Blue Tang Is Itchy.. Hes Scratching

[StripesTheEel]

Howdy,

I have a blue tang who recently keeps scratching himself on a rock. I just noticed this morning that his tail.. just where the yellow hits the black of his tail that raw flesh is exposed due to the excessive scratching. I know that it'll heal with time and meds but Im just wondering what might be causing him to scratch or is this a normal behaviour for a blue tang.?

 

[Dr.Nate]

Does he have any spots (ich)? My blue tang did the same thing when he got it, I believe it's called "flashing". Keep an eye out for the dreaded ich!

 

[Salttanker]

Start soaking his food in Selcon to build immunity asap. This could lead to a secondary infection. Sometimes Tangs rub themselves to show dominance, but not to the point of rubbing raw. I would keep a close eye on him. Do have a QT ready to go in the event ich breaks out? If not, now is the time to start setting one up.

Mike

 

[schoeplein]

Also remember that tangs have a nice sharp spine at the bend point in their tails...

Of course by flesh I'm assuming you mean otherwise. Keep your water quality high is about all I can say. Do you have an Angel in your tank?

 

[StripesTheEel]

Salttanker - Selcon? I havent heard of that before.. What is it?

Schoeplein - My water quality is always high, no ich spots, i do have angels in my tank with him..!

It has started to heal somewhat.. but yeah..!

 

[Salttanker]

Selcon is used to build immunity by way of vitamins. Just soak it in his food and it will help heal him quicker, and reduce the possibility of secondary infection. It's good stuff.

Mike

 

[srgetz]

If you haven't seen spots it is probably not ICH or a parasite, but maybe a scratch that has become infected and open. This may be causing the "itch". The exposed area of skin is cause for concern though. 1st thing to do is increase the water quality - water changes will lower bacteria and what feeds them. I would perform 3-4 water changes over the next 10 days or so. Also clean any filters and waste, and use carbon or a poly filter if possible to remove doc and nitrates. Be sure the new sw is mixed for 24hrs to aerate. Feed with a vitamin supplement as they said.

Meds are not needed for something like this - and never in the main tank. Meds are usually a bandaid for a larger problem like water quality, lack of maintenance or lack of quarantining - so meds should be a last resort only. Give it some time and care and he should recover fine.

 

[Salttanker]

Meds are not needed for something like this

Correct. However, Selcon will help regardless if it is ich or a secondary infection. It will also help heal wounds faster than without it. I use it ocassionally in my tank to make sure they are getting enough vitamins in their diet.

Mike

 

[StripesTheEel]

its starting to heal without meds at the moment as i havent had time to get any selcon.. ive did my water change.. my cleaner wrasse seems to be picking off the dead skin to make way for new skin to grow so i will track down this selcon stuff..!

 

[srgetz]

Very nice looking tank there StripesTheEel. It appears to be a 65 or 75 gallon (~250 liters)? The only thing is, they are large (and growing) fish = too much nutrients in a small space. To keep the nutrients down you'll have to be extra vigilent with water changes, a very good quality skimmer is an absolute must (if you don't have one). As said before, carbon and poly filters also help - but all of this should be done regularly knowing now that there's such a full house in there. Glad to see he's getting better

 

[StripesTheEel]

skimmer - check
water changes - check

yeah im a tad bit overstocked but theyve all been in the tank a year or so now and i havent had any probs.. but im not adding any more fish.. moreso taking fish out.. when my emperor angel and zebra sailfin tang get too big im donating them to my local lfs..

and im glad everyone recognises the hard work we all put into our tanks!!

thanks