Advice about my new Naso Tang...

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
See posts with no answers
Animal-Chin

Animal-Chin

Aquarium Advice Addict
Joined
Nov 8, 2011
Messages
1,315
Location
Vancouver BC
On Friday I bought a Naso tang. He's looking healthy, swimming around my QT tank but hides when he sees me. Thing is, he doesn't eat. Wont take in any frozen food, no pellets and I cant tell if he's eating the seeweed or if it's just being broken up and sucked into the HOB filter.

No signs of ich at all.

Should I move him to the display so he can start feeling comfortable and picking at the rock at least? How long do I just let him starve in the QT before I move him? Should I not move him until he eats? I just wonder if my 30 inch QT is the thing stressing him out?
 
I would not think the seaweed is being broken up unless the Naso is eating it. Any that I have ever purchased will go several hours with breaking up.

Could you pull a rock or two from your DT that has algae growing for it to peck on? If it ends up not showing signs of Ich, that rock could go back in with the Tang.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice
 
Nope, my rockwork is covered in coral. My QT has about 10 pounds of rock in it but it's really clean. The naso is always picking at it though, like it wants to eat. I've attached nory sheets to the rock with elastic but have never seen him eat any. He could be eating but only when he doesn't sense motion outside, he seems quite shy still...

I don't know, maybe i'm over stressing...
 
Sounds like you are the most stressed in the situation. If you start loosing scales or see white spots on your face, you should QT and dose copper based medication. :)
 
A few of fish i bought were like this in qt. Keep him in qt because if there is anything wrong you will infect the rest of your tank.
Keep trying but with small amounts of food and keeping ammonia down.
Try bits of brine shrimp or mysis. Usually the first thing i can get them to eat!
Dont panic if he is trying to graze half the battle is already won!
Good luck




Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice
 
A Naso can go a lot longer than you might think without eating. At this point, I don't see a problem. Consider the perspective of this fish. He's freaked out from being transferred. I've had some fish seem right at home the first day in my tank, eating flakes. Others, like a Tomini Tang that took 2 months before he stopped pacing the tank endlessly. If you give him time, and have a 6 foot, hopefully 8 foot DT, he will settle down. Best thing you can do is leave him be.

I'd give him time to calm down and get hungry before overpolluting his water with food and causing an ammonia spike which will be devastating and a self fulfilling prophecy.
 
i regretfully went through SIX naso before finding one that lasted more than 2 weeks. I have said in the past I would never try a fish more than twice but I just love the naso soo much I had to do it. The one I have currently is a big baby though, he swims away if I get close to the tank without food in my hand, he is scared of the firefish he is in with too. I find these fish to be extra particularly difficult to keep. I have four other tangs in my big tank, a hippo as well and they are the biggest stress/ich magnets out there, but this naso has them all beat. i can';t tell you how much sleep I've lost over the darn naso's. lol My advice would be to leave him where he is for as long as it takes for him to eat and look calm. eating is the number one thing, if you can get him eating you have half the battle won. :) Have you tried a mixture of all sorts of frozen food? Even the algae ones? One of them is bound to get his attention and once you find what he likes you can variate it to get him eating other things.
Good luck!!! Just relax and let the fish settle in.
 
Ya i felt the QT was stressing him out so i moved him to the 6 foot tank. He's swimming and actung normal but only grazes on rocks. Still wont take any frozen but im gonna keep trying.
 
Mine was like that when I first got him. Now he will follow me around the tank and I can hand feed him almost anything. If he is picking at the rocks he is probably getting a tiny bit off them.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice
 
Start it on live- Get black worms and/or a couple spoon fulls of brine. That should get it going. I just went through the same thing with my blue throat trigger...It took him 3 days to eat live, and another two before he eats everything I throw at him. ;)
 
Mysis shrimp or even better live brine will get him started. They are very shy sometimes and need good hiding spaces. A calm environment, proper swimming room, appropriate stocking and good feeding is all thats required. Tangs are a whole different game than most other fish. JMO. :)


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice
 
Some good news. 2 days ago he started eating frozen food. I mixed Brine, mysis, krill and plankton and fed the tank. First feeding I saw him eat at least 4 without spitting them out. Fed the tank 2 hours later and at least 4 more. He's grazing like crazy, always pecking at the rock but I don't really have much algae in the tank so I don't think he's getting much nutrients that way. He ate frozen again yesterday but only small amounts, it's like he's shy. My tank only has 2 clowns, a square spot anthias and a leopard wrasse so he's in a very calm tank with LOTS of hiding spots. Hes out all the time tough until feeding, its like he's scared of the floating food...lol

Last night I pulled cheato out of the fuge and attached it to a rock. I saw him peck at that too.

I'm getting there, hopefully he hangs in there!!! He seems super happy though, swimming around being active. No signs of stress...
 
Yesterday was HUGE! He's now eating like a pig. Mysis, krill, brine and nori! What a relief, I've had such a hard time with my fish since setting up the 125 I don't know that I could bare to see another one go...lol
 
That's great. Don't know what other fish you had trouble with, just realize that the naso isn't a beginner fish. There are advanced aquarists that have trouble with them. They get big and are very active. Easier fish will result in less deaths and increases your confidence. JMO

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+43+357&pcatid=357


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

K
New goldfish harassing my black moor
Replies
7
Views
603
KatI
K
B
hippo tang has spots
Replies
5
Views
798
Colin_T
C
L
African clawed frog diet help
Replies
1
Views
527
Andy Sager
Andy Sager
F
Betta keeps spitting food!
Replies
3
Views
350
Andy Sager
Andy Sager
L
fish dying? euthanization?
Replies
2
Views
380
Andy Sager
Andy Sager

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom