Do the naso's spines grow back?

[dviper150]

I was going to order a naso from online website and they said they would need to shave the spines down to prevent the bag from popping during shipment. If they are shaved down, will they grow back or is that the end of those nice spines?

 

[IFbettas]

When I got my sailfin tang one of his spines was damaged and it still hasn't grown back after almost two years. I don't know if he was born like that, or if this would apply to a naso tang either.

I wouldn't buy one with its spines shaved off though. Most places leave them intact before shipping. Can I ask which retailer this was?

 

[dviper150]

i called up liveaquaria to ask and they said for a naso, it grows back with in a couple months at the most. I just wanted to see what everyone else thought or if anyone has had any experience with this with a naso.

 

[AquaKnight]

Liveaquaria does this? Yikes....


I'm pretty curious then how every LFS seems to get healthy, intact Nasos....

 

[Hormigaquatica]

Cutting back spines on a tang would be a Highly unusual step. Even if they managed to grow back (I presume it depends on exactly how the spines were treated), that leaves an already stressed animal open to a greater possibility of infection/death. I've shipped many a tangs, rabbits, even scorpionfish over the years, and never once found a good reason to 'modify' an animal in any way. Id find a new supplier if I were you.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

Liveaquaria does this? Yikes....


I'm pretty curious then how every LFS seems to get healthy, intact Nasos....

I doubt this. In fact, it sounds to me like which ever vendor made this claim, is fibbing to cover the fact that the fish had these "misfigures". To the OP, what vendor made this claim?

Regardless, I do not know, and am not speaking for vendors, it is just my opinion. Maybe they do. But, to answer the question, they will grow back.

 

[WWCC]

In a video i watched on youtube, it talked about fish from the divers to your LFS. They said and showed that when fish are caught usually tangs, they take a scissors and trim the dorsal spines to make for easy shipping. This was in Hawaii.

 

[anbosu]

I think it is fairly common on the larger tangs. A wholesaler I used to know said some people use nail clippers to trim them.

 

[Masterofnonsense]

If you read some of the Tang FAQs on wetwebmedia, they also talk about trimming down the spines to prevent injury to themselves or others during collection.

 

[dviper150]

Liveaquaria does this? Yikes....


I'm pretty curious then how every LFS seems to get healthy, intact Nasos....

I am sorry, I didn't explain it properly. I called them just to ask if the spines grow back after they are shaved and they said they do within a couple months. As for them trimming it down themselves, they don't. They ship them exactly how they get the specimen. If they get one that is shaved, they ship it as is. They don't modify it.

 

[Untamed12]

In short...I don't know if the spines grow back. If a large spine has been trimmed back, I can't see how it would ever achieve the same shape again as all the new growth would come from the body of the fish...not the tip of the spine.

If you are looking to achieve a beautiful specimen with lovely spines, I would recommend getting a juvenile and raising them up. The juvi's don't have their spines yet, so you get to enjoy watching them come in. It is much more rewarding and takes less than 2 years to have a stunning adult.

The only downside is that you won't be able to tell if you have a male or a female until over 1 year.

 

[dviper150]

In a video i watched on youtube, it talked about fish from the divers to your LFS. They said and showed that when fish are caught usually tangs, they take a scissors and trim the dorsal spines to make for easy shipping. This was in Hawaii.

I can't find that video...what did you search it as?

 

[GoingPostal]

Seems extreme to me, lots of fish have spines or could chew through bags and are shipped just fine. Maybe they need to use larger and multiple bags.

 

[curlykid]

I thought you were talking about the "spikes" before their tale. I see a lot of people who cut those, but I don't see a problem with the dorsal spines.

 

[dviper150]

yea i was talking about the spikes before the tail. Sorry if i confused you. I was ordering a naso from hawaii and the guy said he would need to cut the spikes down a little so it doesn't pop the bag.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

yea i was talking about the spikes before the tail. Sorry if i confused you. I was ordering a naso from hawaii and the guy said he would need to cut the spikes down a little so it doesn't pop the bag.

I have to say, I think thats absurd and ridiculous. Unnecessarily puts the fish in danger. If it were me, and this is just my opinion, if a seller told me they were gonna do that, I would tell them that I am not going support them for it, and take my business elsewhere. To catch, physically handle and restrain a fish to clip or file it is a tremendously unnecessary risk. Like someone mentioned, its funny how all the LFS and other sources can provide fishes without "popping" the bags.

 

[StripestheEel]

I would be hesitant to purchase any fish that has had a pair of scissors or similar go to it.

I would much prefer purchasing a juvenile and watching it grow up rather than an adult that has been clipped.

A) Who knows if it will grow back
B) If it does, will it grow back properly

 

[tooshay]

My guy's did grow back, but it has taken 5 years!

 

[dviper150]

doesn't it take less then 5 years if you start out w/ juvenile for the spikes to grow? 5 years seem a little too long for me.

I don't think it took 10 years for this tang to grow out the massive spikes in this video...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTwwivnoFNE

It says the tang is 10 years old but I am assuming the spikes started coming out once the streamers started. Those streamers are long too.

 

[noodle]

I've had my Naso for over four year, maybe close to five and he is just starting to get his spikes... How do you sex naso tangs?