Do Fins grow back on fish?

[TanksNStuff]

Kind of an odd question, but I was just wondering if anyone knew the answer.

I have two fish that are missing some fins. One is a percula clown. I bought it as a "baby" and didn't even notice that the two bottom (pelvic) fins were missing completely when I bought it. :-[ There are no scars or anything that would indicate he lost them, and appears to have been born without them as far as I can tell.

The other is a yellow watchman goby. He had all of his fins when purchased (something I learned to check after buying the clown) and has recently seemed to have his two side (pectoral) fins broken off. I don't have any large fish that could have attacked him and I believe it happened by him getting stuck while hiding inside my live rock. He was quite shy when first introduced into the main tank and darts in and out of the rock crevices very often. The only other possibility that I know of is a hermit crab. One night when I was feeding black worms, a hermit latched onto one that the watchman goby grabbed up and drug back into the rocks. The crab didn't let go and ended up in there with him. It was quite amusing at the time, but unfortunate in the end. Next day or so is when I noticed the goby had his fins missing. They appear to be ripped off somehow and there is some visible scarring. Not sure if he and the crab got in a battle for the worm or if the goby just got into a tight spot and got stuck... but he's not in very good shape right now. He seems to have a lot of difficulty swimming, obviously.

So, first off, is there anything I should do to help the goby heal up? Any medications or ointments avaialable for something like this? Secondly, is there any chance these fish will grow their fins back? The clown has been that way since I got him back in August... and no signs of regrowth yet.

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

 

[Mbodell]

Not really much at all in my experience. I have a scopas tang that has no fins and they aren't really coming back at all.

 

[TanksNStuff]

Sad news, but thanks for the reply Mike.

 

[NikkiT]

I have had false percs and maroon clowns beaten up pretty badly during pairing a new fish with an older female fish, in those cases the fins that were damaged grew back in about 1-2 months, depending on the degree of damage. However, since you are not sure if your clown came in with or without fins, i don't know if this will help you.

I cannot speak to the Watchman Goby, except to say I've had sharknose and clown gobies grown in fins that have been damaged in transit.

Good luck!

 

[TanksNStuff]

Well that was a bit more encouraging! Thanks NikkiT. The watchman goby looks like it was damaged pretty badly. You can see the flesh where his fins used to be. :'(

If I wasn't going to pick up a nano tank full of corals tonight, I'd take some pics and put them up here tonight. I have a feeling I'll be a bit busy though.

There is also the fact that the goby hides a lot and it's hard to get a pic of him. But, as soon as I can, I'll put some pics up here to show just how bad it really is.

 

[njstillwell]

Yes they can but the fins are missing probably from the watchman and the clown being housed togethar if not and they get along.Add vitamin c to your food they will grow back pretty quick.

 

[chuck116]

+1 with nikkiT I also have had a marroon clown beatup its tail during mateing time with full regrowth after a month or so.

 

[ds4x4]

you clown probably wont grow the fins.. i have a True Percula that is missing half a Pectoral fin for some reason and it has not grown back.

 

[Mbodell]

Torn fins and damage near the end of the fins on my fish has grown back, but not full fin loss like nubsy in my tank.

 

[ds4x4]

Torn fins and damage near the end of the fins on my fish has grown back, but not full fin loss like nubsy in my tank.

if it's into the "meat" of the fin then probably not but if just the thin part of the fin my sailfin and two yellow tangs always nipped at each other and within a day or two it grew back.

 

[NikkiT]

Several years ago, I bought a really really cute 1" blue spotted puffer... and put him in a tank with a maroon clown. Well, within 24 hours, that poor maroon clown had NO fins. I do mean no fins, maybe 1/16" showing of pectorals, doral, tail, only tatters of fins left. She went into my hospital tank, and made a full recovery. That puffer, which was THE WORST FISH I HAVE EVER OWNED, spent the rest of his 6 year life in a quarantine tank. Now, again I can only speak to clowns when it comes to this type of damage, but it is possible.

 

[TanksNStuff]

Well, I'm sorry to report that "Herman" will never grow back his fins. He passed away before I even got home last night. :'( :'(

I knew he looked like he was in bad shape which is why I started this thread. The clown doesn't seem to be affected much by his fin loss, so not too worried about him. He's been living like that since at least July or August that I know of.

I planned on taking some pics of Herman's missing fins, but since he was dead when I arrived home with 4 buckets full of new corals that I needed to get in the tank, I didn't get a chance to take any pics before I flushed him. This was my first fish death and I wasn't really sure what to do with him. Is it ok to just flush them or is that a bad thing? It didn't feel right to me, that's for sure. :-[ I really didn't have time to find a better solution though because the new corals just took a 1.5 hour drive and it was late already... so I had to get them acclimated and in the tank ASAP.

Anyway, thanks for all the many responses. I will report back if I ever see any growth on the clown's fins.

 

[NikkiT]

I'm sorry to hear about your loss. Do you know what kind of hermit crab is it?

 

[TanksNStuff]

I have mostly blue-leg hermits and pretty sure the one he dragged into the rocks was too. It wasn't very big either. Maybe the size of a dime.