters?
Sounds like something is stressing the lion.

been feeding krill and ghost shrimp, i've had him for a few months and krill is all the LFS fed him. the tank mates have been of no effect to him. he ignores them and does his own thing.

tank is a 75g glass, running a Reef Octopus skimmer in a 30g sump with algae scrubber as well.

nitrates: 0 to 10 depending on when water change was
ammonia: 0 consistent
ph: 7.8 consistent
nitrite: 0 consistent
salinity: 1.024-1.025 consistent
temp: 77 fahrenheit consistently

i test the water at least once a week, it's always good. i do 20% water changes every two weeks.

i recently got a dogface puffer and he has ich, i am treating with whole tank with Tropical Science Marine Max, to boost the immune systems and fight off the ich. i don't know if this is effecting the lion, he has no visible signs of ich, only the dogface does.

he has no stretched his jaws since this began, i am thinking it could be lockjaw from feeding too much krill. any opinion?

 

[TheCanuck]

1. Do you have enough air suppling the system? some fish will go to the top for air if their isnt enough oxygen in the tank. Whats tempeture on your tank? the higher the temp , less oxygen you will have.

2. He is ill , check his body for things , see if there are any lumps or deep cuts or discolor.

3. Check your ph, that can knock off his equalibreum , or whatever and it makes ph sensitive fish float , or become "drunk" really common with porcipine puffers

just saw that you posted.... your PH should be 8 to 8.5 ... bump it up and the drunk problems should stop , if thats what your experiancing with him

 

[desolo]

1. Do you have enough air suppling the system? some fish will go to the top for air if their isnt enough oxygen in the tank. Whats tempeture on your tank? the higher the temp , less oxygen you will have.

2. He is ill , check his body for things , see if there are any lumps or deep cuts or discolor.

3. Check your ph, that can knock off his equalibreum , or whatever and it makes ph sensitive fish float , or become "drunk" really common with porcipine puffers

just saw that you posted.... your PH should be 8 to 8.5 ... bump it up and the drunk problems should stop , if thats what your experiancing with him

i posted stats up above and he has no cuts or physical signs of anything wrong. i'm really thinking it's lockjaw, i'll go to the market and get fish and squid tomorrow to entice him.

 

[TheCanuck]

i posted stats up above and he has no cuts or physical signs of anything wrong. i'm really thinking it's lockjaw, i'll go to the market and get fish and squid tomorrow to entice him.

Your PH is a little below what it should be. Raise the PH to 8.2 or so , he should come around after it has become stable.

 

[desolo]

Your PH is a little below what it should be. Raise the PH to 8.2 or so , he should come around after it has become stable.

i just mixed a tablespoon in some RO water and am adding it little by little, i hope it works. thanks for the advice.

 

[TheCanuck]

O! I just thought of something ive done in the past. A freshwater dip can do wonders for bouncing back ill fish. This has worked for me with puffers and triggers , give him a good like 10 secs in fresh.

 

[mr.reef24]

well it sounds like a lack of oxygen from him being so close to the surface. What is salinity, PH, Temp, and other parameter's in the tank. How big of a tank is it and what all tank mates are in there? How old is the tank?

mr.reef24

 

[desolo]

well it sounds like a lack of oxygen from him being so close to the surface. What is salinity, PH, Temp, and other parameter's in the tank. How big of a tank is it and what all tank mates are in there? How old is the tank?

mr.reef24

tank is a 75g glass, running a Reef Octopus skimmer in a 30g sump with algae scrubber as well.

nitrates: 0 to 10 depending on when water change was
ammonia: 0 consistent
ph: 7.8 consistent
nitrite: 0 consistent
salinity: 1.024-1.025 consistent
temp: 77 fahrenheit consistently

i test the water at least once a week, it's always good. i do 20% water changes every two weeks.

tank mates are dogface puffer, green spotted puffer, and panther grouper. they all get along really well. also, he will sleep on a rock at night so he is not swimming 24/7.