Blue Hippo Tang: A beauty or BUST?

[coralwish]

Hey guys please help me out about this. I've been wanting a hippo tang forever and has lost 2 in the past trying to introduce them to my tank. They would only last for about a week then just die because of ich. Well now I've upgraded to a 90 gallon reef tank hoping to add a hippo tang again. ANY ADVICE ON KEEPING THIS SPECIES ALIVE AND WELL IN MY TANK WOULD HELP ALOT. PLMK ON WHAT I HAVE TO DO INORDER FOR THIS TANG TO THRIVE!

 

[shadow678]

How large have the tangs you've attempted been? And were they attempted in your 29gal? Tangs get very large and need a LOT of room to swim. Your 90 will be the LOW end of the limit for this particular tang, as they are very active swimmers and move very fast, especially when frightened. Have they been eating, both when you purchased and after you got them into your tank? Tangs are very prone to ick, and any additional stress will bring on an outbreak. Be sure you provide plenty of places for it to hide, and feed a wide variety of foods, including BOTH carnivorous and herbivorous foods. Many people will provide one, but not the other. A good blend would be Formula 1 & 2, Frozen Brine, Frozen Mysis, Frozen Squid, and Seaweed Selects on a veggie clip. This will help with the nutritional aspect, and will allow the tang to decide what it wishes to eat. I have 2 blue hippos, one juvenile(3") and one adult(11"), and I can say once you have one that is doing well, you'll love it.

 

[coralwish]

THANKS FOR THE REPLY. THE PAST 2 TANGS THAT DIED WERE IN THE 29G. NOW THAT I HAVE THE 90G REEF I WANT TO ADD ONE FOR SURE. SHOULD I BE USING THE GARLIC EXTRACT LIKE THE POSTS ON THIS SITE BEFORE THE PURCHASE BECAUSE I'M VERY AFRAID OF ICH. THE TANGS AT THE PET SHOP ARE ONLY ABOUT 1.5 INCHES LONG AND I WAS WONDERING IS THIS IS GOOD. THEY LOOK SO SMALL AND THIN. PLEASE TELL ME WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN BUYING ONE. THANKS

 

[sistrmary]

Make sure that they're eating. Ask the LFS to feed them in front of you. Look for previous signs of stress, ich, loss of coloration, etc. They're insane swimmers, need lots of room. When you're adjusting it to the tank, take extra precaution...they stress in shipping a lot of the time.

 

[shadow678]

The use of garlic is typically a good idea. Also, ask the LFS to feed the fish, so you can make sure it is eating before you purchase it. If it will not eat for them, it may not eat for you, and will die of starvation. If it is showing signs of HLLE(Head and Lateral Line Erosion), then I would suggest not buying it, as they will require a lot of special care and ideal conditions to heal. Errr......basically everything that sistrMary just posted that I just saw. lol Also, before you attempt to put one in your 90, is this tank cycled completely? How long has it been established, and what are your readings for amm. nitrite, nitrate, pH, and salinity? You want all of these to be as close to perfect as possible, as tangs are very sensitive to water conditions.

 

[falcon63]

small hippo will do much better small 2" max

 

[reeferdude]

My lfs just got one in the other day and i was about to start a thread on um. Will a small (3") be ok in my 120 with a yellow tang? Also he is charging $39.99 for this little guy and that just seems a little high for a 3" fish.

 

[clarkiiboi]

Coralwish ,
Put into your QT first off, if you have one, if not this is a good time to think about one. Ich is a gimme on regal/hippo tangs, learned that the hard way.
Reeferdude , I paid $50 for mine and it was maybe and inch and a half.

 

[shadow678]

ReeferDue, what you may consider doing, to soften the yellow tang up for your new intro, is hold the hippo in your QT for a while to make sure it is healthy. Then, at the same time you add it to your display, remove the yellow and put it in the QT, so the hippo has a chance to orient itself with the tank. This way, the hippo will be somewhat established when you reintroduce the yellow. This will also somewhat disorient the yellow, making it less aggressive and less apt to kill the hippo. As far as price goes, blue hippos are one of the more desireable, but less hardy of the tangs. If the one your LFS is in healthy condition, then that would be a good price. HTH