Yellow Clown Goby Help!

[RachelM314]

hey guys, I got a yellow clown goby about 3-4 weeks ago and in the time I was hoping he'd adjust to the tank, he just hides in the crevice of one of my branch rocks. he will occasionally go on a 10-15-second swim from the rock to the nearest wall of the tank and back but he doesn't eat and at this point is almost transparent. I have tried all different kinds of food for him and even put him in a box with food to see if the issue was him not being competitive for the food as my clowns are PIGS but anyway. based on my research, this fish seems to be hit or miss. my levels are fine and all my other fish act normal and pretty much ignore him (not like he's getting in anyone's way lol). I Would love some insight on this, I hope he's not a lost cause bc watching him starve thus far has really sucked.

 

[nano7g]

What food are you feeding it?

If it’s a juvenile, the size of the food is very important and it likely needs to be smaller than you think. Try chopping up the food even smaller. Mysis and brine should be chopped up to the size of a copepod. In the mean time, can you hatch live baby brine shrimp? TDO pellets (x-small) and can o cyclops work well. Also try soaking it for at least 30 seconds before feeding it. And sort of “spray” enough food into the tank with a little force to build up a little commotion. I’ve found that triggers a feeding response as opposed to gently dropping food into the tank.

But if it’s been around for 3 weeks, it must be eating something.

You can also try a long pipette and feed it directly, that is, if it doesn’t run away when it seems the tube.

 

[sfin52]

This is really small pellets
Fish eggs and rotifers would also work.

 

[crazyfishmom]

Oyster feast mixed with selcon and garlic extract and sprayed near a power head that’s close to him. I have a citron clown goby and he’s a total pig. Hopefully he turns around for you.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Hatch some live baby brine shrimp for it. Frozen cyclops are also good for these fish.

If you can, I think a short video of the fish in the tank will us vision your concern.

 

[FernBluffReef]

We have two tanks and two clown gobies. One does great on his own - he is a bit bigger than the other. The other is a baby and hangs out for Mysis. It’s really cute when it’s feeding time. He waits in the corner for his treat usually gets one big piece, sometimes way too big for him. He often checks out the small pellets we feed the others but we think he considers to big. We also feed reef nutrition ROE and he usually gets an egg or two but really he lives on his one or two Mysis morning and night. Not sure what he’s going to do when we finally find time for a vacation and he’s only got a pellet auto feeder vs his favorite

 

[paragrouper]

X-small TDO pellets is my go to.

 

[Sump Crab]

If live food isn't an option I would try any of the frozen cubed brands version of "marine cuisine". Like a cube frozen with several types of food in it brine, mysis, plankton, etc. This way you might find a food it picks out and likes. It seems like most picky eaters gravitate towards brine shrimp at first.

 

[jabberwock]

My new YCG has dropped right into the swing of things. It is small but eats great! I don't have clownfish.

 

[NanoNana]

I chop frozen brine and crumble nutrimar complete for my baby yellow clown. It’s a soft pellet and rolling it between thumb and finger will break it up into some micro bits of food.
Mine will go after and grab chunks of mysis that it can’t possibly swallow then swim around with it like a flag trailing behind him until the gramma finally takes it away. The gramma is never aggressive with the baby. It happens at every feeding and I swear the gramma waits for it. It’s their thing.

 

[RachelM314]

My new YCG has dropped right into the swing of things. It is small but eats great! I don't have clownfish.

this is the best photo I could get. Idk whats up with my clowns but they think they're celebs and high the food and camera as well lol. I matched this with the photo of another so it can be compared easier but I will also put a main reply with some more details

 

[RachelM314]

Thank you everyone for the replies. right now I am a bit busy with summer uni classes and my dad is going to take care of my tank while I'm on holiday so I don't think growing anything would be the best idea ATM but anyway here is a photo of my clown goby its a little messy bc my psycho clowns think they own the tank lol. Food-wise I am going to try some of the store-bought recs I've seen that I haven't already. The Brine shrimp I have used the most. They come in dried cubes which I rub against each other to make a powder like and micro sized pieces if that makes sense. my 6 line who also has a smaller mouth has been doing fine with food. (idk if that helps) I also ran through all different kinds of standard flakes and various-sized pellets the smallest size pellet I used was about the size of a grain of salt but none of my fish liked them so I don't use them. again thanks for the replies!!

 

[jabberwock]

Unfortunately that little guy is really skinny. I think your only hope at this point is to stick him in an acclimation box and get him eating. Clownfish are evil. I don't feel like the prognosis is good unless you can get it away from the aggression (which you may not see), and can get it eating right away.

 

[dansyr]

He does look really skinny. I would be afraid to try to chase him/catch him and make him use more of his energy reserves, better to distract the clowns with a constant, slow stream of food on one side while you try to target feed the goby with a long pipette or something.

One of my gobies took quickly to target feeding a custom blend of finely chopped frozen food / cyclops like described by others above, another only took freshly hatched brine shrimp in a cloud around him and needed to be weaned onto frozen.

Basically, it's hit or miss, and they may never recognize fine dead/prepared food without some training. Hatching brine shrimp isn't hard, you can DIY it and takes ~24h from getting the cysts to have feedable amounts.

 

[vetteguy53081]

this is the best photo I could get. Idk whats up with my clowns but they think they're celebs and high the food and camera as well lol. I matched this with the photo of another so it can be compared easier but I will also put a main reply with some more details

Im late for the post but fish looks thin. Some foods to feed in lieu of dry foods are:
Lrs nano or fish frenzy
Brine shrimp
plankton
rotifiers

 

[RachelM314]

hey guys thanks for the help!! sadly he died while I was on holiday, but we tried as many of your suggestions before I left. We just think he was too far gone for repair thanks for the help!!