Sohal Tang - share your xp

[Henry1]

I've got a 4 inch Sohal for one month and could not get it to feed on food offered.
I've tried nori, romain lettuce and the usual food the tankmate. It simply ignore everything. The only thing it does is grazing on the depleted algae on the LR.
Its now showing sign of emaciation from the lack of feeding.

Appreciate you share your experience in success and/or failure as to how you get your Sohal to start feeding on food offered.

TIA

 

[Anonymous]

I have had a Sohal for a little longer than yours, he is 4-5 inches. I have been feeding "Seaweed Selects" green and red, and he goes through both like a shark through a surfer. The green is probably just nori like you have tried, so it sounds like you got a stubborn individual. Do you secure the nori with a clip, or what?

Mine initially would not touch the other offerings, but he eventually started eating frozen brine, flake, and now will sample virtually anything put in the tank (including my arm).

A couple other Sohal notes not directly related to your question: mine developed a mean case of the itchies after a week or so, and it took him a few weeks to get over it, but he never stopped eating. He had the occasional white spot during this time, also dark bruise-like marks, but he looks great now and rarely scratches (I tried to give him a freshwater dip but gave up trying to catch him).

Also, I had a 5" yellow tang in there first. It was furious when the Sohal was introduced, but stopped chasing it after a day and now they get along quite well.

Good luck with your Sohal, Henry, they are awesome fish! Maybe someone else can offer a trick to help get yours to feed better...

 

[MicroChip]

I dunno. It keeps adding a wierd space to it...

Just click on this:

http://photos.msn.com/imageserver/image.aspx?Image=*EtEZjHm6cqo9GssX7K67AeRHcN7lSljfkqQmyLSsvpW79Yr8QQzHVE*0mg9WUQsIBCLa3!*KsS1O1k3OIzBDcG7n8T6bgyo7aJOao6ThL1!XAg27FitojEynC3*lsLn

[ March 28, 2002: Message edited by: MicroChip ]</p>

 

[AF Founder]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Advanced Aquarist, Editor:

I'e had mine for at least ten years. James is right: a good way to start one feeding is to tie some macroalgae to a rock or coral. IME, try some OSI marine flake or spirulina. My surgeon fish prefer it to other brands, perhaps because of the stronger smell. It's important to get surgeonfish to eant flake food, because it is a concentrated food source.

[ March 28, 2002: Message edited by: MicroChip ][/qb]<hr></blockquote>

[ March 28, 2002: Message edited by: Advanced Aquarist, Editor ]</p>

 

[naesco]

Try soaking the food in garlic extract and placing it in a current near where the tang in lurking. Affixing some garlic soaked nori on a stone near where the tang is hanging out may also help. It is the smell that attracts them sometimes.

 

[VESKAS]

I sure hope these Sohals are in 180g+....can't imagine keeping them in any less. I had a Naso (6-7") in a 180g & questioned that!!! Sohals get huge & need the swimming room.

jmho

 

[jamesw]

I used to have a Sohal tang, but I gave him to Eric Borneman when he got too big for my setup (I have a 150 and Eric has a 300+).

To get a tricky tang to eat, rubberband some lettuce or nori (seaweed selects are nori) to a rock and plunk it into the tank.

HTH
James Wiseman

 

[AF Founder]

I'e had mine for at least ten years. James is right: a good way to start one feeding is to tie some macroalgae to a rock or coral. IME, try some OSI marine flake or spirulina. My surgeon fish prefer it to other brands, perhaps because of the stronger smell. It's important to get surgeonfish to eant flake food, because it is a concentrated food source.

[ March 28, 2002: Message edited by: MicroChip ]</p>

 

[JohnD]

The only experience i have with a sohal tang was seeing one in the LFS on sale. I asked the board if I should get him and I received a resounding NO. I just don't have a tank that big.

My experience with getting finicky eaters to start to eat has been with gut loading brine shrimp with some selcon. Add the brine shrimp to the tank and watch the fish go into heavy-duty predation mode.

I have also heard to the garlic extract method, but have never tried it.

 

[Henry1]

A very big THANK YOU for all the excellent response. Apology for the late reply as i was out of town.

My Sohal is in a 120G - look like I will take James route to fine someone else when it outgrow it's present environment.

I will persist to try all the suggestions offered, tying different types of seaweeds to the rockwork, encourage it with marine flakes, spirulina, garlic soaking.

I'm wondering if it continue not to feed, could isolating him in a smaller tank help it 'learn' a new way of accepting food. Any thoughts?

 

[naesco]

Henry sometimes tangs get really neurotic at first and that makes us even more concerned. Do the different types of feeding often. Keep the lights off in the tank for a day and keep your hands out of the tank and you away from it.
I found that when a similar thing happened to me, I was causing it by my over concern.