dots on blue tang HELP

[Tuscaquatics]

I know you've already got a bunch of tanks, but the best thing is to have a completely separate tank for QT.

Yes, blue tangs are known for ich, but so are powder-browns.

 

[rayn]

Ahhh, but I do. 3 of them all 29 gal. Own lights, own filters, own heaters. One is even dedicated for cupramine so I don't mix them up.

 

[Tuscaquatics]

Ahhh, but I do. 3 of them all 29 gal. Own lights, own filters, own heaters. One is even dedicated for cupramine so I don't mix them up.

OK, so you're just trying to figure out what to do with the rest of the fish in the tank if you have to leave it fallow?

 

[czinn]

In a 120 the clowns should fight for a day or to then pick sides and stay there till feeding time it is what happens in my 55 with a orange pair and a black pair. Yes tangs do get these problems out of the blue. But the normal pull throw. You need a tank for the blue tang as he as a new problem not Ick but black spot. You are now fighting 2 different things Paravortex flatworms and Ick parasites with different treatments you don't want to over stress any one or they will just get worse. You may want to get a rubber maid container one that would be large enough for the fish with ick to all get treated at the same time and keep the tang separate. That is all I can think of.

 

[rayn]

Yep. Currently I have three 29, two 55, and a 40b at my disposal. I do not want to contaminate them. The one 55 is supposed to turn into another reef, mostly corals. The second 55 I was thinking QT. The 40b was aggressive, like a dwarf lion. The 29 are already QT, but one is set up for coral QT with the light and all.

What I don't have is water. Sure I have a RO/DI, but it is 75gpd. It will take me all week to fill these tanks, fight evaporation, and not to mention figuring out a place to place them all. I have a 15 month old that just loves to splash water, lol

 

[rayn]

Thanks for the help. Tonight is a wash for me moving things. Morning and work come to early. I'll check tomorrow night, and move what I need to where I need to. Once again, thanks.

 

[Dustin1300]

I'd personally just pull him out and treat in QT alone. If you have the space in the 40b just put your remaining fish in it and ensure they have some places to hide so they don't kill one another. Leave the tank fallow for 6 weeks and add all the fish back in.

 

[Ethan_W]

dont mix the clowns if you love your skunk

 

[rayn]

I'd personally just pull him out and treat in QT alone. If you have the space in the 40b just put your remaining fish in it and ensure they have some places to hide so they don't kill one another. Leave the tank fallow for 6 weeks and add all the fish back in.

dont mix the clowns if you love your skunk

I'm finally home from work and will pull him tonight if I can catch. Clown worries me, but I'm not sure where to put him. I have the 29 that is set up, but where to put the two that are in there? I have the 55, but it only has twenty gallons in it from the last water change on the 120. There is a k3 circulating water though. If I don't put anything in there I'm going to work on filling it tonight with either my mixed water or new ro/di water.

 

[bryan007]

If they were not present until recently then it probably is black ich or black spot. It is caused by a type of flatworm also known as Turbellarian flatworms. It isn't as bad as true ich but over time can cause an opportunity for secondary infections. The best way to get rid of it is to first do a FW bath then use a formalin bath in a QT tank. The worm has a life cycle of about 6 days and during that time it will produce eggs which fall into the sand hatch and feed on detritus if it can't find a host.

 

[rayn]

It is new within the last day or two.
Here is my thought for right now. Tang to QT. All other fish to the 55 IF I get it filled tonight. The only problem there is the biological filteration wont be up to snuff. Some LR will go in, but probably not enough. So I will run a hob filter and dose with stability.
For the tang I got seachem para guard. " the safe alternative to formalin". Actually the lfs didnt have formalin but they had this. Gonna try it, but if no luck I will order the formalin.

 

[Dustin1300]

Hopefully you caught early enough and jonbry123 is right Keep us posted on the steps taken and how they go.

 

[rayn]

Here is the revised plan. Tang to QT. Skunk and blenny to 55. Rest of fish stay in 120 for observations. I ran out of ready water, so the 55 has 35 gal of water, +- 45 lbs of live and base rock with about 15 lbs of it live. I am making water now to mix and add tomorrow. One k3 and one k4 in the 55. Hob is useless without enough water, but still going to add stability.
Tang, if I can catch, will be left alone in the 29 for tonight. Not wanting to stress to much.

 

[bryan007]

Well can't be certain without seeing the fish in person but if it is black spot the worms generally look like raised shiny bumps while their feeding on the fish. Consider Prazipro very safe and effective too. Although make sure you follow directions to the letter. The first time I used it for suspected gill flukes I actually burned three of my prize tangs and lost them but this can happen with almost any med. Good luck.

 

[rayn]

Yeah, that is what it is. There are the two big dots you can see in the pic, but there are ~5 on the lower part of the body. Then some on the other side too.

Now if only I can catch him..........

 

[rayn]

Okay, need some tips on getting blue out. He lives in a little hole in the LR and is quicker then snot. I'm outta time tonight again, so tips for tomorrow night would be great. I have two nets, but he seems to be watching me lol

 

[steelhead77]

All you people that are saying to treat this fish.....What are you going to treat it for? It is NOT ich - black or otherwise. It may be a worm, it may not. It may be a fungus, it may not. It may be stress, it may not. Why is everyone so hot to remove a fish at the first sign of anything. The op has said this fish has been in QT three times already. Maybe it's excessive QT'ing. Maybe it's coral stings. Maybe it came too close to your Foxface Rabbitfish. Maybe it's something benign and nothing to worry about. Maybe it is something to worry about. If I remember right, rayn you're the guy that has 3 or 4 qt's and qt's everything (corals, rocks, snails etc.) before it goes into his system. Have you added anything new to your DT prior to seeing the spots? If not, then this is more than likely a benign discoloration that will fade in a day or two. My point is, why panic? This poor fish has been chased around and moved more times than is healthy for it. As long as it is eating and swimming and otherwise behaving normally, leave it be for a few days and see what happens.

 

[rayn]

I understand what you are saying steelhead. It eats good, but there are the multiple black spots, some bigger then others. It is starting to flash on the live rock too.
The only thing new after the fish are a few corals. Non that I've seen the fish around and unless pallys can sting, none that could affect the fish like this.
I also get the quit chasing the poor fish around. Not what I wanna do. But if it is black ich like thought, by other posters and by research, then I don't want to infect the rest of my tank if possible.
Today is day three or four of this, so I have about two before the worms would drop and infect my substrate.

 

[Palting]

Okay, need some tips on getting blue out. He lives in a little hole in the LR and is quicker then snot. I'm outta time tonight again, so tips for tomorrow night would be great. I have two nets, but he seems to be watching me lol

Tangs are plenty smart. They can tell when I come up and have food, or when I come up with nothing, LOL!!

Try the 2 liter bottle trick. Just cut off the top to give just enough room for him to swim in, cut it down again about 1/3 of the way to the bottom, then insert the top part the other way into the bottom part. Put his favorite food as bait and wait him out.

 

[steelhead77]

rayn, either you have the worst luck with things or you're over-reacting. If you have added nothing and things have been in QT for x number of weeks, what could have been bought in to your tank? I still say give it a few days. Since black ich is the same size as regular ich (grain of salt) and moves around on the fish, and is much more rare, I doubt that's what it is.