Naso Advice

[steve-s]

They are also flat, not raised at all.

LOL... sounds like you might be trying to treat something that nature intended but I'd wait on a pic to be sure.

Cheers
Steve

 

[revhtree]

LOL....I hope so!

I'll try and get a pic.

Thanks!

 

[revhtree]

Ok the pic is going to be a problem. I have had the tang for a week now. If I get 3ft from the tank, or sometimes walk in the room, the tang goes behind the lr.

Also, the tang will not eat much that I feed. It picks around alot on things, but will not touch the nori I put in the veggie clip. It will not seem interested at all. Should I be concerned about it's health?

 

[steve-s]

Ok the pic is going to be a problem. I have had the tang for a week now. If I get 3ft from the tank, or sometimes walk in the room, the tang goes behind the lr.

Then the only thing I would suggest is making an "educated" best guess. If you believe your original assumption on the ich was not accurate you can easily remove the Cupramine but be sure you leave the tang in the QT as a precaution for the remainder of a normal QT period.

Also, the tang will not eat much that I feed. It picks around alot on things, but will not touch the nori I put in the veggie clip. It will not seem interested at all. Should I be concerned about it's health?

Try softening some broccoli fluorets and soaking them in garlic extract or even some mysis. The main concern is that the fish eats and doesn't really matter what in the beginning. Once it's accustomed to you feeding it can then be swapped to a more nutritious food.

Cheers
Steve

 

[revhtree]

Just boil the broccoli in water, and soak it in the extract?

Can I get the extract from the market?

How big a piece should I put in the tank?

Thanks Steve!

 

[steve-s]

Just boil the broccoli in water, and soak it in the extract?

A quick zap in the microwave should do and then a soak in tank water/garlic.

Can I get the extract from the market?

Health foods stores, the LFS or simpley crush a clove of garlic.

How big a piece should I put in the tank?

Start with something the size of your thumb to minimize waste. You can always add more.

Cheers
Steve

 

[revhtree]

Ok I got a pic! I cropped it and put it on a black background, and added the arrows so that you could see exactly what I am talking about.

The tang also will not eat, and stays in the same spot all the time hidden in the shadow. :|

 

[steve-s]

I can't really tell by the pic it's not clear enough to be 100%, sorry. It does not honestly appear to be C. irritans to me (as I said though I can't truely tell) but rather the lower one appears to be fungal and the upper one might easily be from collection. Sorry I can't be more help but you will need to make the call.

How soon after getting the fish did you notice these area's and has there been any changes/improvement since adding the Cupramine?

As far as eating, as I said do not concern yourself so much with nutrition at this point. Keep in mind that any type of copper will have some affect on the fish's appetite. The goal is to get the fish eating no matter what that is, even if that ends up being brine. Remember that foods can be fortified and once the Tang starts accepting foods, it doesn't take much after that to switch it.

Cheers
Steve

Cheers
Steve

 

[revhtree]

The priblem is Steve that when I add the food, and I have tried veggies, brine, pellets, flake, it makes no attempt for it or even moves for that matter.

As for the spots, I noticed them the first day, and they have not gotten better or worse.

Thanks.

 

[steve-s]

The priblem is Steve that when I add the food, and I have tried veggies, brine, pellets, flake, it makes no attempt for it or even moves for that matter.

Could be the tang is still reacting to you mabye? Might try a floating feeder like the ones for discus and placing some garlic soaked foods in there and see if that helps. Have you checked with the LFS to see what they used?

As for the spots, I noticed them the first day, and they have not gotten better or worse.

If it's the same two spots and no others I would be inclined to think fungal or lympho. Both of which will not improve as long as the tang is not eating.

Cheers
Steve

 

[Sparky]

Hey Rev, have you tried Nori? My Naso loves it. At first he would not eat it from the "Nemo" clip because I think he was afraid of it. So I put some under a rock so it floated out in the current and he slowly started to eat it. Meantime I left the "Nemo" in the tank so he would get used to it being there. It helped me. Now he will take food from my hand without hesitation. He will eat from the "Nemo" clip too.

HTH

Mike

 

[revhtree]

Ya I have left the clip in the tank for almost everyday, and the nori just sits there and never gets touched. I have the nemo clip too, that would scare me!

Anyway, how would I treat for a fungal problem, and can it spread to other fish as I have a perc in with it?

Thanks guys.

 

[revhtree]

Could it be this? I hope not.

Micrsporidian Infection-
Signs of this parasitic disease include white patches, erratic swimming, loss of appetite, emaciation, and listlessness. Often caused by the protozoa Pleistophora species. Unfortunately, there is no known cure for this disease. The best thing to do if this is positively identified is to separate the fish into a quarantine tank away from other possible victims.

 

[steve-s]

Anyway, how would I treat for a fungal problem, and can it spread to other fish as I have a perc in with it?

Most "fungal" problems are usually bacterial in nature so a gram negative antibiotic will usually do the trick. The best first step before using meds is a few good sized water changes with well aged SW and fortified feedings. Typically if the fishs immune system can be boosted and the water can be kept low of DOC, the fish can heal without meds. If not then the antibiotic would be the next step. Fungus and/or lympho are not life threatening so there is ample time. The perc shouldn't be affected at all.

Could it be this? I hope not.

Micrsporidian Infection-
Signs of this parasitic disease include white patches, erratic swimming, loss of appetite, emaciation, and listlessness. Often caused by the protozoa Pleistophora species. Unfortunately, there is no known cure for this disease. The best thing to do if this is positively identified is to separate the fish into a quarantine tank away from other possible victims.

That I have no idea. I have never seen it in fish before or studied it so I have no real reference. :?

Cheers
Steve

 

[revhtree]

Thanks again Steve.

I will do all that you have suggested.

I will keep you updated.

 

[revhtree]

Well came home today to find the tang (mango) dead.

What a shame. The store I purchased it from is the best store around as far as quality. Nice store, and the prices are high, but it is a clean store. I dont know what happened to my 1 1/2 week old, $79.99 tang.

Trying to get some store credit, but I dont know if I will. :|

I dont know Steve what am I doing wrong?

I have lost $230.00 in about 5 fish since I started 5 mons ago.
All but 1 in QT.

 

[steve-s]

Sorry for the loss REv

I dont know Steve what am I doing wrong?

I have lost $230.00 in about 5 fish since I started 5 mons ago.
All but 1 in QT.

You don't necessarily need to do anything wrong. The sad fact is some fish are going to die no matter what steps you take. To actually narrow down every possible cause without an proper lab, it's near impossible and more or less "educated" guess work in some cases.

You have been quite responsible and done things correctly from what I can tell. I would not look to yourself as the cause. As I said anywhere from collection to your door, something could have caused this and has nothing to do with you.

Cheers
Steve

 

[srgetz]

Sorry Rev, I was afraid we would get bad news on him soon since he would not even acknowledge the food. These guys (tangs in general) are voracious eaters. Ich did not kill him in 1.5 weeks, I would venture to guess either cyanide exposure or an internal parasite (or Micrsporidian) did him in (assuming your water quality is good), and that accounted for the lethargy and lack of appetite. This was not your fault. He did not aquire this in your care, he was sold to you this way...not fair.

Take your time and get another tang, it's the best thing you can do right now...but find another supplier. Start with a nice healthy specimen that eats. Having an ich treatment like copper (& test kit) ready is also good. As you probably know, you'll have to drain, rinse and dry out the qt to let whatever was in there die off. Start with a good fish (the toughest part), qt, give him good water quality and plenty of swimming room (and hiding places), offer a variety of food (they do not take long to eat) and you will be rewarded with a happy & healthy tang! I have a cool little hippo that had ich initially and was treated with hypo and is doing great now.

Take care and keep your spirits up

Stephan

 

[Sparky]

Sorry to hear about the Tang, Rev.
Basically the same thing happened to me with my Butterflyfish. I purchased him and my Naso tang together from the LFS I go to all the time. I watched him in their tanks for almost 2 weeks every other day. I saw them both eat. They were in excellent condition when I picked them up. They lived in QT for 4 weeks with no problems. After I introduced both of them at the same time to my 125 gal, they got along fine with everything in the tank. 2 months later the Butterflyfish was dead. The Naso Tang is still going strong to this day. Just don't know what happened.

Rev, you are one of those kind of people that will go that extra mile to make sure you do everything right for your friends, including us humans...LOL
I doubt very much that you are to blame for any of your losses. My guess is that you are just having some bad luck with fish. Things will get better for you soon, I know it.

Like I said, I purchase my fish at least a week in advance of taking them home. If you have a good LFS, they will "hold" that fish for at least a week for you and feed it for you so you can see it eat. This is what I do. The only times I didn't do it this way was at the very beginning, (because I didn't know any better) and just a few weeks ago when I bought the sea horses, although I saw these horse time and again over a period of 3 weeks. I just decided to buy them. Not like me. This hobby did one good thing for me, it gave me patience. Something I never had before.

Anyway, things are going to get better for you Rev, I can feel it.

Mike

 

[Terry B]

This is a tough fish to get started, but they can live for many years if well cared for. They need lots of plant based foods. Ocean nutrition has 3 types of dried algae. Your Naso will probably eat the brown leafy algae. You may have to soak the brown leafy algae with a little garlic. You could try a little Romaine lettuce (freeze it first). Frozen spirulina is another good food. They will eat mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, worms, frozen pacifica plankton, etc., once they start to eat.

This species suffers from confinement stress when kept in a small aquarium. The recommended minimum length for their aquarium is 6 foot. They are active swimmers. They appreciate a lot of water flow. Make sure that the fish has plenty of hiding places in the beginning so they feel secure. PVC pipe works well in a quarantine tank. They commonly have white spots that they display when stressed. I doubt the spots that are in the photo are a disease. If the fish is in quarantine then keep the lights low, give it lots of PVC pipe and stay away from it.

Reducing the salinity can help some fish to start to eat. Osmotic imbalance is part of stress in fish. Reducing the salinity helps them to recover osmotic balance more quickly. If they are out of balance, they usually won’t eat. This link may be helpful and there are many other good articles in the same library.
http://www.marineaquariumadvice.com/feed_your_fish_better.html

Cheers,
Terry B