Royal Gramma help

[Slayer]

Hi all, i recently added a Royal Gramma to be aquarium. I currently only have some cuc and a yellow tail blue damsel. The ont i picked from the LFS had a slight nick out of his fin but i imagined this would be ok and heal so i bought him.

The first day he barely came out but on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th days he was out often and seemed fine. I did notice very rarely he flicked himself against the live rock and had a habit of swimming on its side.

This is now the 5th day i have had him and he has been hidden all day and wont come out, i can just about see him behind some live rock and he just doesnt look right. His belly looks mishapen, inwards rather than outwards and the fin which had the nick seems to have a chunk missing now instead of the split/nick in it.

The yellow tailed damsel fish doesnt appear to have bothered him and seemed more scared of him than vice versa.

Any ideas? The water was perfect on the day i bought him.

Thanks for any replies!

 

[parrotchute]

Was he eating at the LFS? That's a big thing you want to see before you buy the fish.

Try soaking some food in garlic extract to entice him to eat. Getting him fed will help him stave off parasites or disease. That's probably your best bet.

 

[montoya]

Slayer,

Everything you describe sounds normal for a Royal Gramma. They can be odd little fish. Mine rarely swims "upright" like most fish. It is always tipped to one side when it swims. It too hides most of the day in the rock. I usually only see it at feeding time. It is rare that it swims out in open water. My understanding is they stake out a very tiny territory in the rock and pretty much keep to it.

As for the sunken belly that may be normal too. If you look at photos of Royal Grammas they have sort of a narrow curved appearance to their bodies.If you read descriptions and articles on the Royal Gramma it describes the characterisitics above as being very typical of the species. Royal Grammas are even said to swim upside down at times.

I had all of the same concerns when I dragged mine home. It has been happy and healthy however for almost a year now. I'm guessing once yours settles in it'll be fine.

As for the ripped fin I don't know. Mine is in with a Damsel and a very aggressive clownfish and it seems to hold it's own aggression wise. That will likely heal in time.

 

[Slayer]

I didnt see it eat at the LFS no but it has been eating in my tank. As i say he had a quiet first day but then was out very often foor 3 days and seemed to have settled in a small groove between 2 live rock. Today though he hasnt been out at all, and wont go near his usual hiding spot. Im quite concerned really.

 

[Slayer]

Just to follow this up the Gramma ended up lying on the bottom of the tank and its rear fin had almost completely disappeared, im guessing its now dead and the CUC have had it as it is nowhere to be seen.

My yellow tailed blue damsel now seems to hide all the time too now and i only see him when i look behind live rock, this is unusual as both these fish were constantly out before the Gramma died.

Is it possible that the fish i picked up from the LFS had some sort of issue and introducing it to my tank has upset the damsel?

 

[OhNoNemo]

I'd be more worried about introducing a disease....This is why i QT anything wet..if you had qted this rg you would have been able to observe him in a controled enviroment,sorry he died,but you should cosidering qting from now on..Its a great way for you to get to know your fish and vice versa:D

 

[Slayer]

I really cannot afford to setup a quarantine tank at the moment sadly.

 

[kwsm]

a 10 Gal QT setup will cost you $50. Even if it saves ONE fish, it basically will balance out.


Personally, I don't QT new arrivals mostly because I'm impatient (asking for trouble one day). I have a potential hospital tank setup should a fish require treatment. I just don't think "I can't afford it" is a viable excuse for not having one in the saltwater hobby. It's one of the cheapest things you can get for your tank that will have possibly the greatest benefit.

 

[Slayer]

OK, what would be required exactly for a 10g?

 

[OhNoNemo]

Well think of it as a new tank.You say you only been in the salt for 1 week.Is that right?IF so you need to slow down. Is your main tank cycled?Your QT will need a filter and a heater.I never tear mine down so it is always ready to go.Yours will need to cycle or you can use your media from your dt(again,if its only been a week then thats no good).Here is my QT in the corner behind my couch.
If your tank has not fully cycled then ammonia may have killed your RG on top of stress,damsels are tough fish and can usually survive.Have you tested all your levels?

 

[PufferGuy]

i dont QT and its a mistake, but im pretty good friends with the owner at my LFS, i only talk to him when buying fish because hes honest (to me at least) about fish that he thinks look a little "off"... otherwise i definitely recommend a QT tank... introducing a bad case of ick will start a month of nightmares for you, as well as cause TONS of work and dead fish...

Just as a tip, I try to NEVER EVER buy a fish if it doesnt look 100% right... ive had a few impulse buys and they all ended up dead... so now, unless the fish is eating, is active and doesnt have signs of bad stress (sunken belly, tore up fins, spots, etc) I dont buy it, even if i really want it.. mainly cause i cant afford a tank crash