Acclimating fish - Please read

melev

melev

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[Last night at the meeting, I bought a beautiful male anthias.

Within the hour I was home and the bag was floating, along with my other new livestock. A few minutes later, I opened the bag, and clipped it in place so it wouldn't sink.

Every 15 minutes or so, I added some tank water. About 2 hours later, when I was ready to put the Anthias in the tank, it was lying on its side in distress. I wasn't sure if this was just because the fish wanted to sleep and being in a bag didn't help.

I poured it into the tank, where it sank more than swam. It labored hard to breathe, and I had no idea why. I just added the new clownfish I got from Andy with zero issues at all.

15 minutes later, the cleaner shrimp tried to clean the fish, but it twitched away from him, and was left alone. It was vertically in position in the rockwork, with its face hidden. Very odd.

3:30 am it was dead, gills and mouth wide open.

People on RC gave me their input a little too late unfortunately, but it seems reasonable to believe this fish suffered from oxygen depravation. It was a larger fish (3" long) in a small bag from the store, and in 2 hours even with new water being poured in, it ran out of oxygen.

This has never happened to me in all the years I've acclimated fish, so I felt it was important to share this sad experience with you so you can avoid needless deaths.

If you buy a larger fish, be sure to request a larger bag to contain enough water and air for that fish. If you acclimate slowly like I do, pour it into a bucket and add an airstone to the water. Adding tank water to the bucket every 10 or 15 minutes, and once ready, net the fish and add it to your tank.

It was a really gorgeous fish, and really it is too bad this occured since it shouldn't have.]
 
[What a shame Marc, sorry to hear that.
Rick, they do fill the bag with O2, but after it is opened and sits, the only air going in the water is what is made by the splash as you pour a cup in.
You could also add a drop or two of methylene blue as you acclimate, this will help keep the dissolved O2 up. If you do this make sure you do not get that water in your tank!]
 
[imo 2 hours of acclimation is too long. i know a few other people that have lost fish the same way. i only acclimate for about 30 minutes total. once that bag is opened, and the o2 is let out, then the clock is ticking]
 
[Yep, I guess I'm being way too patient! :sniffle:]
 
[I usually float them 15 minutes, then over 1 hour add about double the amount of the water in the bag from the tank. Then get them into the tank asap.]
 
[Hmm, well i float them for 15 min. then I use my kent doser to drip into the bucket. After two or three times of this I move them to the tank. O this is for fish, and inverts only.

For corals i float cut bag add water twice, dump water and add coral.

Marc, sorry to hear about your lose. It was very pretty.]
 
[Marc sorry to hear about your loss. But, your method may not be at fault. Oxygen deprevation is common among any animal suffering from shock. Even humans...the use of the brown bag for anxiety attacks is a similiar instance. Having gone into shock twice. I can assure you the first thing the ER did was put me on oxygen. No different than the sitation occuring with your fish.

It could have died because you messed up but, it is more than likly it just went through one too many moves and the poor fish gave up.

Hope this helps to put your mind at easy. again, sorry about the loss :cry:]
 
[Also, I read somewhere that if the fish has been in the bag a long enough time to seriously change the H20 params from normal, that adding tank water with normal seawater params can cause shock enough to kill the animal. So in some situations adding tank water to the bag might be fatal. But I think that was more for "long" periods of time like being transshipped. I will try to find the article... Sorry to hear about that, and I also missed the social, I had mavs tickets and wanted to go see T-mac in our house, it wasn't much of a show Orlando is awful this year, should have gone to the social :;): oh well. Hopefully I’ll get to put faces to everyone’s names next month.]
 
[Putting a fish in a bag is really no different than putting a deer in a bag. How do you think the deer would react?

Imagine if you were removed from your home; put in a glass box. Then scooped in a net and dropped in a bag. You would probably go into shock yourself. If you are a young child given your favorite toy your chances improve (of not going into shock). The key difference between the human senerio and a deer is the deer is unintelligable. Therefore familiars may/ may not work? You may or may not look at stable water conditions as a familiar?

I can not to be honest comprehend what an unintelligable animal thinks of the situation. But, I can tell you there is a point and time when we as humans make consious choice on living or giving up.

Most commonly fish going into shock are notorized by hiding in corners, irradic breathing patterns (expanded gills and such), unable to swim correctly (limb shock). Humans and most any other animal I can think of have similiar patterns?

One reason medical professionals use a defibulator on a human is because they have gone into shock. Their heart has stopped pumping and consequently breathing ceases. This is similiar to what an airstone can do for a fish. On more than one occasion I have rescued a fish in respitory distress with the use of an airstone!

Kitty, I know a quarantine tank has it's place but, they are better suited for fish with pestilences. To put a fish through the bag and tank trick twice??? While I know you want all your other fish to be safe from disease the new addition may be carrying but, this method may due more harm than good.

Keep in mind that your blood probably harbors every cold virus imaginable (I think). It is stress that allows your immune system to break down then you get a disease. It is more common place for fish to get sick when adding new fish because the new fish adds additional stresses on the old fish whom have already declared territories and feeding habits.

Again Marc, sorry about your loss. To clarify the point in this post; Marc, I do not nessesrily think you did anything wrong leading to the fish's death. The fresh water would have had fresh oxygen. Provided you were giving ample amounts of water based on the fish size and duration between. The fish would have had oxygen... I thing it hard to imagine as careful as you seem that you might possibly sufficate a fish... but, that just my opinion. At the least it is doubtful you did so on purpose!]
 
[After reading the comments made on RC regarding my thread about this fish, I contacted Aquarium Environments first thing Monday morning to tell them what happened.

The purpose of my call was to make sure they told future customers that this fish needs to be acclimated quickly as it consumes a lot of oxygen compared to other fish in a similar amount of water. And to recommend they bag them in a larger amount of water/bag to help provide the fish more oxygen to work with.

They were eager to listen, and told me they would replace my fish at no charge, much to my surprise. I'm going to wait until they get another male in, as the ones they had were all female.

RE: quarantine.... I'm bad about not doing that. :O]
 
[Marc,

Im sorry to hear of your loss, its a sad thing to loose critters. Its also very nice of AE to replace him. Good job in informing the store, it should prevent this from hapening agian. I acclimate my fish,inverts or corals long to. Its just a way of making sure they are ready. I float the bag in the water for about 15 minutes. Then i get a measuring cup which has never had soap in it and fill it up about 2 cups with fresh saltwater out of the tank. I then get a airline and a Airline junction (with the knobs to regulate air flow) and siphon water through it from the measuring jar and then into the bag. When the stream is pretty good i slowly tighten the screw till it starts to drip. It Works very well and is knows as drip acclimation. This can be lengthy but its good for the inhabitants and i feel its very imprtant and its a cheap way! If anyone has questions feel free to ask. I can also post pictures if you need.

Sorry agian,
Travis]
 
[Marc it is excellent that they are going to replace your fish!

Brian on your note of the airstone I would like to point out that a fish that has been bagged for an exceptional amount of time (shipping or long travel) the PH of water will most likely be depressed and adding an aistone can cause ammonia toxicity in this situation.
As for QT, it only takes one fish to wipe out your tank! I once introduced a fish with velvet (w/o knowing it of course) and all my beauties were wiped out by it. I wouldnt take that chance again.]
 
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