• The little dragon is feeling unwell.

  • Rodney7316

Good day!!! Or evening. I have a beloved little dragon, Synchiropus morrisoni. Here is the aquarium related to this topic. Water parameters (the ones I know): salinity 1.024-1.025, pH 8.3-8.4, KH 9-10 (Sera test). Water changes once a week, 10 liters (a quarter). Feeding 1-2 times a day (this is now when I’m trying to fatten him up, usually once a day). The food is Artemia, young Artemia (I don’t remember the correct name, the one that just hatched), I haven’t noticed him eating dry food, and he eats bloodworms when I give them. His behavior is lively; he starts to look better after eating and flares his fins. He is constantly on the move, searching for food. After eating, he has a full belly. Now for the problem. He has started to lose weight (recently). I can’t say how long this recent period is. We temporarily lived in another place, and I only came to maintain the aquarium and feed the creatures. When we returned three weeks ago, he was already thin. He doesn’t refuse food, but I’m concerned that after eating, he quickly excretes everything (the feces are slimy and undigested). Recently, I introduced some rocks and treated the umbrella with a mixture (Nitrofurazone and furazolidone). I’m worried that the substance might have entered the aquarium. There’s also a problem with the Seriatopora (it was bleaching, but the color is returning now). Is it possible that the little dragon has a health issue or is it just that the food is not suitable for him?

Emily

Mandarins should be fed constantly throughout the day; two meals a day are not enough for them. They definitely cannot be harmed by fupans, especially at the concentrations that could have entered the aquarium. Please describe the nature of the feces in more detail.

Laura9093

This evening I ate some brine shrimp and a couple of bloodworms. After about 20-30 minutes, I went to the bathroom. I lifted myself on my fins and it all came out at once. The excrement was dark in color, dense, with some mucus in between (like a cloud). There was nothing like in freshwater, where a long poop swims behind the fish. The brine shrimp were some kind that comes in blocks. Maybe it's to blame? Tomorrow I'll try a different brand.

Jasmine

I'm almost sure it's due to a lack of food supply. I would transfer it to another aquarium of at least 150 liters.

Michelle1662

I checked the link, and it’s only 50 liters. Since the mandarin fish feeds on stones, their surface area should be large, and this volume is extremely insufficient. Consequently, any other food that the animal consumes out of hunger is simply not absorbed.

Caitlin3279

I agree, the Mandarin fish slowly withers and dies in small volumes up to 150 liters, and it is essential to have a lot of live rocks; the main thing is live rocks, not dry reef rocks that are "revived."

Hunter1471

Can I soak the week-old tube feeder in vitamins and medications and feed her with that for a week? I just forgot about the medications... I need to dig through the archives.

Jeffrey

If there is a place and is ready to accept an emigrant, I will send you. Better abroad, but alive, than at home, but dead. By the way, you raised the question about the planaria... It addresses this issue.

Theresa5149

I will gladly accept it; in a two-year-old reef with 50 kg of live rock and a huge amount of algae in a 400-liter volume, it will find nourishment, especially since there are no competitors.

Corey3201

The little dragon is getting ready for the trip. Thank you all. A stone from Alexey has arrived, and he is very fascinated by it (a hunter).

Randall7906

All questions are resolved. I hope he will like it more in the new place (with her).

Leonard

Today at lunch, I received Synchiropus morrisoni - the Morrison's Dragonet. It arrived in great condition and was released into the aquarium after all the procedures. It is active, constantly digging in the sand and among the algae, and only by 8 PM did I get a good look at its full belly. I took a photo of it, but it is still posing reluctantly as it gets acquainted with the reef. For now, here’s this photo. I’ll send two more photos. As of today, January 4th, it is behaving actively and eating a lot. It has taken a liking to the area near the rodactis under the crowns of the Clavularia and Ksyuk.

Jamie3553

It's good when people do better for animals than continuing to starve them and not listening to anyone around. A good acquaintance of mine planted a mandarin tree in a 20-liter container. As a result, there's just one skeleton floating. No matter how much I try to convince him to give it to someone, he refuses.

Jacqueline6670

Off-topic The dog in the manger...