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FAQs about the Yellow-Tail Blue, Palette, Regal, Hippo Tang
Disease/Health 5 Related
Articles: The Genus Paracanthurus,
Related FAQs: Pacific
YTB Tang Disease 1, Pacific YTB Tang
Disease 2, Pacific YTB Disease 3,
Pacific YTB Disease 4, YTBT Health 6,
Tangs/Rabbitfishes & Crypt, &
Pacific YTB Tang FAQs 2, Pacific YTB
Tang FAQs 1, Pacific YTB Tang FAQs 2,
Pacific YTB Tang FAQs 3, Pacific YTB
Tang FAQs 4, PYTB Tang ID,
PYTB Tang Behavior, PYTB Tang
Compatibility, PYTB Tang Selection,
PYTB Tang Systems, PYTB Tang Feeding,
PYTB Tang Reproduction, Surgeons
In General, Tang ID,
Selection, Tang
Behavior,
Compatibility, Systems,
Feeding, Disease, | 
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Injured 6-line Wrasse, Treatment Options 10/23/07
Hi Wet Web
Media Crew,
<Hello>
First of all, thanks for your great site.
While in quarantine/hyposalinity, our Sixline Wrasse got himself stuck
in a piece of live rock. My initial thought was to let him get himself
out.
<Usually best.>
After about a week it became apparent that he
would not be able to. We could just see part of him though one of the
holes in the rock. I used a Dremel to carefully cut away the rock around
him until I could gently get him out (He was lodged in there pretty
good). I don't think we caused him any harm while getting him out;
however, he cut himself up pretty bad during the week he was in there.
<I bet.>
He has several gashes on his side and belly, he is very
discolor in certain areas (looks like he is missing all of the scales
from about half his body), and he appeared very bloated/swollen. We
dipped him in a Methyl Blue mixed with water from his tank for three
minutes and placed him in his own 10gal hospital tank (temperature and
salinity matched to the tank he was in, i.e. still hypo).
<Good>
I
thought he was a goner but to my surprise he actually ate some Prime
Reef flake food today (first day out of the rock).
<They are quite
resilient.>
Now, to the questions: 1) Should we keep him in hypo or
slowly raise the salinity?
<Normally 1.025 would be best, but in
this case I would not change anything that may increase stress and
increase chance of infection. But work towards full strength salt water
once it gets through this.>
2) Should we dip him in Methyl Blue/tank
water occasionally to try and fight off infection?
<I would.>
3)
Is there anything else we can do to raise his chances of survival (e.g.
medications, foods, additives, etc.)?
<Quality foods, keep water
quality high, and watch for signs of infection which would require
stronger treatments.>
Thanks in advance for your help.
V/R,
James and Beth
<Welcome>
<Chris>
Regal Tang, fin covering up small lump? 10/23/07
Quick
question for ya...
A question about a Regal Tang I have in
quarantine. I believe the retailer had him for a week before I
selected him as the best looking Regal Tang I've seen for months at
a store. Nice colors, active, and plump. I did a pH and temperature
adjusted freshwater dip for about 7-8mins. I've now had the tang for
a week and he is feeding well on flake, pellet, meaty foods, and
Caulerpa I have in the tank.
pH 8.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10ppm
Salinity 1.025
Temp 26oc
This has just
developed over the past 24hrs.... The tang has a bit of swelling or
a lump right behind it's right gill. The skin is still proper
color... in fact I'd best describe it as a pimple forming under the
skin. The lump is round sort of like if you had shaved a few mm's
off of a standard pencil eraser. Furthermore, the fish is not using
the fin on that side of the body. It is evident that he can use it
as the odd time he does... he was swimming fine all week. He still
seems to swim around fine without using it much. When he's not using
that fin, it almost completely covers the lump.
Does this sound
at all familiar? What can be done if anything?
Dave
<Mmm,
might be physical (a trauma let's say), could be pathogenic (perhaps
a parasite of some sort), but more harm to be done than not by
overtly "treating" this fish at this point. Best to maintain high,
consistent water quality. A note re the (sic) Caulerpa mentioned
above. I would replace this with a less-noxious genus of algae...
Likely a Gracilaria or Chaetomorpha species. Its toxicity might be
working against you here. Bob Fenner>
Using Metronidazole and Praziquantel... More re the Regal Tang bump
10/23/07
Hopefully I reach you in time as I'd like to recall
my previous question regarding a Blue Tang with a developing lump on
his side, where he is also not using the fin on that particular side
of the body.
<Am still here>
After reading through 4 pages of
Tang FAQ's, I think I have spotted two notes about what appears to
be a similar issue. Bob's recommendation on the other notes in both
instances was: <Have seen such markings before... usually
geographically, seasonally expressed... Are likely either a
protozoan or encysted worm presence... Can be treated serially with
one dose of Flagyl/Metronidazole and an anthelminthic... (my choice,
likely Prazi/quantel)... Both/all are covered on WWM. Bob Fenner>
<Ah, yes>
So, now that I likely know what it is I've read through
the article on Metronidazole, etc..
<Okay>
My Tang is in a
24gallon Nano
<Needs more room than this... oh, this is for
treatment only I take it>
with a very shallow crushed coral bed
(less than one inch by far) with a small piece of liverock with a
good growth of Caulerpa. I'm a bit confused by the article. It seems
to state that soaking food in Metro and then placing in the fridge
for a few hours and then feeding to the fish is considered one dose.
This seems to be associated with the treatment for freshwater fish
who do not 'drink'?? Is this correct?
<Is one way of
administration... more "sure" as dosing/dosage than direct water
treatment>
For Marine fish, long-term baths for about 3 hrs each
day for 3 days?? Is the article suggesting filling a bucket with
tank water that is aerated with the appropriate dose?
<Is another
approach>
I'm just wondering if catching the fish, placing in a
bucket for 3 hrs, catching the fish to put back into the tank x 3
days would severely stress out the fish?
<Too much so, too
likely, yes>
Or, since it's only a 24gallon tank... should I add
directly into the quarantine tank that has the crushed coral/piece
of liverock, and then do a full water change (from my main display)
daily for the three days? Is it ok to have a crushed coral bottom
and/or a piece of liverock in their during the treatment?
<Not
if the medications are to be added directly to the water, no. Too
likely diluting effects...>
Will it harm the nicely growing
Caulerpa or should I take the liverock out for the three hours
during the treatment?
<Will not harm Caulerpaceans>
Or... is
it just as easy to soak the food and use that as the treatment?
<This is best in most circumstances... given the fish/es are
feeding>
Soaking the food seems like a lot less work and easier
to administer... at the same time, I want to ensure that I knock out
this issue as quickly as possible without harm to the fish.
The
recommendation to use Praziquantel as an additional
cure/precaution... can I use both together?
<Yes>
Your article
says to simply add 7.6mg/gallon. Can this go directly in the system
with crushed coral and the liverock?
<Yes, though will be
affected to a degree...>
How long do I keep it in there?
<Indefinitely... will degrade in time>
Can I do this while
administering the Metronidazole via soaking food? Via adding
Metronidazole directly into tank?
<Yes, could>
I have been
doing 30% waterchanges on this 24gallon quarantine tank about 3
times every two weeks using 1/2 new mixed water and 1/2 system water
for each water change. Although the Metro doesn't seem to conflict
with water changes... do I keep up with water changes with
Praziquantel if the Prazi is meant to be in the tank for a week or
more?
<Yes, or re-administer with water changing...>
Apologies
for all the questions... but there isn't much info on the Prazi and
the article on the Metronidazole has me afraid of potentially
killing the fish because I used it incorrectly.
David Brynlund
<Again, I would treat with nothing at this juncture if this were my
ward. B> Re: Using
Metronidazole and Praziquantel 10/23/07
Hi Bob,
<David>
Thanks for the comments, it has helped... But now you
have me even more confused...
<Again, I would treat with nothing
at this juncture if this were my ward. B>
Last night, the fish
was using the other fin more... But the lump/pimply like feature on
his right side that used to be the same color as the rest of the
fish appears to becoming a bit discolored. Reading through your
FAQ's this does sound like an internal parasite and you had
recommended others to treat with the products I mentioned below. Why
would I not treat this fish for what appears to be a parasitic
infestation?
<... please see my comment/mantra above...>
The
fish is still pretty chubby and feeds easily. Can this parasite work
it's way out of the fish leaving the fish healthy after a recovery
period?? If it remains untreated and the parasite exits the fish...
Can it not re-enter the fish for a secondary
infestation?
David Brynlund
<Be patient, learn... B>
Re: Regal Tang, fin covering up small lump?
10/24/07
Ok.
The Caulerpa is just naturally growing on the
liverock. Should i pull it out? Move it to the main display? Any
chance of... if this is a parasite that perhaps it may also be
present in the liverock thus i shouldn't move the liverock to a main
display?
<If only a "small piece" I would not worry re
toxicity... leave it in place. BobF> |
Hippos... Quarantine? – 08/17/07
Just a quick question... in
Bob's book as well as on your website, it is suggested to place Hippo
Tangs directly into the main display without quarantine to reduce the
stress of multiple catch and release out of quarantine. Are you still of
this opinion? In my past experience, a Hippo I had about 4yrs ago seemed
to be a 'Crypt' magnet.
<Mmm, Paracanthurus are not "as bad" as such
compared with many other Surgeonfish species... and my opinion is "it
depends"... "IF" the specimen looks otherwise in good health, it can be
isolated for a time... to assess its health... However, it can be
peremptorily FW dipped and placed in most cases>
Would u expect a
Hippo Tang, aside from adding nice colors to a tank,
assist in mowing
done some green hair algae?
<Depends on the species of algae... not
many are palatable... and many that look "Green" are not... are often
BGA, which is entirely undesired>
I will be adding a Foxface after a
4 week quarantine which I'm thinking will further assist
in a green
grassy hair algae problem. Note, the tank is 200gallons FOWLR.
David
Brynlund
<Hotay! BobF>
Hippo tang with Popeye... not using WWM 8/14/07
I have a 55
gallon saltwater tank.
<Too small to house Paracanthurus...>
We purchased 2 percula clown fish, 1 potters angelfish,
<Not
easily kept>
1 hippo tang and 1cleaner shrimp. We had the fish 2
weeks and noticed the tang and angel had ick. I started treating the
tank with kick ick
<Worthless>
every 2 days. I noticed the
hippo wouldn't let the angel get cleaned by the shrimp, so I
purchased a second cleaner shrimp. I thought they were doing better.
We did a partial water change then in two weeks did another water
change, put back in the carbon filters, turned back on the skimmer,
thought they looked good, stopped using the kick ick. The angelfish
died the next day. So, I took out carbon filters and unplugged
skimmer and went back to using the kick ick, every 3 days now. Tang
looked good but I noticed white on the outer side of one eye when
the fish would shift its eyes, but overall eye looked good solid
black. A week has gone by and today the tang has Popeye in one eye.
<Unilateral... mechanical injury...>
I bought MelaFix
<Also
worthless>
to treat tank. My question is should I be treating the
tang with something stronger ( a real anti-biotic) for this.
<No...>
I don't want to try this for a few days to find the tang
dead. I know antibiotic will kill shrimp - I will take them back to
fish store,
<Along with the Crypt? I doubt they'll be happy>
not worried about that. I want the tang to live - he has been sick
for over a month now and i am worried he cant take much more. he
still eats well, body mass looks good. ick spots are gone but i am
still treating the tank because he is still scratching and getting
cleaned by shrimp. He hides alot always scratching his eyes and fins
against objects in tank. please help. I was crushed to lose the
angelfish. Thanks a lot, KMS
<Please read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/Popeyecures.htm
and the linked files
above. Bob Fenner>
sorry
about the file size on pics, I forgot to check it before hitting
send. thanks again.
<No worries. RMF> | 
|
Hippo Tang... not reading ahead of purchase, writing... hlth.?
7/30/07
Hi! I am new to this forum but have found the info here
to be very useful.
I bought a hippo tang about 3 days ago, it is
only about 1 - 2 inches long.
Her behavior has been odd. The first
night she turned colors and laid on the bottom
<A "normal" behavior
of/for this species>
of the tank almost pale white, I tested all the
levels in the tank and every thing was perfect. The next day, she was
bright and doing great.
Today she is acting strange again, she is
brushing up against the hermit crabs that we have in the tank and we
found her a little while ago under the largest crab almost being bit by
it.
<Yikes! Hermits are often opportunistic predators...>
We took
the net and pushed the crab off. Now the Hippo is turning pale again,
may possibly have some pinch marks and is swimming at the top of the
tank, almost bobbing up and down. Is this just stressed behavior or do
you believe that she is not going to recover from the crab? Any help
would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Julie Riggs
<... no info. of
use here... re the system, history, water quality values/testing...
Foods/feeding, tankmates... No quarantine? Please, read here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/paracant.htm
and the linked files above. Bob
Fenner>
Bacterial infection of blue tang? 7/19/07
Dear Crew,
Any ideas what type of infection my new blue tang could have had that
came on in 24 hours when just yesterday there were no signs/symptoms?
<Yes... such events can be very rapid onset indeed>
Tonight it had
frayed dorsal and anal fins, almost swollen in appearance, no redness.
It became listless and the area directly under the dorsal fin and an
area near the anal fin looked bleached out. Eyes were clear, no open
sores, scratches; very rapid breathing. I took it out of my QT and moved
it into a isolation tank and was gone in about an hour. Now I'm worried
about the two other fish in my QT.
Thank you,
Jeff
<Mmm, and
I'm curious as to what species these other fishes are... It might well
be that some degree of territorial et al. aggression is at play to an
extent here... Bob Fenner>
Regal has "pimples" – 06/29/07
Hello All,
Here is my
problem. About a week ago I noticed two small lumps on the side of
our Regal Tang. They didn't concern me at the time because the fish
is a "mutant." What I mean by that is, it eats ALL the time and
looks as if it is ready to explode. It is by far the healthiest
looking tang I have ever seen, even in some of the best aquariums in
the country. Getting back to the problem, tonight my wife told me
the tang was ill. I asked if she meant the lumps on the side and she
said, "Yes, and also by his mouth."
Well, I took a good look at
it and low-and-behold, there on the right side of his face was a
small spot about the size of a match head and the two lumps on his
left side had "morphed" All three looked as if they were "pimples"
as humans would get that had come to a head.
We have a 75gl. tank
stocked with a Percula Clown, Neon Dottyback, a very young Coral
Beauty, a Lyretail Anthius,2 Skunk Cleaner Shrimp, a Hermit Crab
which was picked up from a local marsh years ago) and of coarse the
Regal Tang.
There is approx. 60-70lbs. of live rock on a 2" bed
of crushed coral.
Bio-wheel filtration with a HOB Prizm skimmer,
and two power heads.
Parameters are good, temp at 72-74 degrees.
7-10gl. water changes every two weeks.
Fish are fed every other
day a variety of frozen Mysis, brine shrimp, fresh fish roe,
phytoplankton and ground Nori, which ALL the fish consume readily.
There is also an over abundance of Caulerpa growing in the tank
which has contributed to the tang being so obese.
Hopefully the
photos sent will aid in identifying what ails the fish and will help
lead to a cure.
Thanks for your time and response,
Mark
<Have seen such markings before... usually geographically,
seasonally expressed... Are likely either a protozoan or encysted
worm presence... Can be treated serially with one dose of
Flagyl/Metronidazole and an anthelminthic... (my choice, likely
Prazi/quantel)... Both/all are covered on WWM. Bob Fenner> |
RMF unable to change image files for posting |
Blue tang in danger!! Inappropriate home 6/6/07
Hi there,
<Hello>
Here is my setup (or what I know of it... I bought it
used for 200$ from a guy on the net who said he did not have time to
care for it anymore).
33Gal tank
one Fluval 303 and two power
head in there is three large live rock two clownfish
1 cleaner
shrimp (used to be two but lost one in a day of big heat before the
A/C was installed)
about 4-5 turbo snail and more I don’t know
about yet !
Yesterday I decided to do a little tweezers treatment
on my live rocks as there where many fireworms and I saw them eat
away at a snail who is now
dead of course! <Mostly likely dead
or dying already, and they were just cleaning up.>
I also carried
out a cleaning of the live sand and replaced about 40% of the water
(maybe too much here !) <I would limit it to 25% unless there is a
real emergency.>
This morning I noticed that my blue tang was
staying at the bottom and breathe very rapidly he refuses to eat I
am afraid I might lose it !
<This tank is way to small for a blue
tang, they need a tank at least 100G larger than what you have.>
Water parameters are (ammonia 0 to 0.1 hard to read !! NO2 is 0 and
no3 is about 50 ! salinity is 1.0235
Used to range in the 1.024
to 1.025 when I first got it (that might also be
it the reason
right ?) <Not likely, not enough of a change.>
There does not
seem to be any spots other than the HLLE that it came with which is
very minimal and concentrated in the eye area (not in the yes but in
front)
I don’t really know what to look for I think I might have
an Aiptasia outbreak but they are very little about 1-2 mm diameter
and 5-7 mm long and there are two large ones about 1cm wide to 2-3cm
long buried in the live sand. <Not the source of your problem here.>
I will include pictures of the Aiptasia and other life forms found
for referral.
Please help my tang !!! It does not want to die !
Thanks !
<Not much to go on here. First guess would be that
there was a fall in water quality, either an ammonia spike, or too
drastic of a change in temp, pH, or other parameter when you
conducted the water change. Could also be the first signs of ich or
other parasite, they attack the gills first. Either way the long
term survival of this fish is doubtful in such a small tank
honestly. Also please spell and grammar check your mails before
sending them, correcting them before posting takes away time we
could be using to answer questions.>
<Chris> |  .JPG) | .JPG) .jpg) |
Blue tang got itch 6/1/07
Hi Jason,
<Hello, but no Jason here,
Chris with you.>
I have had my hippo blue tang for 9 months in my
Nano 24 g wt LR & LS. <Way way way too small for this fish, doomed to an
early death if kept in this tank for much longer.> He's been doing well
but today I saw white spots on over his skin body. He tries to scratch
his body to LR, so I know for sure that is itch. I have changed 10-20%
water weekly, but recently my nitrate is raised up (25-30ppm).
1)
What cause itch for my tang? <The parasite Cryptocaryon irritans.>
2) After I saw he is itch, I changed 5 gal. water right away, is it
helpful? <Not terribly, needs to be treated for the parasite, see here
for more http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ichartmar.htm .>
3) Should I use
any medication such as Nox-itch? and how to treat him? Can itch spread
to the other fish? <See link above.>
Pls advice
Thanks in advance
Hanson
<Much to read here, check out the marine disease section for
more. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/mardisindex.htm .>
<Chris>
Re: Blue tang got itch 6/03/07
Thanks for your reply, I read your
links about the parasite disease and treatment. The only problem I face
that I don't have Qt. <Really limiting your choices here.> I have 1
clown,1 Chromis, 1 tang & 1 goby, 1 rose anemone, 1 open brain & 1 zoan.
Should I treat my itch tang with copper in main tank? <No, tangs don't
respond to copper particularly well, and it will kill all your
invertebrates.> How to do the freshwater dip ? Pls more specific.
<http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-10/sp/feature/index.php > Or
should I move all corals to some place else and put copper med in main
tank? <Won't work, would need to remove all live rock and sand as well,
also copper would bind with the silicon and release over time.> If so,
what should I do to eliminate copper in main tank after treatment done?
<Can't really.> Or what's your advice.
Thanks in advance
Hanson
<Really your only hope here without a hospital tank is to keep up the
water quality and feed good foods and hope the fish develop an immunity,
but the Ich will always be present in the system until it can run
fallow, so all new additions will suffer. Sorry to be the bearer of bad
news.>
<Chris> Blue Regal Tang has been
beaten up! What can I do? 5/20/07
Hi
<Hello, Brenda here>
I have a Regal Tang (Paracanthurus Hepatus) (2 in.) it got beaten up
today by a 3 stripe damsel. It is pretty bad. It is still alive but is
swimming with its nose up most of the time, if not that it is on the
bottom of the fish tank. I moved it in to another tank with two clown
fishes (2 in.) Is there any thing I can do to help it. I really like
this fish.
<Pristine water conditions and keeping it away from any
aggressive fish, and waiting is all you can do for now.>
Thank you
<You’re welcome! I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you! Brenda>
Blue Tang with Ick, no useful info. 5/3/07
Hey
guys, love the site. I have an emergency. I have a blue tang in a QT
tank (have had for 4 days). She has mega-ick and is dying. What do I do
for her? (I'm trying hypo salinity and 5 minute FW dips. I fear for her
life...
-Jay
<... Hopefully you helped yourself... and your fish/es... and have been
reading:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ichartmar.htm
and the pertinent files
linked above. Bob Fenner>
Blue tang disease, infection? 5/2/07
I read
through your site often and refer people here all the time. I own a
fish store and have occasionally come across this same
situation. Mostly only occurs with Blue Tangs. When I received
this fish she was fine and beautiful. I performed my normal
acclimation procedure for all of my new fish.
<Does this/it
entail a dip/bath? What chemicals do you use if so? Is it pH
adjusted?>
I have had this blue tang for over a week now, she
eats, and is fat and healthy, when I came into my store yesterday
she had swelling on top of her head, as if she had un into something
and injured herself (which is common for them to get spooked from
customers etc),
<Yes>
in this situation I observe and do my
best to keep them eating and calm,
<Best to place such fishes in
"high" up and away tanks...>
today when I came into the store
the top of her head is rotting away. My system holds
approximately 600 gallons, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 0. This
system always contains copper.
<Mmm... not uncommon, but not
recommended>
and specific gravity is at 1.019.
<And... I'd
keep this a few thousandths higher...>
All other fish in same
system are fine, including other blue tangs, which have been in
system for over a month. In the tank with this blue tang is
(Vlamingi tang, Leopard Blenny, Klein's butterfly, Foxface Lo,
Longnosed hawk). I have included some pictures in hopes you can
help me to identify what this could be, I love all of my fish and
only want to help them the best I can.
Thank you so much
Wendy
<Very nice specimens... judging from the very yellow
underside... from New Caledonia or thereabouts... Likely the damage
initiated in capture, holding, shipping... but the copper exposure
and unnaturally too-low spg is not helping... If this fish were
mine, I would remote it to your invertebrate system (in a good
sized/volume tank) as you likely do with your seahorses, pipefishes,
clowns... Sans the copper and with NSW spg of course there.
Further... if I might influence you, I encourage you to revise your
receiving protocol and do away with constant copper use. The
rationale, instructions for these is posted... on WWM. Bob Fenner> | 
|
Dips, Hippos - 05/01/07
Dear WetWeb,
I have been
reading on hippo tangs and Am confused. Because I read in you info about
hippos that you should fresh water dip them and then place them into the
display tank. I thought that this web site strongly believed in the QT.
Please help me try to understand why you should not QT a fish that is so
prone to illness. Jeff
<Read on! Some fishes are better not
dipped... for what apparent good it will do them, you... versus the
stress and strain, likely induced problems from said procedure... Keep
reading. Bob Fenner> Cannot Identify the Problem, Paracanthurus
parasite... inside the skin bumps 4/9/07
Crew,
<Darren>
Thanks for the great information on your site. It is the
best online source for marine aquariums I have found.
I am having a
problem with my Palette Tang that I have not been able to identify. I've
looked on your site as well as used Google to find our what it is with
no success. It has developed small white bumps that look like pimples or
poison ivy. The bumps look much too large to be Ich. They are not the
small salt-like bumps that I have seen or read about. It has also
developed pop-eye in its one eye, which I assume he developed when
scratching himself, because of the bumps. These are the only signs I
have seen so far. He is eating and breathing normally, and showing no
abnormal behavior. I have not found anywhere that describes these
symptoms. Does Ich sometimes appear larger than salt-grains?
<Rarely>
I don't know what else it could be.
My tanks has 0
ammonia, 0 nitrites, and 40 ppm nitrates. I know my nitrates are high. I
am currently curing live rock to replace my bio-balls in my wet-dry
filter. I do a minimum 10% water changes weekly, and I clean my filters
every other week. Thanks for the help. I much appreciate the time you
all volunteer to help your fellow aquarists.
Darren
<These spots
are apparently not on the outside of the specimen? That is, they appear
to be bumps pushing up from under the skin? There are two common
possibilities here... a protozoan and worm... Can be treated with
Metronidazole/Flagyl for the first, an anthelminthic for the second (my
choice, Praziquantel). Notes, details on using these are posted on WWM.
http://wetwebmedia.com/mardisindex.htm
Scroll down to
therapeutics.
Bob Fenner> Blue hippo (regal) tang changing
tanks, En-Crypt-ed systems 3/11/07
Hello again, I
hope you are doing well, whomever responds to this email.
<Yes,
thank you>
I have a small Regal tang in a 29 gallon BioCube as
temporary housing until it moves to my 92 gallon (when I say small I
mean about 2 to 3 inches).
<Needs more room, psychologically, now>
It had it's bout with ich
<Also stress related...>
and rather
than move it to treat it with copper ( I have read this is bad for the
digestive system of tangs)
<Yes>
I decided to purchase a small
UV sterilizer, which in time took care of the problem,
<Mmm, no>
I have not seen a spot in months. My question is, since I know I've had
ich in my 92 gallon tank and did not treat for it and all the fish got
over it, should I worry about doing a freshwater dip?
<Mmm, I would
not worry, but I would do the dip>
The Regal tang has been in the
BioCube for a long time, at least 4 months, it is eating like a pig and
appears quite healthy. I am paranoid about doing the freshwater dip, I
have seen it done and it did not turn out well ( Purple tang ). I would
like to acclimate to the new system (not new a year old) and place the
Regal tang in it without
<Okay... will likely not make "much"
difference... Depending on the resident ich/Crypt populations, there
might be some synergism, or unrelated strengthening on their part...>
causing it any added stress. What is your opinion on this idea? I
currently have a Kole tang, Clownfish, and a Blue Flavivertex
Pseudochromis in the 92 gallon tank, do you think any of these would
pick on the new fish?
<Hopefully not>
I know you
will probably say that is too many fish for a 92 gallon tank, but all
are small and I will rehouse if need be. Any advice or opinions on this
would be very appreciated. Thank you, Ryan. Please forgive any
misspellings, I checked my spell check and all appeared well. Thanks
again, Ryan.
<Looks good... I would move this fish. Bob Fenner>
Marine Ich, Paracanthurus 3/6/07
Crew,
I need your
help. My 90 gallon FOWLR finished cycling 2 weeks ago. I quarantined
my Snowflake Moray and Dogface Puffer,
<Will need more room>
together during the cycling process, which was about 6 weeks. I
purchased them together, from the same tank, at my LFS so I thought
quarantining them together would be ok. After introducing them, I began
a shorter quarantine for my Hippo Tang.
I read in CMA that Bob
doesn't necessarily think that quarantining a Hippo is necessary or even
good,
<Often more damage than good... better to do a pH-adjusted FW
bath... along with good specimen selection of course>
I thought that
since I purchased the tang from a different LFS than the eel and puffer
that I should QT. I compromised and QT'd for 2 weeks. Quarantine was
over on Thursday and I added the Hippo.
All was
fine. Did a 20 gallon water change on Saturday, with well-aged RO/DI
water. Tests were 0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrites and less then 3 Nitrate (using
completely submerged open-pore cell material and sintered glass noodles
really keep Nitrates down. All are 0 now!
Anyway, I left the
house for 2 1/2 hours yesterday and when I returned the Hippo had the
worst case of Ich that I have ever seen! I probably am guilty of
sharing nets between tanks. This is the only thing I could think of,
based on the precautions I took.
I needed to act fact and
unfortunately do not have access to my quarantine/hospital tank because
it is "off-site" at girlfriend because of space constraints in my
apartment and of course, she is away so I though my best option was to
lower the salinity.
<Mmm, not likely efficacious>
I am assuming
that all the fish are infected which is another reason for doing the
hypo-salinity route as each of my aqua-buddies have different tolerances
for meds. I typically keep the tank at 1.025 by refractometer, so I am
going to drop it to 1.018 as soon as the water warms up.
<This is
w/in a safe-range... just not useful as a treatment mode>
Am i
doing the right thing? i know I need to go out tomorrow and buy another
QT/hospital tank.
<Yes>
Don't room for much more than a 20 here
and hope the eel (small), puffer and Tang (if he pulls through), can
coexist in a 20 for 6 weeks while the 90 gallon goes fallow.
What would you guy/gals do?
Thanks
Roy
<I would have dipped/bathed the incoming tang (on the way to the Q and
the DT)... and read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/crypttangs.htm
and as much of the
linked files above as it takes to understand your situation and options.
Bob Fenner>
Hippo tang in need of immediate help - possibly ringworm?
Hyposalinity... 3/5/07
Dear Bob,
<Ryan>
I searched
high and low on your website for an answer to this question but I
could not find one. I was hoping you could shed some light on the
issue and put me out of my ignorance. This hippo tang has rings all
over its body.
<I see this>
I have enclosed some pictures
for you to see. Currently, the fish is in hyposalinity to get rid of
ich. The specific gravity is at 1.008,
<This is a/the problem...
Paracanthurus don't do well in such low salt densities... See WWM re
Crypt, Hyposalinity... this is simple stress marking>
ammonia
and nitrite are 0, nitrates are 10, temperature is 79, and the pH is
8.3. I have had people say that it was the beginning of head and
lateral line erosion, gas bubble disease, or maybe, side effects of
hyposalinity.
<Bingo>
I performed hyposalinity on two times
in the past in a quarantine tank and have never seen this happen to
a fish. Any advice you can offer would be very much appreciated.
Sincerely,
Ryan Smith
<BobF> | 
|
Ich on blue tang 2/20/07
Hi guys,
<And girls,
too! *grin*>
thanks for providing such a great site. My name is
Janet and I am just starting my marine aquarium journey.
<Hi Janet.
My name is JustinN. Welcome to AA -- Aquatics Anonymous ;) >
I have
a blue tang about 8cm which I introduced to my 4ft tank around 5 weeks
ago. I did not know about quarantining then but I do now.
<I will
spare you the soapbox then, my friend.>
There is around 30kg of live
rock, 2 tomato clowns, 1 coral beauty, 1 blue wrasse and 1 reef
butterfly. At the moment I don't have a skimmer but will next week.
<Ok>
My levels are all good, nitrites 0, ammonia 0, nitrates 20ppm
<A tad high, see if you can identify the source here.>,
specific
grav. 1.022
<Likewise, a tad low.. should be maintained at Natural
Seawater levels (1.025)>
and pH 8.4. My blue tang developed white
spots yesterday and also has a pop-eye (maybe from trying to scratch)
and she kept going up to the wrasse for a clean I think.
<Too likely
to have had the ich from the get-go; this is a parasite that does not
just appear on its own, must be carried in by a host. Tangs are also
known as 'ich magnets' because of their proficiency in contracting major
outbreaks of the parasite.>
I have a 35ltr tank that I am now using
as a hospital tank. I gave her a freshwater dip with methylene blue for
4 min.s then put her into the 35ltr tank which I had pre-dosed with 5mls
of Ichonex (Aquasonic).
<Not an appropriate product. Not sure of its
effectiveness in freshwater applications, but this product is marketed
as a freshwater ich solution -- the two parasites are not the same.>
The directions on the bottle say to treat half doses on day 2 and 3. My
hosp. tank has a sponge filter and noodles in it,
<Mmm, fish soup!>
no substrate and just a few ornaments for her to hide in. What I want to
know is am I on the right path and is there any extra advise you can
give me? thanks heaps, Janet.
<Well, Janet, you've got the right
idea with quarantine now, in hindsight. Don't feel too bad about the
oversight, it happens to all of us. The human condition is to learn via
mistakes. However, your medication choice is simply not effective, and
who knows how it may actually be affecting your fish! You need a
treatment based on copper here, and likewise, you will need to
quarantine all your fishes outside of your display tank for an extended
period. If one fish is ich-infested, your entire display is now carrying
the parasite, even if certain fish aren't showing outward signs of
problems. Any of the fish can, and will, act as a host carrier for the
parasite until you treat for it properly, which involves a treatment in
a copper solution for all of your fishes, while leaving your display
tank 'fallow' (active and running, but unoccupied) for a minimum of 6
weeks, to allow for the life cycle of the parasite to run its course,
without a host to allow reproduction. After this point, you will be safe
to move your aquatic charges back to their home. Have a read here for
more information:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ichart2mar.htm -JustinN>
Tang Troubles 2/14/07
To whom it may concern,
<Hi>
I
have recently bought a blue tang. And am having some difficulties
getting him to eat and even come out of hiding. He constantly is lying
on his side. My pH was out but is now right and is 8.3 and I had to
buffer my water. <Shock> I also had no bacteria and had to put bacteria
starter in. <Uncycled tank? First Fish? Need more info.> He is still
not eating and is still not coming out what do I do please help.
thank you for your time. hayalz
<Sounds like you have an
uncycled tank and related poor water quality. This would explain the
tang's behavior. Please see here for more http://www.wetwebmedia.com/estbiofiltmar.htm
.>
<Chris>
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