Kole Tang stuck in Overflow!!!! HELP

[Pickupman66]

My Kole went missing since last seen at lights out last night. NOt seen anywhere. Finally found in Overflow. I have a CPR type without the utube and the tang was stuck right at the entrance. I almost broke it getting the fish out. He was still alive and kicking when I put my fingers in there. Finally got it out and placed fish back in tank. fell to bottom and sorta swam a bit, but not much. is now swimming around normally but not at the speed normally does. has some MAJOR scale damage and some torn fins from me trying to get out of overflow. right swimming fin is noticablly being favored. What are our chances here?

this was a very fat healthy fish yesterday.

 

[Sk8r]

First thing is to mask the hole he got into with some sort of plastic grid like gutter guard. Second thing is test your water and make it impeccable over the next number of days. He has some healing to do.

I've had freshwater fish come back from losing absolutely all fins and lying on the bottom of a bowl for days while growing back enough stub to get him upright. I've had a fish get bent at a 45 degree angle and put him back to rights with fish-chiropractic [not something I'd willingly do again: gives me the willies just remembering] I've had to clip off a clubbed and useless fin so it could grow back straight. So yes, if he didn't take massive internal damage with bleeding we can't see, he may come back from this. They heal amazingly given half a chance. Clean water and good, good, good oxygenation for a tang! is essential. Give him every chance.

 

[Pickupman66]

Ok good. I am lucky I didnt get spiked getting him out. water is in excellent shape and very oxygentated. he is swimming about 95% upright with just a slight list and is favoring his right side fin. massive descaling and discoloration on both sides . purple tang harassed for about 2 mins but quit promptly. breathing appears normal. best guess I have is that he as cleaning hte overflow and got too close. glad it wasnt one of the more expensive ones like the purple tang or watanebei angel

 

[Angela Short]

Sorry to hear that! They can make great recovery so he may make it just fine.
My baby GSM clown is missing again and I bet he is in the overflow...again. What a pain to fish him out also! I got scratched all to peices getting in there to him last time so I may just leave him and hope the 1 1/2" drain flushes him down to the sump :lol: My overflow is about 8 gallons so he can actually live happily back there in punishment for jumping in again for a few days.

 

[Pickupman66]

yea, seems better than before. still barely using right fin. the clown wound up in there last week or so. but he went all the way to the overflow screens so it was an easy retrieval.

 

[Pickupman66]

well some good news. fed some emerald entree and cyclopeze and the Kole did eat. only snuck out for a few bites, but did eat...

 

[Angela Short]

If I cover my overflows what are the chances of a fish jumping on top of the cover and getting stuck? I worry about this....

Eating is a good sign!

 

[Pickupman66]

angela, about as good as tha chance of one jumping into one. yours have a nice wide opening whereas mine is a very long thin area. All I really need is to take a small strip of eggcrate and cut it to fit inside the lip. I have hard of folks covering internal overflows with success. know someone who created a slanted cover fo rthem so the fish slid right down back to the water.

 

[Sk8r]

Hurrah for the tang!

Angela, you can arrange a slanted baffle, like those barbwire barriers atop chainlink fence, slanted so it will dump any jumper back into the tank. Gutter guard [plastic] or hobby needlework plastic canvas is good for this purpose. Can be stitched or glued into place.

 

[Pickupman66]

didnt make it. :-( went to AC and did find a very nice looking bowder brown which will be replacing it.

 

[Sk8r]

Awwww. That's way too bad.