Blue Hippo Tang losing color

[nolatrav]

Hi everyone, I'm having a problem with my Hippo Tang. He has lost his color on his right side. I've had him for about a year now and he has been fine. This just happened about a month ago. I was thinking it was from stress but I'm becoming more concerned. Let me tell you why, my Chromis got huge (almost 2x his size) and spawned in his tank and were obviously behaving aggresively toward the other fish, pinning them in the corners and towards the top of the water. I removed the babies (that same night) into a breeder net and everything seemed to go back to normal. A few days later, I started to notice he was losing color. He still eats and his diet hasnt changed a bit. I recently decided to move him to another tank to help him establish dominance, thinking stress might be the case. I'm just wondering if there is anything else I should do for him. He is eating Purple and Green dried Seaweed, as well as frozen Mysid, Emerald Entree, Marine Cuisine, he eats it all!!! I also feed Nutrifin Marine Complete morsels which he eats. I feed 3x a day plus the seaweed.
He moves so fast its had to catch a decent shot
Here are some pics of both sides:
This is one of the bad side

A pic of the good side

Another of the bad side

As you can see, his color is just fading to like a white, he still has color, just not like he used too.
I'm open to any suggestions as to what could be the problem.

 

[nolatrav]

Just so every knows, my tank parameters are as follows:
His old tank:
44 gal.
30 lbs. of rock
Whisper 60 for filtration
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: .00-.1
Ammonia: 0
Ph: 8.2
Sg: 1.024
I do 5 gal water changes 2x a month.
His temp. home:
20 gal.
25 lbs. of rock and 40lbs of live sand.
Whisper 60 and Maxijet 1140
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
Ammonia: 0
Ph: 8.3
Cal.: 420
Alkalinity: think it was 8
Sg: 1.024
I do weekly water changes of 3 gal.
He has acclimated well and seems to be doing great. He's living with 2 Nano False Percs. I'll be moving him to my 210 DT if he ever gets better.
Any Suggestions?

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by nolatrav
Just so every knows, my tank parameters are as follows:
His old tank:
44 gal.
30 lbs. of rock
Whisper 60 for filtration
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: .00-.1
Ammonia: 0
Ph: 8.2
Sg: 1.024
I do 5 gal water changes 2x a month.
His temp. home:
20 gal.
25 lbs. of rock and 40lbs of live sand.
Whisper 60 and Maxijet 1140
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
Ammonia: 0
Ph: 8.3
Cal.: 420
Alkalinity: think it was 8
Sg: 1.024
I do weekly water changes of 3 gal.
He has acclimated well and seems to be doing great. He's living with 2 Nano False Percs. I'll be moving him to my 210 DT if he ever gets better.
Any Suggestions?
You have had the hippo for a year and he is still that small in a 44 gallon tank? Something is not right here. In a years time a hippo would outgrow a 75. These fish get to be large and are very active swimmers.

 

[nolatrav]

yeah he was really tiny when we got him. my g/f picked him out and wanted the smallest one. i know for a fact june will be at least a year. he is prolly 3 inches now. and yes he is indeed very active and also shy.
any suggestions on what could be the problem?

 

[nolatrav]

I would love nothing more than to move him to my 72 reef but i have a scopas tang in there who is quite larger and Im afraid that could just cause stress for both fish. I know how territorial Zebrasoma's are and fear I would be doing more harm than good.

 

[nicetry]

It's really hard to tell from the pics. Any possibility of getting a more close up shot with a bit more clarity. These fish are so prone to various problems. It could be a number of things. Does it look like a scrape, faded color, a filmy appearance?

 

[nicetry]

Originally Posted by nolatrav
I would love nothing more than to move him to my 72 reef but i have a scopas tang in there who is quite larger and Im afraid that could just cause stress for both fish. I know how territorial Zebrasoma's are and fear I would be doing more harm than good.
If you can't place the fish in a bigger system, I would seriously consider finding it another home. The stress from keeping it in a small tank is going to take a toll, and may already be happening. Even the 72, while better, would be too confining long term.

 

[nolatrav]

Really just looks faded, which leads me to believe stress or diet. I know how prone to disease surgeons are and like I said, I've had for very close to a year if not more. He caught a very mild case of ich when first purchased, went away on its own as he settled in, and i mean within a few (3 days) he was better. Since then though, no problems, what so ever. NONE, till this...
I tried for 15 minutes to get decent pics. He is way to fast and shy, I had to feed to get the shots I got and well HE"S JUST SO FAST! Maybe try again 2morrow.

 

[nolatrav]

Well, after monitoring my hippo for about a week now, I dont think he is getting better. He is now laying down from time to time on his bad side in the sand. He has also started brushing against rocks from time to time. I'm considering doing hypo in his original tank (44 gal.) and then moving him to my 72 bow while my 210 cycles and becomes established. There are other fish in the 44 which I guess wouldnt be harmed if I did the hypo... hypo doesnt harm snails huh?
I dont think he is on the verge of dying as he still has an awesome appetite and is still an active swimmer.
Would a FW bath by chance help him any rather than doing hypo?

 

[fish addict]

all invertabrates, coral, and live rock/sand will die in hypo. It doesn't look like ich and I think that all hypo treats, not sure about that though. So there isn't a point in doing hypo. I would say put him in the biggest tank you have or let a freind with a big tank keep him for a while so you can get your 210 established.

 

[nolatrav]

hhmmmm... well i dont wanna put him in my 72, which is my biggest established tank, till i find out what it is that he has. It doesnt seem contagious as none of my other fish have loss their color. i really thought it was diet related but he seems to be eating his greens and meaty foods as he should. i feed dried purple and green seaweed and mysid shrimp mainly, with occasional portions of emerald entree and squid. he gets a big variety of food.
I'm having such a hard time with this. It worries me sooo much, i cant sleep at night sometimes.
He just started to brush up against rocks yesterday. but he has lost he's color on that side for about 2 months now.
Would anyone suggest moving him to my 72 DT? or is there a chance my other fish could end up this way. i have like 9 nice fish in my 72. a volitan lion, a quenn angel, coral beauty, scopas tang, spotted hawkfish, small panther grouper, etc. the lion is on the verge of bigger able to swallow him which also concerns me if i were to put him in there.
Would a fresh water dip be a possible remedy?
I might bring him to my LFS and see if they can treat him for a week or so... they run copper in their fish only systems. maybe that'll help. idk anymore

 

[sepulatian]

Unless you are seeing tiny white dots on his fins and/or body I would not worry. He looks to have some pitting behind his eyes. Do you have a newer picture? I think the 40 gallon confined space is finally taking it's toll on this fish. At a year old he should be at least 6-7".

 

[nolatrav]

Originally Posted by sepulatian
Unless you are seeing tiny white dots on his fins and/or body I would not worry. He looks to have some pitting behind his eyes. Do you have a newer picture? I think the 40 gallon confined space is finally taking it's toll on this fish. At a year old he should be at least 6-7".
Yeah, I kinda noticed that too, and I agree 100%. Think early stages of HLLE? Would you suggest putting him in my 72 while my 210 becomes established. It has a lionfish in it. :thinking: And a scopas tang.

 

[nolatrav]

Here is another pic
not the greatest though, I'll try again tomorrow

and a pic of the lion in my 72, think he could swallow him?

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by nolatrav
Yeah, I kinda noticed that too, and I agree 100%. Think early stages of HLLE? Would you suggest putting him in my 72 while my 210 becomes established. It has a lionfish in it. :thinking: And a scopas tang.
How big is the lion? Remember, they can swallow a fish almost half as big as their body. I do think he is getting HLLE, and the fading is stress. He will be fine once he is in the bigger tank. I do not mean to flame at all, but this is exactly why we all tell people to wait unil they have an appropriate environment for the fish that they want. How long until the 210 is set? The best you can do for him right now is to add vitamines to his food to try and keep his immune system up. PLEASE keep the 40 going for a qt tank.

 

[sepulatian]

He has quite a bit of pitting around his eyes. Nice falco hawk! I have one myself. Does he beg for food? He will harrass the heck out of anyone introduced after him, be ready for that. If the fish is larger then he might not. I introduced little guys after I got my first falco and I had to remove him into the qt for a few weeks because he would not leave the others alone. Anyway, back to your tang. If he is larger than half of the body of your lion, add him to the 72. He has been in qt longer than 4 weeks right? Did he ever show signs of ich? Ever had ich in your display?

 

[nolatrav]

yeah the 210 will be ready in 2 months and i posted pics of my lion. if i had to estimate he is about 6-7 inches mouth to tail. i have a 3 inch blue damsel and a 2 inch striped damsel that he hasn't gotten. they have been together with him forever.
do you think the scopas tang is a concern? he is well established.

 

[nolatrav]

Originally Posted by sepulatian
He has quite a bit of pitting around his eyes. Nice falco hawk! I have one myself. Does he beg for food? He will harrass the heck out of anyone introduced after him, be ready for that. If the fish is larger then he might not. I introduced little guys after I got my first falco and I had to remove him into the qt for a few weeks because he would not leave the others alone. Anyway, back to your tang. If he is larger than half of the body of your lion, add him to the 72. He has been in qt longer than 4 weeks right? Did he ever show signs of ich? Ever had ich in your display?
Well its actually a spotted hawk, or it was sold as one. I really havent added any smaller fish to my tank. I did add some small damsels for the lion to munch on 1 night and yeah he did pick on them.
My tang hasnt been in QT. Luckily I have never had Ick in my DT, cross my fingers. In fact my only fish to ever catch Ick was my hippo when 1st purchased.

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by nolatrav
yeah the 210 will be ready in 2 months and i posted pics of my lion. if i had to estimate he is about 6-7 inches mouth to tail. i have a 3 inch blue damsel and a 2 inch striped damsel that he hasn't gotten. they have been together with him forever.
do you think the scopas tang is a concern? he is well established.
A concern as far as what? If the lion is fine with them then he should be fine with the tang. How long has the tang been in qt? If it has been at last 3-4 weeks and you have not seen ich spots, then acclimate him into the 72. Tangs will appear fine for awhile, but it is a lot like keeping a dog in a small kennel. Dogs lose their minds and develop temperment problems, fish lose their mind and start to deteriorate mentaly and physcially. You never noticed that this tang did laps around your tank, or side to side alot? He is a year old and seriously stunted in growth.

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by nolatrav
Well its actually a spotted hawk, or it was sold as one. I really havent added any smaller fish to my tank. I did add some small damsels for the lion to munch on 1 night and yeah he did pick on them.
My tang hasnt been in QT. Luckily I have never had Ick in my DT, cross my fingers. In fact my only fish to ever catch Ick was my hippo when 1st purchased.
How did you treat the tang? Was he in the qt or the dt when you saw that he got ich? BTW that is a falco hawk. Here is a realy bad pic of mine in qt. He is on top of the thermometer waiting for food. He was a greedy eater at the LFS. I have to get newer pics. This one was in February of this year.