Kole Tang with damaged mouth

[kirsto71]

I am in the process of building up stocks for my new DT and i have been putting everything into QT. I recently purchased a Kole Tang (4 days ago) and i noticed once i got him into the tank that he has what appears to be a damaged mouth. When i first got him he 'bit' at the back glass for a few days and i ended up putting a cover there and this stopped the behavior. I dont know if this caused the damage or if it happened when he was netted.

My concern is i have seen he eating but he seems to spit out the pellets and i tried mysis today but didn't see him eat it. Am i heading for an untimely end with this guy or can he recover. I really like him and am keen to see him survive.

 

[humaguy]

who else is in the tank? he might be fighting with another fish.

 

[kirsto71]

There is a yellow tang with him but they are like best mates and there has been no fighting. He seems to follow the yellow around everywhere.

 

[CHSUB]

had a similar looking problem with a chervon tang a few years back, i thought it was an infection of some kind...i could never get him to eat after his month problem!

 

[kirsto71]

had a similar looking problem with a chervon tang a few years back, i thought it was an infection of some kind...i could never get him to eat after his month problem!

That's not good news. The damaged seems to be around the top lip being pulled back but the structure of the bristles seem undamaged and OK. Maybe there is a chance. One can only hope.

 

[ryanrid]

bacterial infection, tough one, need anti bods of some kind. not sure what you can get tho.

 

[gatorlover]

I had a Kole tang with the same thing about 6 months ago. I was never able to figure it out. He passed away about 2 weeks after this showed up. I hope you can find a way to help the little guy. I really like the Kole tangs, really cool looking.

 

[kirsto71]

I had a Kole tang with the same thing about 6 months ago. I was never able to figure it out. He passed away about 2 weeks after this showed up. I hope you can find a way to help the little guy. I really like the Kole tangs, really cool looking.

I am going to keep a positive attitude as best as that may help and see how things go. I am determined to have a kole tang and i really hope it is this one.

 

[Dr Colliebreath]

From the picture, it looks like the top lip is pulled back and the area around it is red and swollen. Is that right? If so, it may be bacterial and should be treated with an antibiotic.

The fish is in a qt with a yellow tang, right? You should be able to medicate. Just watch your bacterial filter - test for ammonia as the antibiotics will affect your good bacterial population.

 

[kirsto71]

From the picture, it looks like the top lip is pulled back and the area around it is red and swollen. Is that right? If so, it may be bacterial and should be treated with an antibiotic.

The fish is in a qt with a yellow tang, right? You should be able to medicate. Just watch your bacterial filter - test for ammonia as the antibiotics will affect your good bacterial population.

What bacterial meds would you recommend.

 

[sandwi54]

Start with Maracyn 2 and make sure you complete the 5-day treatment course. If the infection does not go away, then switch to Furan-2, which is a stronger antibiotics.

 

[Toxic Slurpee]

Almost the exact same thing happened to my Powder Brown Tang. Took more than a month to completely heal, but he was eating the entire time; Tang's dont last long if they can't eat.

I used Maracyn 2 and kept giving him seaweed with garlic guard in it.

 

[Dr Colliebreath]

Start with Maracyn 2 and make sure you complete the 5-day treatment course. If the infection does not go away, then switch to Furan-2, which is a stronger antibiotics.

+1. Also soak the food you feed the tang in vitamins.