Hlle

[Paul B]

The fish is fatter than they are in the sea. It is probability due to a too much fat diet. Fish don't really have any fat because they are cold blooded they have oil. In this hippo I can tell that it's fins are also too fat. He looks very healthy and this is only an experiment for the last three months. I will change his diet when the experiment is over.

[tbittner]

If your hippo is fat, happy, and healthy, why change?

[rlcline76]

Paul, how much fish oil would you say you were using per feeding, approximately? Just curious...

[Paul B]

If your hippo is fat, happy, and healthy, why change?

It is not a normal diet for a hippo tang. He is eating by himself about a quarter of a drop of Vitamin A each feeding. The dose for a human of this oil is about 5 drops. Just because he is fat is not a sign of good health. He looks healthy and I usually give my fish vitamin A and D anyway but not in these dosages. Did you ever see what fish oil does to a skimmer? It stops it for a few hours. I also don't know if it is affecting his liver as it would in a human. If the fish dies I will do an autopsy.
I am not only looking for a healthy fish, they are always healthy, I am looking for a cause and a possable cure for HLLE.
There seems to be at least two causes. One the fish gradually gets over a number of years and the other they can get in a week or two from severe stress. I think thats why yellow tangs usually have it in a dealer's tank but it clears up after a while in a healthy tank.
Recently I had much of my rock out of the tank in a garbage pail for a few months. I diden't realize it but there was a gobi in there for about a month with no heat, food or light. I put the fish back in my tank and noticed that he has fairly severe HLLE. After a couple of months back in the tank he is better, not perfect by any stretch but better. Gobi's don't usually even get HLLE. Of course I don't know if it was lack of food, heat, light, circulation or anything else.

[rlcline76]

Interesting tank "field" work.