Lethargic Yellow Tang

[fixedwing]

Thanks for all the replies and great input. I'm over two weeks in on a copper treatment, so I'd hate to change it mid coarse to hypo and have a setback. I just need to dial in the amount of drops I need to maintain the .5 after each water change.

I put the garlic soaked seaweed into the tank this morning and he seemed very enticed, but I still didn't see him eat any. That's not to say he hasn't when I wasn't around. The soaked seaweed made a mess though, so I need to find some that will stick together. Good thing I'm doing a water change today ;). SF, you mentioned you don't have an issue with your nori falling apart, which you purchased from HEB, which brand did you get? On a positive note, he seems to be a little more active, so maybe it's just a matter of time before he indulges.

I'll keep you posted.

[Southern Flame]

Thanks for all the replies and great input. I'm over two weeks in on a copper treatment, so I'd hate to change it mid coarse to hypo and have a setback. I just need to dial in the amount of drops I need to maintain the .5 after each water change.

I put the garlic soaked seaweed into the tank this morning and he seemed very enticed, but I still didn't see him eat any. That's not to say he hasn't when I wasn't around. The soaked seaweed made a mess though, so I need to find some that will stick together. Good thing I'm doing a water change today ;). SF, you mentioned you don't have an issue with your nori falling apart, which you purchased from HEB, which brand did you get? On a positive note, he seems to be a little more active, so maybe it's just a matter of time before he indulges.

I'll keep you posted.

i bought the nori at HEB it's in the sea food section

[fixedwing]

Sherita,

You mentioned that angels are sensitive to copper treatment. My next round of QTing will be an angel of some sort. I'm thinking about a Watanabe or a Shallowtail. Would it not be a good idea to copper treat these guys? I was going to take a little different approach and was going to start seeding some ceramic blocks today and was going to give them a month to soak. Hoping this would cut down on the frequency of water changes. Does anyone have any experience with ParaGuard?

[Southern Flame]

That's the nori I get

[Sherita]

I don't have any experience with paraguard, so I can't help there.

Many angels are very sensitive to copper, and will not survive treatment with it. If you are going to qt an angel, either go with hyposalinity (1.009 for four weeks, or at least two weeks after you see the last spot on the fish, whichever is longer), or look into using some of the quinine solutions. Wetwebmedia.com has several extensive articles on the use of quinine for ich, as well as a lot of good info on the use of hyposalinity.

I use hyposalinity for ich for anything that needs it. I have an extensive qt system, and everything I buy goes into qt before it goes in the tanks. I only treat if there is an issue, otherwise they are just observed for at least 4 weeks. To ensure no cross contamination, don't use any nets, hoses, pumps, buckets etc between tanks. I have a separate set of those items that are used just for my qt, and nothing else.

Quick notes on ich, and ich treatment: if you do not remove ALL the fish from your dt during ich treatment, you might as well not remove any of them. If one fish in the dt has ich, they all have it, whether you can see it or not (ich infests the gills, and you sure can't see it there). To have an ich free system, you must qt all new fish and corals religiously for at least four weeks. If you have ich in your dt and you have removed your fish for treatment, the tank needs to stay fallow (with NO fish, or any other new additions) for a minimum of 8 weeks. And, there are no "reef safe" treatments that are effective.

Hyposalinity cannot be used for sharks and rays. Copper cannot be used on eels, and many tangs, butterflies and angels also respond very poorly to it. Quinine based treatments seem to be tolerated well by all tangs, butterflies and angels, I don't know how well it would be tolerated by sharks or eels.

Good luck in your battle with ich, it's a reefkeepers nightmare. And all it takes is one slip, and you are right back where you started.

And despite vehement claims otherwise, it is very possible to have an ich free system. But you have to work at it.

[fixedwing]

Sherita,

My DT is actually going on line in the next week or two and the fish I have in the QT now will be the first set of fish to put in there.

The fish I have in QT have never had visual signs of parasites and I'm going to be an advocate of QTing everything I get for my new system. I've suffered big loses in my past setups and don't want that to happen again. My tank is going to be more coral driven, but I'd like to keep a few fish for the obvious reasons.

In addition to QTing my fish I'm also going to QT all my corals. I have three sets of the basic items so I don't cross contaminate. QTing is a little time consuming in the front end, but I'm a firm believer it will pay off.

I've seen the yellow nibble a little bit, so hopefully he'll eat when I feed a little later today.

[Sherita]

I think we all get bit in the fanny at some point about qt. Been there, done that.........lost a ton of livestock.

It sure sounds like you are on the right track to a healthy tank. Hopefully the yellow will decide to end his hunger strike soon.

[fixedwing]

Well I tried posting an update yesterday, but the site was down.

I've noticed, what appears to be some kind of an erosion, appearing around his eye and head. I'd say the color is a lighter orange. I've included a photo with some circles around the areas of concern. Sorry, it was the best pic I could get, he wouldn't sit still enough. Is this anything to worry about and if so, what would it be?

Throughout the day yesterday I never saw him chow down, but he did pick a few times. His behavior is about the same. Could it just be the size of the QT tank or maybe the copper? I have a 20L partitioned off in the center, so he only has a 15" x 12" area. I was thinking about partitioning the tank the long way or corner to corner, allowing a longer swimming area. Do you think this would help? He was at the LFS for approximately 3-4 weeks in a tank not much bigger than the area he's in now.

[Southern Flame]

I would def stop the copper treatment IMHO I don't really trust the stuff as its a poision and could be why your tang isn't eating its suppressing his appetite. I personally would monitor him in copper free water and watch his behaviour to see if there are any changes. And the erosion sorta sounds like HLLE