Blue Hippo Tang in Hyposalinity QT behavior question

[fatoldsun]

I have a small (about 2.5”) Blue Hippo Tang in Hyposalinity QT – It’s been in QT for a while (I was told 4 weeks before I got it) and I’ve had it for almost 2 weeks. I was told in had Ich, hence the hypo. When I got it I was told that it had been at 1.010 but the water I got it in was pretty dirty and levels were high. Also it was 1.014. I’ve lowered it to 1.010 and will keep it there for at least 2 weeks under my care before I start slowly bringing it up to 1.026. There are a few fish in the QT with it – they were all removed from the seller’s DT with Ich and he sold them as a group. Everyone seems healthy – all are eating good and I never saw any visible signs of Ich or ill behavior. I’m just trying not to take any chances. Anyway, question is that the Tang has been behaving oddly in that it has been resting up against a divider or eggcrate I have in the QT – it stays there, VERY still and without a flashlight I see no movement. With I flashlight I can see gill movement and slight pectoral fin movement (I guess to keep it still – like station-keeping) I would think it wasn’t doing well but I have seen it swimming around a few times and it is definitely eating whenever I feed the tank. Is this common behavior for a hippo tang? Should I be concerned that it’s not doing well? These pics are hard to see – it's a screen captures from the video linked below – you can see the tang about 30 seconds in...

http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/...n/d1ba3d55.mp4

 

[MadReefer]

Are there any hiding places for the tang? PVC pieces, clay pots, etc. Is someone harassing it and then it cowers?

 

[fatoldsun]

Are there any hiding places for the tang? PVC pieces, clay pots, etc. Is someone harassing it and then it cowers?

No one appears to be harassing it and plenty of hiding spots - this is a shot of the whole QT

 

[MadReefer]

That is odd; maybe its just quirky. If it seems fine otherwise I wouldn't worry to much; just keep an eye on it.

 

[shipwrecked]

Is it breathing heavy? sometimes ich does effect the breathing if the parasite in in the gills and make the fish seem less active.Also,I found recently that feeding minced garlic will help rid the host of the parasite.Ive recently tried this and fed for 1 wk and it really did work.As we may know hippos are( IMO )ick magnets.Also for long term of keeping hippos-have a grounding probe in yr tank to help rid any stray voltage from the tank and help alleviate stress.These are just tips I picked up along the way and found to be a big help in the long term of keeping these types of fish...gd luck and hope this helped some

 

[redfishbluefish]

Dave, you mention you are using a flashlight, so I’m assuming it is dark in the tank. If that is the case, this is common for hippos to hide at night. At night my hippo wedges itself between the rocks and the back glass. When I first discovered this, I though for sure it wouldn’t be able to get out the following day. It did and continues with this same behavior every night.

What is the fish doing under normal light? Also, make sure you are feeding algae every day for the tangs….that’s their main diet.

 

[AJ1080]

Dave,

I too have a blue tang in a QT tank for the same reason and it is acting very similar to yours. At first thought I felt I was going to lose the tang but it seems that every morning when I wake up the tang is swimming around. As soon as I drop food in there it is active as any of the other fish and getting the food. Im just thinking its taking awhile to acclimate to the new environment. It took around 8 days until the yellow tang I have in there started acting normal again as well.

 

[fatoldsun]

Thanks everyone for the help and suggestions!

Is it breathing heavy?

Its breathing doesn't seem to be distressed at all

Also,I found recently that feeding minced garlic will help rid the host of the parasite.Ive recently tried this and fed for 1 wk and it really did work.As we may know hippos are( IMO )ick magnets.

I read that about the garlic - I've been feeding about a clove every other day - just push it right through the wife's garlic press. She had a snide comment or two I've also been feeding my 2 guys in the DT - funny how everyone in there goes NUTS for the garlic. Even the brittle-star goes crazy trying to get it - It seems so counterintuitive for fish to like garlic - I'm not sure how it comes close to anything they would come across in nature.

Also for long term of keeping hippos-have a grounding probe in yr tank to help rid any stray voltage from the tank and help alleviate stress.

I've been meaning to get one for a while - I went into THR a couple weeks ago and the kid didn't even know what it was when I asked - I guess it will have to be an online pick-up

Dave, you mention you are using a flashlight, so I’m assuming it is dark in the tank. If that is the case, this is common for hippos to hide at night. At night my hippo wedges itself between the rocks and the back glass. When I first discovered this, I though for sure it wouldn’t be able to get out the following day. It did and continues with this same behavior every night.

What is the fish doing under normal light? Also, make sure you are feeding algae every day for the tangs….that’s their main diet.

Definitely seems to be "at night". The QT setup is in my basement and they don't have much light. I have a light and a timer but I haven't set it up - I read a couple places it is better for the stability of the water to use less light in a QT. Not sure if that's valid but I haven't rushed to get the lights set up. Anyway, it seems to be similar to the behavior you described so I take a lot of comfort in that especially since last night it was laying on its side under a piece of the PVC. I definitely thought it was dead or on its way out. Add that at night they color is washed out and well I didn't expect good things . I wiggled the PVC and there was a wiggle to wedge in further. Seemed fine and it also seems FINE when the lights in the room are on and especially when I feed them - did that this morning (with more garlic). I have some nori (sp?) sheets that I've added in a couple times. I also fed in some of my chaeto once

Dave,

I too have a blue tang in a QT tank for the same reason and it is acting very similar to yours. At first thought I felt I was going to lose the tang but it seems that every morning when I wake up the tang is swimming around. As soon as I drop food in there it is active as any of the other fish and getting the food. Im just thinking its taking awhile to acclimate to the new environment. It took around 8 days until the yellow tang I have in there started acting normal again as well.

Yep, like I said with Paul's comments above - it does seem fine in the morning and again I'm happy to know that this guy is not unique. I take a lot of comfort in that since I think the fish were in some bad conditions and I am hoping to rescue them. Something that I question given that I'm limited to a 33g QT which for 9 fish (4 are sw mollies) is really too small. The hippo is very small but I'd be upset if I took it from a bad environment and made it worse by putting it in a QT that was too small. Glad to hear others have seen similar behavior.

 

[JRWOHLER]

I said a similar thing in the QT thread. Hippos are strange to say the least, mine will behave in a similar fashion in my DT. So long as eating and happy just assume it is behavioral not an illness. You can keep a light in the QT keep it minimum I suppose, but unless you are breading blind cave fish most fish live in light.

 

[TanksNStuff]

Dave, first off you need to be commended for taking on this group of sick fish. I know you got a good deal on the lot, but still it's great that you chose to care for these and hopefully bring them back from near certain death.

As to the tang, I think that behavior is fine, especially if it's dark. I'm surprised it didn't choose inside or alongside the bottom of a pvc piece though. I noticed that that spot it picked happens to be between the heater and the egg crate. Maybe it's feeling a little chilly and likes a nice warm bed? How's the overall temp in the QT?

I know Aquarium Center (Clementon) sells the grounding probes, so if you want to pick one up right away, that's an option.

As long as everything is eating good and you see no signs of trouble breathing... they should be good. Good luck with them.

PS, I agree with JR... get the lights setup because all those fish are used to having light. Being in darkness for a long time is probably confusing them and adding a bit of stress. I agree that less than normal lighting will help with the QT's water parameters and help minimize algae, etc. But the fish definitely need some light. It doesn't need to be lighting that corals would need, even a clip-on HD fixture with a decent bulb will work fine. Put it on a timer or just manually turn it on for a good 8 hours a day at least.

 

[fatoldsun]

Thanks guys. I was being a little lazy with the light and they're not in total darkness. That part of the basement has a small (window well type) window right next to the tank so there's definitely some indirect light.

And yes George they seemed at risk but I'm not sure they were certain to die. Of course he did lose 3 (coral beauty, another damsel and a goby) before I could get them. He claimed the were taken out by the singapore which would imply the conditions were not the cause (his QT was a little bigger) but the water was green and ammonia was high - regular WCs every 48 hours has it down to .03-.01 so I hope I've helped. Now I just have to figure what to do about stocking and compatibility in my DT. I wanted a Hippo but I have a lg yellow tang and included with the lot was a Tomini. Not sure the tang police will approve of 3 Tangs in a 90DT. Also the Singapore is risky with my baby softie reef. The foxface is already big and scares my wife (and me a little) damsels are a bit aggressive and I'm not sure I want/need 4 mollies.

 

[JRWOHLER]

3 tangs is indeed pushing it.
I went quickly through your thread...you have 2 clowns and a yellow tang in DT now right?

singapore angel
Foxface
Hippo
Tomini
4 mollies
damsel of some kind all in the QT?
I can see the singapore angel beating up the coral beauty before.
Here is my suggestion...try to find a taker or takers for a couple of the fish.
I would stay with 2 tangs max
I would pick one of the two from the angel and the foxface.
Decide what to do with the damsel....could be a problem fish based on behavior.
If you don't like the mollies decide now before you bring the salinity up and give them away.
Would suggest around 7 fish in total. If you skip the angel or foxface you can have more smaller fish like the school of mollies maybe?

My tank which I consider to be medium load 120 has 9 fish....2 tangs(hippo and naso), coral beauty, 2 clowns, 4 smallish fish for reference.

Hope that helps, not really a golden rule anymore like there used to be, though one is 1 inch per 5 gallons. Anyway just my opinion and maybe you will get some much different.

 

[fatoldsun]

I have just 1 clown - not that it makes a big difference between 1&2. The foxface is a really interesting fish but if I could find a taker I guess I could let that go. The damsel us tiny but with only one I could let that go too. I thought about keeping 1 pair of the mollies in the sump/fuge. They were allegedly at full SW, just in hypo now due to the QT. Anyway I'm not sure it will be good for the fish to move them again and I knew the risks when I took them. Not sure how I'd offer fish that are in hypo for obvious reasons and while I did get them at a discount I did pay for them. I'd feel like I got shafted if I gave away 4-7 of the 9 fish I paid for (if I gave up the 4 mollies, the damsel, the foxface and 1 of the Tangs). Not sure I want to put a cost on fair treatment... I'm torn to say the least.
I really like the Singapore and so far he's a good eater and has been a model citizen in the QT. My original plan was RO take only the hippo and the coral beauty but with the loss of the coral beauty and the apparent condition problems I changed that plan. So yes, I am feeling at a loss about what to keep/not keep... Thanks for the advice

 

[JRWOHLER]

I didn't mean to give them all away , I don't know if anyone would like the mollies that is why I said that about them. They are also the cheapest so maybe a trade? Anyway didn't mean that you couldn't sell some of them.......and people know they are in QT now, so you are doing the right thing overall.

 

[MadReefer]

Before you decide what to keep or not I would wait the 8 week cycle to ensure no ich and see what survives. Hopefully, all will make it but if not you may not have to make to much of a decision on what to keep or sell. I am sure people will be fair since you are putting all the effort in to the QT and curing the fish.

 

[fatoldsun]

I started a new topic dealing with the stocking Q - this has drifted off course a bit and taken attention away from my little baby blue hippo tang

 

[fatoldsun]

Well the ammonia's at zero... Finally. Only took 2 weeks and 50-60g of WCs in a 30g QT. Only problem left now was the frantic call from my wife last night coming from the basement. I ran down and she says "do you smell that?, there must be something dead down here!". The smell was clearly the garlic coming from the QT. I struggled with which would be easier to 'splain... Fish marinating in garlic or pretending I couldn't find the dead animal.