Is this normal?

jdk504 · 07-26-2006, 10:25 PM

We just got a Powder Brown Tang last night and she swims really fast and side dives into the sand bed and on the rock....is this normal behavior?
Thanks!
Nicci

BoomerD · 07-26-2006, 10:31 PM

not really. sounds like flashing to me...could be a parasitical problem. Keep an eye on the fish for white spots.

Cougra · 07-26-2006, 10:35 PM

It's normal for a fish that has just been introduced to a tank and is finding something very irritating in the water. It could be a sign of stress due to drastic changes in water chemistry or the initial signs of a paracite such as ick.

What type of "Powder Brown Tang" did you get? There are two different fish with the same common name, one is easy to care for and the other is nearly impossible to keep. I highly suggest you find out which one you have.

Acanthurus nigricans (very difficult one to care for)
Acanthurus japonicus (easy one to care for)

JFK_Jr · 07-26-2006, 10:38 PM

Could be Ich... be sure to add garlic to the diet. Think about adding a Neon cleaner goby and a cleaner shrimp.

lcstorc · 07-26-2006, 10:42 PM

I would not add any livestock if you believe ick may be present. IMHO you are just asking to infect the new inhabitants. Even those that have a reputation as cleaners don't actually rid the tank of the parasite so are likely to not help the problem anyway. I do have fire shrimp and a cleaner wrasse in the hopes that they will work towards prevention rather than a cure.
Garlic is thought to strengthen the imune system so that would sound like a good idea to me.
Just my 2c.

BoomerD · 07-26-2006, 10:51 PM

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/mardisfaq5.htm

jdk504 · 07-27-2006, 01:12 AM

Thanks for the replies, we did get some cleaner shrimp today (2), without knowing our Tang has ick....we have the easier brown tang of the two. We are by all means no experts yet and did not want to get the harder of the two. When you say to add garlic, what form should we and how much? We are really new at this and when you say garlic, I think garlic cloves....hehe
Thanks!!

jdk504 · 07-27-2006, 01:32 AM

another question is can we treat her in the same tank or must we remove her totally? I did look at her and there is some kind of velvety looking stuff under her chin. Right now we have :
1- Powder Brown Tang
1- Foxface
5- snails
4-crabs
2-cleaner shrimp

BoomerD · 07-27-2006, 04:51 AM

Some people make their own garlic elixer...Myself, I used SeaChem's Garlic Guard for a long time, with good results, and no awkward smell...If you have to treat the fish with medication, use a hospital tank, NOT your display tank. Unfortunately, NONE of the effective medications (copper) are reef safe, and use in your main tank will kill all invertabrates, and render the sand and rock un-useable in a reef tank forever.

lcstorc · 07-27-2006, 07:07 AM

I use real garlic as part of my mush. I just press a few cloves and add to the mix. Yes you do get the "garlic" smell which confuses my husband LOL but that is better than the fishie smell IMHO anyway, Garlic is safe (as far as I know) to add regardless and to your main tank, but it will simply assist with their immune system and give them a little boost. It will not kill the ick if that is what you have. If you are going to dose w/ actual medication it should be done in a qt tank as boomerD says.
Best of luck. Hopefully he is just stressed and will improve soon.

JFK_Jr · 07-27-2006, 07:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BoomerD

Some people make their own garlic elixer...

jdk504... you were not off by saying garlic cloves

You would need to get some fresh cloves and extract the juice from them. Usuallly if you go to that trouble, you would want to make a large enough batch so that it will last you a while. You just soak whatever food you are feeding your fish in the garlic prior to feeding.

I feed my Sohal tang Nori sheets(seaweed) soaked in garlic and he loves it! You can get them at any major supermarket that sells Sushi products. It's a lot cheaper than buying seaweed sheets produced for the aquarium market.

Another good product... more concentrated than SeaChem's Garlic Guard, is Kent's Garlic Extreme.

jdk504 · 07-27-2006, 04:34 PM

Geez you guys are so helpful that is why I love asking questions on this site. We are thinking of getting the 12 gal nanocube/aquapod with everything included and reef ready (lights, filter, pump, ect) Do you think this is an okay size to qt our Tang?

Cougra · 07-27-2006, 05:58 PM

No, definately not. Tangs really do need room to swim and a 12 gallon tank for any length of time is cruel. You MIGHT be able to get away with something about 30" if it's wide enough but nothing smaller then that.

Nicci · 07-27-2006, 07:18 PM

Thank you Michelle.... =)
Nicci

07-26-2006, 10:25 PM	#1 (permalink)
jdk504 Midas Blenny Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 92 View Gallery Karma Komment	Is this normal? We just got a Powder Brown Tang last night and she swims really fast and side dives into the sand bed and on the rock....is this normal behavior? Thanks! Nicci

07-26-2006, 10:31 PM	#2 (permalink)
BoomerD Reef Shark Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Northern California Posts: 5,638 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? not really. sounds like flashing to me...could be a parasitical problem. Keep an eye on the fish for white spots. __________________ Intelligence is not knowing all the answers, but knowing where and how to find them! www.google.com

07-26-2006, 10:35 PM	#3 (permalink)
Cougra Dragon Moderator Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Toronto, ON Posts: 2,216 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? It's normal for a fish that has just been introduced to a tank and is finding something very irritating in the water. It could be a sign of stress due to drastic changes in water chemistry or the initial signs of a paracite such as ick. What type of "Powder Brown Tang" did you get? There are two different fish with the same common name, one is easy to care for and the other is nearly impossible to keep. I highly suggest you find out which one you have. Acanthurus nigricans (very difficult one to care for) Acanthurus japonicus (easy one to care for) __________________ Michelle Just because something CAN be done, it doesn't mean that it SHOULD be done! Last edited by Cougra : 07-27-2006 at 10:53 AM.

07-26-2006, 10:38 PM	#4 (permalink)
JFK_Jr Golden Moray Join Date: May 2006 Location: Hallandale Beach FL Posts: 2,108 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Is this normal? Could be Ich... be sure to add garlic to the diet. Think about adding a Neon cleaner goby and a cleaner shrimp. __________________ *JFK_Jr's 150 Gallon Starphire*

07-26-2006, 10:42 PM	#5 (permalink)
lcstorc Sunshine Reefer Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Cocoa Fl Posts: 26,433 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Is this normal? I would not add any livestock if you believe ick may be present. IMHO you are just asking to infect the new inhabitants. Even those that have a reputation as cleaners don't actually rid the tank of the parasite so are likely to not help the problem anyway. I do have fire shrimp and a cleaner wrasse in the hopes that they will work towards prevention rather than a cure. Garlic is thought to strengthen the imune system so that would sound like a good idea to me. Just my 2c. __________________ Peace LYNN Lynn and Franks saltwater adventure Lynn's 20g clown tank Lynn's 90g of sunshine Lynn's frag tank experiment A reef tank is like a race car. The faster you go the harder you crash.

07-26-2006, 10:51 PM	#6 (permalink)
BoomerD Reef Shark Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Northern California Posts: 5,638 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? http://www.wetwebmedia.com/mardisfaq5.htm __________________ Intelligence is not knowing all the answers, but knowing where and how to find them! www.google.com

07-27-2006, 01:12 AM	#7 (permalink)
jdk504 Midas Blenny Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 92 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? Thanks for the replies, we did get some cleaner shrimp today (2), without knowing our Tang has ick....we have the easier brown tang of the two. We are by all means no experts yet and did not want to get the harder of the two. When you say to add garlic, what form should we and how much? We are really new at this and when you say garlic, I think garlic cloves....hehe Thanks!!

07-27-2006, 01:32 AM	#8 (permalink)
jdk504 Midas Blenny Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 92 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? another question is can we treat her in the same tank or must we remove her totally? I did look at her and there is some kind of velvety looking stuff under her chin. Right now we have : 1- Powder Brown Tang 1- Foxface 5- snails 4-crabs 2-cleaner shrimp

07-27-2006, 04:51 AM	#9 (permalink)
BoomerD Reef Shark Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Northern California Posts: 5,638 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? Some people make their own garlic elixer...Myself, I used SeaChem's Garlic Guard for a long time, with good results, and no awkward smell...If you have to treat the fish with medication, use a hospital tank, NOT your display tank. Unfortunately, NONE of the effective medications (copper) are reef safe, and use in your main tank will kill all invertabrates, and render the sand and rock un-useable in a reef tank forever. __________________ Intelligence is not knowing all the answers, but knowing where and how to find them! www.google.com

07-27-2006, 07:07 AM	#10 (permalink)
lcstorc Sunshine Reefer Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Cocoa Fl Posts: 26,433 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Is this normal? I use real garlic as part of my mush. I just press a few cloves and add to the mix. Yes you do get the "garlic" smell which confuses my husband LOL but that is better than the fishie smell IMHO anyway, Garlic is safe (as far as I know) to add regardless and to your main tank, but it will simply assist with their immune system and give them a little boost. It will not kill the ick if that is what you have. If you are going to dose w/ actual medication it should be done in a qt tank as boomerD says. Best of luck. Hopefully he is just stressed and will improve soon. __________________ Peace LYNN Lynn and Franks saltwater adventure Lynn's 20g clown tank Lynn's 90g of sunshine Lynn's frag tank experiment A reef tank is like a race car. The faster you go the harder you crash.

07-27-2006, 04:34 PM	#12 (permalink)
jdk504 Midas Blenny Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 92 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? Geez you guys are so helpful that is why I love asking questions on this site. We are thinking of getting the 12 gal nanocube/aquapod with everything included and reef ready (lights, filter, pump, ect) Do you think this is an okay size to qt our Tang?

07-27-2006, 05:58 PM	#13 (permalink)
Cougra Dragon Moderator Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Toronto, ON Posts: 2,216 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? No, definately not. Tangs really do need room to swim and a 12 gallon tank for any length of time is cruel. You MIGHT be able to get away with something about 30" if it's wide enough but nothing smaller then that. __________________ Michelle Just because something CAN be done, it doesn't mean that it SHOULD be done!

07-27-2006, 07:18 PM	#14 (permalink)
Nicci Tunicate Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 8 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Is this normal? Thank you Michelle.... =) Nicci

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