Longnose Hawkfish dead in QT

[Herbie's Reef]

My longnose hawkfish has just recently died in QT. It has been in quarantine for the past 11 days. The fish store I originally bought him from had him for about 4 weeks. He has been eating amazingly and taking both frozen Mysis/brine and the TDO pellets I have been feeding. Last night he refused to eat along with this morning, so I decided to try feeding frozen when I came back from work. When I came back he was acting pretty normal but did have some heavier breathing and was perched up on the aquarium floor. I went to take care of some other things and when I came back to feed he was dead lying on the floor. Currently I am trying to test as much as I possibly can. So far copper was at 2.46ppm, salinity at 35ppt, the only concern is ammonia. I have an ammonia badge in the tank that I have been relying on and it has always read between safe and alert. I am currently waiting the 15 minutes for my red sea ammonia test kit. Currently the QT is a 20 gallon long and he has been quarantining with 2 other clownfish who have been doing completely fine, with only a few issues of aggression between the clowns but none between the cowns and hawkfish. The QT has one large sponge filter connected to an air pump, it also has a powerhead that is on for about half the day and many pvc hides. I am still waiting for the ammonia test as I said but am wondering if I should do anything for the clowns right now if there is a possibility of disease in the tank. Thank you, attached below are photos of the dead hawkfish.

 

[Herbie's Reef]

Forgot to say one thing. The hawkfish did get its nose caught in a fish net about a week ago when performing a 100% water change and I had to gently push it out of the net. It also did always have its mouth slightly open but I don't know if that is normal with them or not.

 

[Herbie's Reef]

Okay I think I may have found the culprit. I just tested for ammonia and it is at about 1.2 - 2ppm I am going to do a 100% water change for the clowns and put them in an environment with no copper for a few days just to reduce stress. I think that I had a defective ammonia badge as it currently reads 0.05 ppm of ammonia. I should have been testing anyways and that is on me I suppose. just really disappointed as that was my favorite fish to watch.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Okay I think I may have found the culprit. I just tested for ammonia and it is at about 1.2 - 2ppm I am going to do a 100% water change for the clowns and put them in an environment with no copper for a few days just to reduce stress. I think that I had a defective ammonia badge as it currently reads 0.05 ppm of ammonia. I should have been testing anyways and that is on me I suppose. just really disappointed as that was my favorite fish to watch.

This is the reason I dont recommend or like these badges. Theyre good when new for quick reference But they also sit in water full time with QT chemicals and also work in freshwater decreasing the reliability. Sorry to hear of loss. Investing in reliable test kits has its perks. Avoid Api brand also

 

[drolmaeye]

Sorry about your hawkfish. Any loss is unpleasant.

Keep in mind the Red Sea tests for combined NH3 and NH4, whereas the Sea Chem badge only responds to NH3. A test of 1.2 on the Red Sea is consistent with ~0.06 NH3 (free ammonia) for typical pH, temperature, and salinity you reported (and consistent with your badge reading).

I'm not saying it was or was not an ammonia issue, just want to make sure the difference between the two tests is clear. Note NH3 is harmful, but I think NH4 is much less so.

 

[KQuillan]

I'm right there with you. I have a couple of fish currently in copper quarantine and have to monitor ammonia closely. I did put a badge in but I know it isn't reading correctly. The Q tank isn't really cycled yet, doing water changes and just added bottled bacteria today. I test for ammonia and then try and make sure I am keeping copper at a good level.

Good luck.

 

[Herbie's Reef]

Thanks everyone for the replies. The clownfish are currently in a bucket with an airstone while I the new tank with no medication heats up. I will be testing for ammonia more often from now on with my red sea kit and the Hannah one that I have just ordered. I will also be using bottled bacteria to help keep the nutrients low in the QT.