Behavior of new tangs

[sbaecker]

I recently purchased a purple and a hippo tang. They have been in my 20 gallon quarantine tank for the last 13 days. The tank also contains a few small pieces of live rock with a little green hair algae attached. The tangs have eaten quite a bit of the algae. The purple tang developed a cloudy eye the first week but that cleared up within a few days. Three days ago, I noticed that the hippo tang was picking at the live rock and then would rub his side against the same rock. I have checked his body and I do not see any white spots or anything that looks out of the ordinary. A few times I thought I saw the purple tang doing the same thing but the rubbing on the rock is very subtle. It just looks as if the purple tang is mimicking the hippo tang. Again I have not seen any spots on the purple tang. The two fish get along very well and stay very close to each other. They are both eating well and very active. I have been feeding them some Seaweed Selects, brine shrimp and some flake food.

I have checked the water quality:

PH 8.1
Ammonia 0
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 0
Alk 9 dKH
Temp 79

Is this normal behavior or do they have some type of disease problem?

Thanks for your help,
Scott

 

[dizzy]

sbaecker,

I would say there is about a 90% chance that the tangs are rubbing because you are in the early stages of a protozoan infestation. Bare tanks usually work best for quarantine, because medications work better without calcareous material present, which absorb them out of the water.
Despite its drawbacks, copper is still the medication of choice for protozoan parasites for most people. Do some homework on diseases ASAP. Dipping ( formalin 3 or even freshwater ) and moving the fish into parasite free tanks will help.

 

[marinelife]

I agree, start a treatment....

 

[Minh Nguyen]

Your quarantine tank is most likely too small for the two fish. Quarantine in this case is no good because it cause the fish to be sick.
I would just treat the fish with either hyposalinity or copper. Depends on how big your fish are, one of the fish mention is too cramped in a 20 g. Putting two together does cause lots more stress to the fish.
Get two bare tank and put one in each and treat. After adequate treatment, you cna release them in your maintank. I think two weeks with copper or 4 weeks with hyposalinity. I never treat or quarantine my new fish. I just make sure that the fish I have is reasonably healthy when I bought it.

 

[ophiuroid]

Yes, I would agree. I think that keeping the two tangs confined in a small tank for long periods is causing some stress, and is somewhat counterproductive. Two separate q tanks would be better, so long as you can avoid any ammonia spike in one of the tanks (which is one of the great mistakes people make with hospitals/q tanks...just setting one up overnight and throwing the fish in ---> the situation becomes even more stressful to the fish as the tank cycles). Anyway, that is JMO.

 

[naesco]

Tangs sometime do that because they have had their weak skin damaged in transit or in netting.
I would recommend you do the garlic extract regimen as a preventative to ich and mild bacterial infection (the eye) now.
In the future it would be much easier on you and the fish to buy one fish at a time one month apart unless you have a large tank.
If you decide to use copper remove the rock from the QT.
If you do not decide to use copper because there is not evidence of ich or bacterial disease (check closely), remove the stress by placing them in your main tank but you must do the garlic regimen.

 

[dizzy]

naesco,

I'm not wanting to disagree with you, but if a tang starts rubbing 13-days after you bring it home it is more likely to be a protozoan parasite infestation, than some time-delayed reaction to being netted. The cloudy eye could have been caused by netting but he said it has already cleared up, so there would no loner be a need to treat for that.

I haven't gotten in the garlic cures ich camp as of yet. It may help slow it down, but I suspect Scott is entering a more serious phase of Amyloodinium ocellatum. It is much easier to treat this disease in the early stages than to wait until the fish is about dead. Scott can do as he sees fit, but I recommend dipping and exposure to citrated copper sulfate.

Scott please go out and buy yourself a copy of "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist" by Robert Fenner. It is fun reading and it will save you money, and some of your present or future fishe's lives as well.

 

[naesco]

I think there is ample evidence about the benefit of garlic extract as a preventative or to treat a mild infection as may be the case here.
To subject these fish to further stress of being together, and undergoing a chemical treament with a damaging chemical is overkill IMO.
If ich was present it would have shown by now. Like I stated the reefer needs to check very carefully for any evidence of ich and if none exists balance the chance of ich with garlic treatment v. continued stress in that QT.
If this reefer does not use garlic I would recommend the fish stay in the QT and be observed for ich before chemicals are used on them.

We differ on the approach on this one but you are right on the money on your book recommendation. The bible for all reefers IMO.