i put a yellow tang as my first fish in a 2 month established system. aquarium has run cycle and parameters are all ok. i put the fish in on thursday. it was doing fine until this morning. it was literally upside down. when i went for a closer look, it righted itself. it has been hovering all day in one corner with it's head/mouth down at the 5 o'clock position. he seems to be breating a little heavy. i have given him brine with spirolena (frozen) and "freeze dried" seaweed stuff. he has not seemed to eat either. he appeared to be eating at the store. in the past hour he seems to be swimming around a bit more, but not like he was yesturday? do fish get headaches? just joking! anyone have advice?
yellow tang
- Thread starter mikevet
- Start date
Rondelet
New member
Is there anything else (fish/inverts) in the system? Other than the increased respiration rate, are there any observable signs of disease? Are the gills flared at all? It's always difficult to know exactly what's going on when fish are moved and acclimated to a new system. Can you post your water parameters? One thing to keep in mind is differences between your parameters and the LFS. Even if your parameters are within an acceptable range, big differences can cause issues that might not be apparent shortly after acclimation (just a thought).
nothing else in tank except fake rock and plastic corals. live sand with protien skimmer and canister with 2 filters pads, a charcoal, and phosgaurd. parameters done at lfs, so i dont know specifics. he opens and closes gills with each breath. gills dont look to be open exceptionally wide.
fishyvet
New member
How big is your tang? Are you keeping him in a 30 gallon tank? That is considered by many to be too small for a tang and can cause the fish stress. I would also like to know how you acclimated the fish before you added him to your tank and if you quarantined him (if so, how long). I get my water tested the LFS a lot but I would not depend on them completely. It's important to have your own test kits. Post the water parameters you know (ie salinity, temp, pH?). When he's breathing, do his gills have a healthy red color? Does he have any white spots on him? Is it possible dissolved oxygen is a problem?
i am in the process of running my own test. ph 7.5, sg 1024, and so far no3 is 0.0.
20 minutes ago he was head pressing the sand. so, i turned my skimmer venturi open so that it put a bunch of microbubbles and he began to move around some. i hope i wasnt drowning my own fish in the water.
i cant see withen the gill plate.
yes, it is a 30gal. the people at lfs know my tank setup. they should warn you before you purchase a fish that may not do well in your setup. it was the owner who sold it as well. shame on me and them!
i really dont understand my ammonis test kit. the chart reads at (.1). it says for ammonia as nitrogen (nh3-N) divide result by 1,22. so, i do that and i get (.08). i cross refernce with there ph scale and i get a number of 3.7 nh3/nh4 mg/l (ppm). maybe you can inlighten me on this.
20 minutes ago he was head pressing the sand. so, i turned my skimmer venturi open so that it put a bunch of microbubbles and he began to move around some. i hope i wasnt drowning my own fish in the water.
i cant see withen the gill plate.
yes, it is a 30gal. the people at lfs know my tank setup. they should warn you before you purchase a fish that may not do well in your setup. it was the owner who sold it as well. shame on me and them!
i really dont understand my ammonis test kit. the chart reads at (.1). it says for ammonia as nitrogen (nh3-N) divide result by 1,22. so, i do that and i get (.08). i cross refernce with there ph scale and i get a number of 3.7 nh3/nh4 mg/l (ppm). maybe you can inlighten me on this.
Tangs are a bad choice for that small of a tank 
Good fish to try are clowns, grammas, dottybacks, chromis, gobies, etc. Research the fish you may want before you buy them.
Also, everything that goes in your tank should be QT'ed first.
Drip acclimating works the best. Put the fish and its water in a small bucket, take small siphoning tube and siphon water from your tank into the bucket. Tie a knot at the end so it bearly drips into the bucket. Water from your tank should be 2 times the amount of water from the fish bag. This lets the fish slowly get used to your water.
What kind of test kit are you using? Salifert test kits are easy to use, and seem to work the best.
Maybe see if the LFS wil accept the tang back into a trade if it makes it.
GOod luck,.
Good fish to try are clowns, grammas, dottybacks, chromis, gobies, etc. Research the fish you may want before you buy them. Also, everything that goes in your tank should be QT'ed first.
Drip acclimating works the best. Put the fish and its water in a small bucket, take small siphoning tube and siphon water from your tank into the bucket. Tie a knot at the end so it bearly drips into the bucket. Water from your tank should be 2 times the amount of water from the fish bag. This lets the fish slowly get used to your water.
What kind of test kit are you using? Salifert test kits are easy to use, and seem to work the best.
Maybe see if the LFS wil accept the tang back into a trade if it makes it.
GOod luck,.
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