Help, What would you do?
 

It has been 7 weeks (today, since getting marine velvet) that my tanks have sat fish free. Most sites say 6-8 weeks and it should be fine to add fish again. I was planing on waiting until next week but my checkerboard wrasse might not last that long :sad: Basically (I think it's him or it's my king angel) my lunare wrasse (who I think already killed my red corris wrasse) has been majorly beating up my checkerboard wrasse. His tail fin is looking like a nub that he can barely move, both side fins are badly nipped up to the point where he's not really using one of them. While ideally I'd like to wait the 8 weeks, I'm really worried that my checkerboard wont make it.

So what would you do? Separate the fish back into the displays a week early? or wait it out one more week and hope the checkerboard makes it?

If it were me, I'd put the checkerboard in as the one fish in the tank. I know it sounds mean but, well if the velvet isn't gone you'll know, and if it is gone, your checkerboard will have some time to heal up and de-stress before you put the other fish in the tank?

I hope this doesn't sound too brutal but it makes sense to me if its not going to fare well as it is :noidea:

Alternatively, I guess that may leave you with a checkerboard wrasse that dies of marine velvet and then you have to wait another 8 weeks. Although I would imagine that if you're that close to 8 weeks you're likely safe.

Ugh, I haven't helped at all have I? :redface:

I agree pick one fish as a tester, and the checker board sounds like the perfect candidate.

Christy's right. It's the only logical move. The checkerboard needs to be rehomed. Even if you knew the attacker, and moved him, the checkerboard would still be stressing with the other fish around. Atleast this way, he gets the best possible chance. I'm willing to bet the MV is gone as well

We'll i am a little biased as it was my checkerboard and i so miss him:)
BUT i dunno i would be scared either way. Thats a toss up!!
So most say 6-8...I have never experienced velvet so i would say wait and hope. But nothing worse than seeing a fish die either.
Althouh he never showed symptoms at all did he? If not i would actually put him back in and leave the others..

Just a thought...Probably didn't help much im sorry!!!:(

I don't think I would put the checkerboard in actually, if he's all beat to snot allready I bet his immune system is hooped and you're just asking for him to pick up something if there is any chance it's still present.

I would wait the 8 weeks, can you put him in a kritter keeper in the QT tank or block off a section with egg crate so he's protected?


(Just my opinion, sometimes I'm overly cautious)

:lol: This is exactly what we've been thinking, and going around in circles on, the problem is two things 1) it would really suck to wait another 8 weeks, although I'd bet that the velvet is gone, & 2) the checkerboard wrasse was one of the only fish that never showed any signs of the velvet disease in the first place, so not sure (as my other wrasses seemed disease free as well) but maybe wrasses have some sort of immunity or something.

This is what I'm thinking. We plan on doing a water change tonight and then we're thinking of moving the checkerboard tomorrow and see what happens.

The egg crate was a thought we had but I'm sure my king angel or sohal tang would find a way to ram it and knock it down.

I was hoping you would say something, and you're right, he never showed any signs of velvet in the first place. Which is why I'm leaning more towards putting him in the display, plus I know he's missing his sand bed to sleep in.

i say move him first, if some of the other fish are showing aggression it will just continue if they are back in the display first and decide they like being the boss,probably a smaller chance of problems if the checkerboard is already in the display when the more aggressive fish return.

Maybe someone else nearby has a QT tank empty they can hold him for that extra week??

I wouldnt do this....that would be two more moves you would be putting the fish through....Ive said it before....I compare putting a net to a fish to hooking it with a rod and real...anytime we stress our fish by trying to net it we cause lactic acid build up which can ultimately kill the fish.

I would put the checkerboard in the display to let him heal up and settle in before the bully is there.

I'm pretty sure the velvet is long gone so it should be safe, and I agree there's no sense stressing him out by moving him somewhere else for a week.

As for the bullies (lunare wrasse and king angel) they go in the FOWLR tank whereas the checkerboard goes in the reef tank, so he wont have to worry about the bullies :biggrin:

I have to agree I think it is wise to move it back way less stress, i'd take the chance.
When you transfer the other's back do you do it over a period of time?

My friend Chris probably would, but if he did I might not get the checkerboard back :razz: :wink:

Since there isn't many fish left I originally was going to add them all at the basically same time.

Going into the reef tank: checkerboard wrasse, CBB, sohal tang, and 3 chromis

Going into the FOWLR tank: king angel, lunare wrasse, and bursa trigger.

The whole system (the 2 tanks and sump are all plumbed together) is 550g. So it should be fine adding them all back at the same time.

I do plan on restocking but I do not want to be way overstocked like before. I am going to try to really plan out and think hard about what fish I really really want for my tanks and try to stick to those fish.

Well, it seems like neither one of us wants to be the one to take the risk and put the fish in. There was a lot of "You can if you want to, but I'm not sure yet". So it looks like we're off to buy some egg create for a divider.

I was just wondering something...

If the displays have sat empty for two months, would adding the fish cause an ammonia spike? I am wondering if the bacteria in the tanks might have died off since there was no more bioload. I would hate for you to be condemned to doing those types of water changes with pails again.

The anemones, snails, shrimp, and hermits etc. got fed small amounts of food every so often and with all the LR and critters in there I doubt the will be any spikes.