Swollen Fin

[tuwhada]

I have a lollipop tang and this morning I noticed that he was not using one of his pectoral fins. It seems to be swollen at the base and the fin is slightly whiteish instead of clear like the other one.
The tank has been up and running for almost a year and I have had him the entire time. water quality is perfect and all the other fish are doing fine. Other then this one fin everything looks awesome. The only change has been the recent loss of a green chromis. I had lost one and replaced it with a few others and have since lost them to that wound thing that chromis get for some reason. But no one else has another problems.
Any ideas on what it is or what I can do for him.
He is a very active fish and the only thing I can think of is the possiblity that he banged it while swimming with one of the other fish but I am still uncertain. Oh and just so you know it is a 90 gal with a porc puffer, lunare wrasse, fire clown, filefish, regal angel, hawkfish and 2 chromis.

Thanks
Christina

 

[quarryshark]

The Puffer or the Filefish may have bitten the fin. Don't know, but it sounds like a physical injury of some sort. Lace his food with some zoe or selcon and see if it doesn't clear up on its own. If it gets worse, do you have a qt tank?

 

[tuwhada]

I don't right now. If anyone bit him I think it might have been the lunare. My puffer is REALLY shy and the filefish does not mess with anyone he is much smaller then the tang. My wrasse is pretty big, biggest fish in the tank, the 2 of htem chase each other around alot. It was strange b/c I did not notice it right away this morning and I saw him chasing one of my chromis which he does ALL the time and then I noticed it so I am thinking maybe he just caught it on a rock???

I have vitamin c, and vitachem and garlic. I don't think I have zoe right now and I have never heard of selcon what is that?
What should I look for in it getting worse. ANd now I don't have a qt tank setup but I can probably try to finagle one if necessary I would rather not unless he reallys tarted to deteriorate. I don't know if I could catch him. He is good at hiding and I have like 75 lbs of live rock in that tank so it is hard to catch him. Trust me I tried.

Thanks!

Christina

 

[steve-s]

Um... Lolipop tang

Considering you keep primarily carnivors, what do you feed the tang? Loss of dorsal fin control can be a sign of poor nutrition.

Cheers
Steve

 

[tuwhada]

it was not the dorsal fin it was one of his pectoral fins.

As for diet, varied... I feed the whole tank a variety of foods, mostly frozen not too much flake did not like what it did to my water quality. I have about 4-5 different foods, emerald entree, marine cuisine, saltwater multipack, angel butterfly forumula, mysis shrimp, spirulina brine shrimp, krill clam. I have plenty of algea on the back glass that he he pics at regulaarly and when I remember he gets algae sheets.
No sign of later line on him either.

Christina

 

[steve-s]

Sorry, my bad. I misread the sentence

Cheers
Steve

 

[tuwhada]

no biggie... I like the suggestions b/c I am pretty perplexed by this. I mean he has been so healthy for quite some time. He had ich and some lateral line when I first got him but that was a LONG time ago and he is nice and fat and doing great.

Anyway I checked on him this morning. THe base of the fin looks slightly less swollen and I saw him use it a few times. Overall health still seems fine.
My concern is the actualy fin. When you lokk at his fin you have the base which has color and then the rest of the fin is suppsoed to be transparent like if you know what I mean and his is cloudy???? I worry about that. I don't know if that could be injury as well or what.

Christina

 

[steve-s]

As Quarryshark indicated above it could easily have been injured. If so it should clear up in time. Add the vitamins as he has suggested and also do a few good sized water changes with well aerated/aged SW.

Cheers
Steve