# This fish is eating, buy losing size, please help



## Coast Steve (Dec 21, 2008)

Hi Guys,

I thought this was a little hawk fish but I may be wrong.
We have had it about 3 weeks, it seems like the smartest fish in the tank for sure, you see her looking around and thinking while moving her eyes.
And she is so fast!, 
We are feeding her frozen mica shrimp and it loves them, she is very small, 2 inches max, so she only eats 7 or 8 then her mouth stays open a little when she swims digesting the food.
I am feeding her 2 times a day, but she is losing her size and looking very skinny.

What can I do?

She won't eat flakes or pellets we treid that for about 5 days when we got her.
Is this normal? such a small appetite before being full?

Also, what kind of fish is she? 

Thanks,
Steve


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## jeffwee559 (Jan 14, 2007)

If her stomach looks sucked in it might be an internal parasite. It's not uncommon in fish, so try some Metronidazole i heard it works amazingly. Also, the fish looks to be some sort of Hogfish, what kind i'm not sure and if it's even a hogfish but i don't see any large perching pectoral fins.

Good Luck!


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## jeffwee559 (Jan 14, 2007)

Here, i think she might be a juv. Bodianus diana (red diana hogifsh)


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## dallops_of_polyps (Feb 19, 2008)

ya its a Bodianus diana all the spots are there right amount and in the right place also from the picture the jaws look similar with the black line try some super nutritious food like mysis and cyclopeese if that doesn't make a difference its probably a parasite.


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## Pasfur (Mar 29, 2008)

This fish could be a Diana, but I'm not 100% convinced. It is VERY close in appearance and sometimes photos can be deceiving. The Diana experiences a dramatic color change as it matures and the diversity of the white blotches size and shape make it difficult to be certain. However, the single black dot at the center of the base of the Caudal fin is great support for a Diana Hog identification. If this is correct, the fish needs to be returned, not being reef compatible. 
This could also be a Pseudocheilinus sp. of wrasse, which are very easily mistaken for Hogfish due to their body shape. They are small and reef compatable, but have very difficult collection issues due to the depth from which they are collected. They must be acclimated very slowly, which is costly and often overlooked by divers who are more focues on quantinty than quality. I think your fish is suffering from internal damage caused by poor collection process and that it will pass within a few days. Such fish usually last 5 to 6 weeks after collection and slowly shrink up and die, which fits the description you provided.


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## Coast Steve (Dec 21, 2008)

*Thanks verymuch for your help, I will try the medicine*

She is being fed lots with every feeding but her sides are still sucked in, I hope Metronidazole works
Thanks everyone.

Steve


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