Ugh...should I clove one of my new jawfish?

Opistognathus · 09/13/2012, 07:55 AM

So I bought 5 jawfish from a store online but I got 6. I've had them 2 days now. Most did well with shipping but a couple didn't look so good when they showed up.

Anyway, I have a juvenile harlequin tuskfish (~2.5"?) in with them - he's got a pretty big mouth, but I don't *think* he could eat one. Yesterday I saw him kind of chase the littlest jawfish (and this one is TINY) when it was feeding time. I can't tell if it was an aggression/dominance thing or if he thought he could make a meal out of it - either way, the little jawfish is ok and went back to his burrow.

This morning I woke up to one of the jawfish (medium sized one) ON the MP40 breathing really fast. I turned off the powerhead and he started jumping and thrashing at the surface/water column. The tuskfish "checked him out" but left him alone. I took a cup and angled it so he doesn't keep jumping but can get out if he needs to. His entire bottom fin is GONE!

What I'm wondering is...

1. Could the tuskfish be the culprit? I have heard they eat crustaceans, but haven't heard of them eating fish really. My other guess is that he jumped, got sucked into the MP40 and got stuck on it perhaps? I put a foam cover on just now if that's the case...
2. Should I use clove oil the jawfish? He's still breathing fast, but alive. His bottom fin is gone and the area is kind of red.

Can he even live without his bottom fin?

Currently he's on the bottom of the cup, on his side, breathing fast. Thanks for any advice!

EDIT: Wow - he died...that was fast.

09/13/2012, 07:55 AM	#1
Opistognathus Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Posts: 16	Ugh...should I clove one of my new jawfish? So I bought 5 jawfish from a store online but I got 6. I've had them 2 days now. Most did well with shipping but a couple didn't look so good when they showed up. Anyway, I have a juvenile harlequin tuskfish (~2.5"?) in with them - he's got a pretty big mouth, but I don't think he could eat one. Yesterday I saw him kind of chase the littlest jawfish (and this one is TINY) when it was feeding time. I can't tell if it was an aggression/dominance thing or if he thought he could make a meal out of it - either way, the little jawfish is ok and went back to his burrow. This morning I woke up to one of the jawfish (medium sized one) ON the MP40 breathing really fast. I turned off the powerhead and he started jumping and thrashing at the surface/water column. The tuskfish "checked him out" but left him alone. I took a cup and angled it so he doesn't keep jumping but can get out if he needs to. His entire bottom fin is GONE! What I'm wondering is... 1. Could the tuskfish be the culprit? I have heard they eat crustaceans, but haven't heard of them eating fish really. My other guess is that he jumped, got sucked into the MP40 and got stuck on it perhaps? I put a foam cover on just now if that's the case... 2. Should I use clove oil the jawfish? He's still breathing fast, but alive. His bottom fin is gone and the area is kind of red. Can he even live without his bottom fin? Currently he's on the bottom of the cup, on his side, breathing fast. Thanks for any advice! EDIT: Wow - he died...that was fast. Last edited by Opistognathus; 09/13/2012 at 08:54 AM.