help with trigger

[TranZ]

Help!!!! the Assani(spelling?) Trigger is dying.....this is my cousins tank...his on vacation so i'm taking care of his tank....i stop by in his house every other day to feed his tank... but on monday when i went there i can't find the trigger...i figured it was sleeping...so i let it be....this afternoon when i feed the tank i found him laying in between the decoration...still alive but seems it got stock in between...is this possible? i let it out and it swimming sideways...and breathing heavy ...no other fish seems have a problem.....i test the water and nitrite is .25 which is been like that for a months now as my cousin said.....nitrate is a bit high 50ppm but that shouldn't affect triggers. are trigger know for any kind of disseases?

specs: 125 gal tank
wet/dry symtem
FO tank
i think about 100lbs of LS
assani trigger
lion fish
niger trigger
dog face puffer
purple tang
yellow tang

[FishinInTheDark]

My guess is that poor water quality is taking a cumulative toll on the fish. The nitrite, nitrate, and probably ammonia will stress them, especially over time. Nitrate above 40 CAN stress fish.

A 20% water change immediately will help some. You may have to do subsequent water changes every few daysto get those specs right.

[Ocean Singer]

yeah same with conni, but about your question, it's a trigger's natural defence to lock itself into a rock with it's dorsal fin, something must've threatened it, I caught one and landed it before while fishing off some rocks, I didn't have a bucket so I put it in a tidepool, when it was time to go, it locked itself in, I think that's why they call them trigger fish, because it's like a trigger on their back IMO

[Condiman]

I am also with connie on this do a water change and see how it goes.

[Doctor_Reef]

Same with Conni... But I would like to know how long this tank has been going??? If it has been up and running for some time you really shouldn't be getting any Nitrite!!! or Ammonia with a wet dry system??? The Nitrates are a tad bit high even for a fish only…but that isn’t the culprit by itself…the nitrites and ammonia are a real problem for fish!!!

[TranZ]

I just found out yesterday that the Thermometer in the tank wast bitten off. I don't know if it has something to do with it. but when i remove the trigger out from the tank i saw a red stain on its mouth. tanks for the input guys. i'll keep you posted on what going on on the tank. thank you.

[Doctor_Reef]

That is too bad...Hope things are improving!!!