# Star Sapphire sick or holding? :(



## eyann (Aug 21, 2017)

Hey,
here is a video of my SS. Since this morning, he's not eating and he's kind of hiding / avoiding the current flow. I said "he" because i'm pretty sure it's a male, but.... he seems to be holding, so i'm confused. He's the only SS in the tank, i have another hap but it's a deep-water electra hap and he's a male for sure. The water is good, the usual reading, i didn't put anything special in the tank for a while. They are fed with Seachem flakes for more than a month now, before it was Northfin. I really don't know if i have to do something or if i have to wait. I put a little dose of Prazipro, thinking that it might be a parasite, but the more i look at him, the more i think it's not. He's not being bullied at all, there's basically no fight in this tank. The Ph is stable at 8ish. I do a small WC everyday, use Safe and Cichlid Lake Salt plus baking soda to keep my ph stable. 
I really don't know what it is, but i just don't want to lose him, no way... 
He's the one on the back, i know it's not a good video, but i can't take him closer...  
We can't see it on the video, but he's chewing like a squirrel or something, seems to have something stuck in his throat. He's showing interest in food, but he's not eating, just let the flake passes by without opening his mouth...


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I don't see anything in his mouth...what other fish are in the tank? He is hiding from something.

I'd isolate him and see if he swims around and eats. While netting him you can look in his mouth.


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## eyann (Aug 21, 2017)

There are a lot of malawis and others, Yellow Labs, A. Sulfer Head, Buffalo Head, A. Flavescent , Rusty, H. Flameback, Electra DW, Acei, German Red.
There are together for a little while now and there's no aggression at all.


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## eyann (Aug 21, 2017)

just an update: he's dead after 3 weeks  i tried to put him in a separate tank for a few days, but he was still the same, like chewing something and not eating. Perfect shape, no sign of ich or anything else. I put him back in the tank since he was not improved, then for the first two days, he was almost swimming normally but still not eating. Yesterday i didn't find him in the tank, like, vanished! I think he died and has been eaten during the night. Too bad, he was simply gorgeous. But i didn't learn anything out of his death, i don't know if it was a mistake from me or if he got a weird disease or something.


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## Old Newbie (Feb 18, 2017)

eyann said:


> just an update: he's dead after 3 weeks  i tried to put him in a separate tank for a few days, but he was still the same, like chewing something and not eating. Perfect shape, no sign of ich or anything else. I put him back in the tank since he was not improved, then for the first two days, he was almost swimming normally but still not eating. Yesterday i didn't find him in the tank, like, vanished! I think he died and has been eaten during the night. Too bad, he was simply gorgeous. But i didn't learn anything out of his death, i don't know if it was a mistake from me or if he got a weird disease or something.


I have never had a fish die and not be able to find a trace of it, but I guess it could happen.


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## caldwelldaniel26 (Jun 11, 2017)

Could be a crispy critter behind the tank if he jumped out... African cichlids have been known to bury dead fish as well.


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## eyann (Aug 21, 2017)

i took all of the rocks out and moved the sand around and nothing. I've been looking all around the tank on the floor, nothing either. 
I already lost a Flavescent a couple of month ago, same thing, i just found a tiny part of his body after a few days (the head remains), the others literally ate him once he was dead. 
What is scary is that now i have another Flavescent doing the same thing! Not eating but interested by food, and chewing something, but this time it looks like she's holding. I'm sure it's a female, but she's still a juvenile. The 2 other Flavescent are males i guess (i can see that in their behavior with the female) but still juvenile as well, they didn't even color up yet. The female is chewing something and seems pretty busy doing that, same thing as the Star Sapphire did....... I don't really know what's going on. I only have solid rocks, aragonite sand mixed with play sand. I already took off the 2 plants thinking that the Star Sapphire got a piece of plant in his mouth, so there's nothing fancy anymore.


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## Dooner (Mar 10, 2019)

Ryan, did you ever figure out what happened to your SS. Mine was active and happy and then just gone. Looked everywhere for him.


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