Hippo Tang Ich Issue

[gwolfe]

Hello,
I have a 20 Gallon Long Saltwater with a hippo tang. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE HIPPO TANG IS ONLY IN THERE FOR SIX MONTHS, AND IT WILL BE MOVED TO A 300 GALLON SALTWATER AQUARIUM THAT IS BEING BUILT AS WE SPEAK. That said, my hippo tang keeps getting ich. I have used various copper treatments (don't worry, I don't have any invertebrates) and they don't seem to work long term. Quarantine is not an option, as I have no extra tanks. So, what treatment could I buy at a fish store and usually is effective. My temperature fluctuates at the most 3 degrees, either going up or down.
Thanks in advance!
-Garrett

 

[iDream]

The reason the tang keeps getting ich is because it is in the small tank. It keeps swimming back and forth and doesn't have the room it needs to swim.

I'm not bashing you at all I'm just saying that's the reason and will keep being the reason until it gets into the new tank

Any way a friend or local store can hold it for you in the meantime?

 

[Flake]

I think the only thing you could buy at the store to stop your fish from getting ich is a bigger tank. Know that's not what you wanna hear but it's true.

 

[gwolfe]

I have a question. I bought the tang from a well-trusted fish store and they only sell the highest quality of fish. The tang was on sale for $20. I bought it because it was on sale, the owner told that I could house a hippo tang for up to a year in a 20 gallon, and that I knew it was coming from a five star fish store. My question is, can a hippo tang be in a 20 gallon for up to a year? The hippo tang is certainly moving in six months to a 300 gallon, but is this true?
Thanks,
Garrett

 

[Flake]

I wouldn't leave a hippo tang in a 20g for 6 months. I don't think a 20g is appropriate for them at any point in their life.

 

[iDream]

Unless you bought it <1" I don't think so. Even then I don't think I'd believe that, jmo

 

[gwolfe]

The reason the tang keeps getting ich is because it is in the small tank. It keeps swimming back and forth and doesn't have the room it needs to swim.

I'm not bashing you at all I'm just saying that's the reason and will keep being the reason until it gets into the new tank

Any way a friend or local store can hold it for you in the meantime?

Ummm, the store can hold it for me, but not a friend. But, it's a really long drive to this store. There are many other stores, but this is the only store I trust.
Will it live okay in a 20 gallon for just 6 more months?
Thanks,
Garrett

 

[gwolfe]

Unless you bought it <1" I don't think so. Even then I don't think I'd believe that, jmo

Yes, I bought a little bit less than 1 inch. Do you think it will live?

 

[iDream]

It might live, but it definitely wouldn't stop getting diseased. If you're LFS is great I'd trust them to hold it way more than keeping it myself in a tank much too small for it.

I know you don't want to hear that and you really have no other choice but that's what's gotta happen

 

[Innovator]

Ich is a parasite, it doesn't survive based on tank size. Kill the parasite and your animals will be free of ich regardless of enclosure size. That being said, do the fish a favor and give it another home (trade in, give it away, or sell it) as I'm sure the fish store will have shipped in hundreds of tangs by the time you're ready for another one

 

[gwolfe]

Hey all,
This is an update on the tang. The tang was taken back today, as well as some other fishes. I also took back my pajama cardinal and chromi. Now, all I have left is a clownfish. Now I don't have to worry about my tank being overstocked.

 

[gwolfe]

Hey guys,
I just got back yesterday from something huge. I have been out for 2 weeks. I went all over California to ask if I can keep a hippo tang in 20 Gallons. Out of 167 of them, 165 of them said yes, I can. Some said short term yes, and others said longterm yes, but it will be more difficult and this can be the only fish I have in the tank. Tomorrow I'm going to Oregon, to every single fish store to ask the same question, "Can I keep a Hippo Tang in a 20 Gallon Saltwater Aquarium?".

 

[melosu58]

Not to be ugly but I dont care if you told me that 165 out of 167 said the world was flat. The facts are the facts. A tang can not live in a 20 gallon tank without suffering harm from the stress of staying in a small tank. It will eventually suffer from HLLE, Ich or poor health. I`ll trust my knowledge and experience over those 165.

 

[slitherbomb]

Blue hippo tangs can get over a foot long..... It wouldn't be able to turn around...