Tang's Mouth glued shut

[alexwolf]

Well, crap. I was mounting some new frags, and what i thought was cured superglue wasnt. Yellow tang took a big bite out, and now his mouth is glued shut. I cant catch him either, anything I can do???? Wil the cleaer shrimp try to help? :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:

[SBreef]

TOO Funny Alex!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Reef69]

dayum...well, I dont think the cleaner shrimp will get it off..honestly...if u try to catch him..u might hurt him when u try to get the glue off..

[dan]

you've got to be kidding? never heard of that before.

[alexwolf]

dayum...well, I dont think the cleaner shrimp will get it off..honestly...if u try to catch him..u might hurt him when u try to get the glue off..


So, what do you suggest then?

[dan]

maybe his slim coat may work it off. the only thing you can do right is to leave him alone for a few days and see if that happens.

[Pacman]

I'd try a methylethylketone (MEK) dip, that usually gets superglue right off.

[cpreefguy]

****, that has to be the worst luck ever! I hope it turns out all right

[Chip]

Sorry to hear that. Hope he gets better.

[CD]

might hurt him when u try to get the glue off..


Yes, but if he doesn't get the glue off, the fish will starve to death...probably a much worse fate. :cry:
Oh man, this is so sad! Was it like a *huge* blob of glue? Would there be enough glue there to maybe slice through it with a razor without cutting the fish's flesh? I guess you could wait a day or two and see if it comes loose, but it probably won't.

Wendy

[Pacman]

Just kidding, in case anyone takes that comment seriously!

[alexwolf]

i just need to catch him.......I had mounted a frag, and according to the super glue instructions, it should be cured withing a minute. SO, I mounted it out of the water, let it sit for a minute, then put it in. Tang came right up and bit a chunk off. Now its stuck. This is sad, hes my oldest and biggest yellow :(

[Reef69]

what do i suggest?..honeslty nothing, ive worked alot with fish and they are very fragile..if you try to catch him and get it off with a razor he will keep moving and you might cut something else..he MIGHT try to get it off on his own..but who knows...

[don-n-sa]

thats too bad Alex...that is some serious bad luck.

I am not sure what I would do. Maybe give it a day or and hope that it works itself out if not then you must try and catch him. After that I would try the razor idea.-

[CD]

I mounted it out of the water, let it sit for a minute, then put it in.


I've done the same thing many times - this is just a freak accident, Alex. I don't think you did anything different than many of us have done before, but this will make me rethink the way I do it in the future. Maybe put the curing frag in a lg. bowl of tank water while the glue is curing? Dude, this is soooo sad! :cry:

Wendy

[Chip]

I just use epoxy so I don't have this issue.

[Jenn]

Gosh Alex, that really sucks! I guess I would just keep trying to catch him and see if you can help it come off gently. That poor tang, he must be freaking out.
I guess to try and find something good out of this, we all now know to wait longer than the drying time recommended and feed the fish real good first.

Sorry. :(

[alexwolf]

Hey Jenn, is that a moorish idol in your avatar?

[Jenn]

Yea. Got one in my tank too. :)

[alexwolf]

whats he eating?

[Jenn]

Just about anything. Loves the chopped up black mussels mixed with brine. Also feeds on pellets, flakes, and nori. He's a pig I tell ya!

[Jenn]

And whats up with your new avatar, and Pete's to match?

[alexwolf]

wow, I have rarely heard of anyone keeping these in captivity. Let me know if you ever wanna sell :)

[Jenn]

I got him from Eleyan and he is just one of the stronger ones I guess. If I ever decide to sell, I will tell you first.

[dan]

i wonder if i could do 1 or 2 in my new tank? what do you think Jenn?

[alexwolf]

thanks :)

[Jenn]

Dan, we will probably hear a few opinions on this, but given the right attantion which we are all capable of, I think you could definitely do it. They are somewhat of a fragile fish and shy AT FIRST, but once they feel at home, they do great! Heck, mine even feeds from my hands. I would also recommend other fish for them to school with. I can tell he feels more comfortable around the group.

[::pete::]

Dan, we will probably hear a few opinions on this, but given the right attantion which we are all capable of, I think you could definitely do it.

I agree, if you are willing to put in the time to care for a particular species I dont see a problem with trying. In my opinion it would be a problem if you continued trying without success. It is this trying (scientist or someone capable) that leads to the knowledge we all gain and the ability to keep them successfully! After all Im sure all our specimens would rather be in the ocean!

Alex ... Alex ... Alex ... :shock:

[Instar]

I wouldn't recommend a MI to anyone who glues fishes lips together. That doesn't work well in the feeding department.
That glue should work itself off with the slime and water in a day or two. I use water to get the glue off my fingers. Its not hard to peel off after keeping hands wet for a while. Are you using super glue gel?

[RobertG]

I wouldn't recommend a MI to anyone who glues fishes lips together. That doesn't work well in the feeding department.
That glue should work itself off with the slime and water in a day or two. I use water to get the glue off my fingers. Its not hard to peel off after keeping hands wet for a while. Are you using super glue gel?

Dito! Dont you have numerous tanks to let things sit in before going to the main tank?

Now he is a Super Rare Tang!

[alexwolf]

Dito! Dont you have numerous tanks to let things sit in before going to the main tank?

Hey Robert, Larry was joking.

Here is a pic of the tang, poor guy :(
http://www.deloreanowners.com/images/tangglue.jpg

[Jenn]

"I wouldn't recommend a MI to anyone who glues fishes lips together"
:-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

I can't believe I didn't think of that!

Alex, that poor fish. I wonder what he is thinking??? I am glad to hear that it will come off by itself. Please keep us posted.

[RobertG]

So was I , Poor guy.........I always put them in the frag tray before the main tank. I dont like putting the super glue slime coat in the main tank. This way it has a chance to be removed quicker by the skimmer. Are you using gel or the other stuff. Gel works best for me.

[alexwolf]

Gel, Loc Tite. I have never had a problem with it.

[Sherri]

Alex - I teach nails...and I use a lot of glue. I always get glue on my fingers and the oil in our skin always loosens the glue after a while...so with the tangs slime coat, hopefully it will lift off. But if it doesn't, I think you'd stress him out so much in catching and trying to get it off, that you could hurt or kill him. Give it a day or so and let the water/slime coat have a chance to do something first. Fish can go without eating for a few days with no prob anyway. Just don't stress him anymore than what he is. Hopefully the slime coat will help. Good luck.

[pickle311]

I read where someone did the same thing a while back on reef central, a few more people posted saying they had done it before too. Everyone said to just give it some time and it will work it's way off. None of the people reported losing their fish from it. Hope this helps ease your mind some and good luck.

[Ross]

Ive heard about this a couple times on RC. Dont do anything, it will come off in a couple days.

[captexas]

Wow, I ate Elmer's glue in grade school, wonder what super glue tastes like? LOL :-P

Yeppers, I'd say be patient and just keep an eye on the little fellow over the next day or two. If the water or slime coat don't make the glue come off, I'm sure the fish will do everything it can to work it loose itself. I think netting it and trying to remove it by hand will probably do more harm than good. Hopefully it will be back to it's normal self soon.

[NaCl_H2O]

Sorry, I couldn't resist :-D
Alex, hope the poor guy is all better soon!!

[cpreefguy]

Hey thats not funny! Wait, yeah it is! LOL :lol2:

[alexwolf]

LMAO!!!!! HAHAHAHHAAA too funny Steve!!!!! You have too much time on your hands......

[NaCl_H2O]

Alex, let us know how it turns out! The other day I was gluing a frag down with a glob of glue on it and I passed it in front of the return nozzle ... poof, little pieces of glue everywhere :o Didn't seem to cause any ill effects.

It would be nice to know if your Tang's situation corrects itself over time!

[alexwolf]

will do!

[Jenn]

Heh, very cute Steve.

[cvonseggern]

I'd guess the tang will probably be OK...I've superglued my fingers together a number of times, and as skin renews and sloughs off, the glue bond eventually just falls apart. I would expect the same to happen here if fish skin replaces itself constantly the same way ours does. I have no idea what the effects of the glue on his skin will be, but it probably won't stay glued long enough for him to starve imho.

Chris

[Jenn]

Alex, how is the tang today? Can you notice it starting to come off at all?

[alexwolf]

still glued shut. It seems he managed to eat a little through the other side though.

[Instar]

That pic -- looks like he's smoking something. If that happens again, I'd say he's hooked onto the stuff.

[alexwolf]

hahaha :-D :grin:

[AlexKilpatrick]

I think I can guess why this happened. How often do you put your hand in the tank to provide food compared with placing corals? The fish gets programmed that Big Hand == food. When you put the coral in, it just assumed you were providing some new kind of food.

Personally, I don't know why super glue works at all underwater. It doesn't make sense to me; I don't know how it can cure. But, I know it does work, and it works well. People are saying that the superglue will naturally fall off the tang's mouth. If that is the case, why doesn't it naturally fall off coral frags?

[Ram_Puppy]

Alex, if I am not mistaken, wate ris actually an accellerant that will speed up the curing process of superglue.

As for why it won't fall off a frag but it will fall off a fish, the frags bony skeleton is glued to a rock, nothing changes there, the fish howver, is growing new dermal tissue all the the time, along with it's slime coat, eventually, the old slime coat and skin will no longer have a firm bond to the fish, and poof... no more super glue...

[jroescher]

super glue = cyanoacrylate. It is an acrylic resin that reacts with certain water ions to cure. Hydroxyl ions? The more humidity in the air, the faster/better it cures.

[mathias]

wow.... those are some big words :)

[wtrujillo]

alex,

help this guy out i think he could use it.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=528176

[RobertG]

Whatever happen to the fish?

[alexwolf]

hes great, it came off during the tank switch. He doesnt bite at everything that comes into the tank now :)

[brewercm]

Glad the tang is doing good now. Have to admit this is the best thread I've read in quite a while.

[BrianC]

Most animals shed their skin. I don't know how necessary that would be for a fish... but I might not bother him hoping he will either adapt or it will fix itself.

[Polkster13]

Glad to know the fish is doing well and the mouth is working properly again. Like you said, maybe he learned a lessons and won't be so greedy next time something new gets plopped into the tank.