Blue Tang that scratches himself

[dacia]

I have a beautiful blue tang that looks healthy. I can't see any spots or abrasions, or anything like that. However, he will come out of his favorite crevice in the live rock and scratch the side of his body against the rock. He swims back and forth against the rock to do this.
Is he sick? What does it sound like would be wrong with him? The water levels are: pH 8.2, ammonia 0, nitrite .25, nitrate 10, specific gravity 1.023. The water is a little cloudy because I accidentally stirred up the sand last Thursday removing a yellow tang from the tank.

 

[dacia]

I've had the tang for only 3 weeks. He started the scratching when the water became cloudy after the sand was stirred up last Thursday. The nitrites also rose slightly from 0 to .25 after the sand was stirred up.
I also have astrea snails, blueleg hermits, fighting conchs, feather dusters, a mandarin goby, and a swallowtail angel.
I do not have a QT tank setup.

 

[dacia]

The sandstorm in my water is subsiding, and the nitrites have fallen back down to 0. I also have not noticed the tang scratching anymore. Rather than an infection, is it possible that the sand and lower than optimal water quality was making him itch? It seems rather odd that he's better just like that when the water returns to normal.

 

[dacia]

Even though he has quit scratching himself so often, I have now noticed a couple of ugly white spots on the side of his body. What is this and how do I get rid of it?

 

[dacia]

 

[dacia]

They are large white spots that look almost fuzzy, if you know what I mean. The swallowtail angel and mandarin goby look normal and have never showed any signs of anything. I do not use supplements with the food that I give them.

 

[dacia]

After taking the advice found in other threads on this board, the infection is going away. The larger spots are shrinking and the smaller spots are hardly visible. How long should I wait after they are completely gone before I can return the water to normal conditions (s.g. 1.023)?
Also, I had planned to add a starfish to the tank after the infection was gone...how long should I hold off for this? A month?
Thanks for the help on this board!

 

[beth]

Did the fish have ich? You should perform hypo for 3 full wks, then return the salinity to normal limits over the course of another week.
I would get a QT if I were you, as you will not be able to medicate or treat your fish in your tank ever again once you start adding inverts.

 

[dacia]

Yes, my blue tang had ich. He seems to be getting better now, though. I started the treatment on Saturday, so I have 2 and a half weeks to go.
I have decided to start a QT tank in a 10 gallon tank that I have. It was not in use, so I am going to cycle it for SW.
Will hypo kill inverts?

 

[beth]

You can only hypo bony fish [not sharks and rays, and definately not inverts].
What are you using to measure salinity?

 

[dacia]

I have a refractometer that I bought from my LFS. It's not an expensive one, but it works nonetheless.

 

[beth]

Good enough! Glad to hear you are using one!

 

[dacia]

Well, the ich is gone. At least I can't see any of the white spots. I have noticed something else though. On the blue tang's face is what appears to be a red scratch. It looks like what my arm would look like if my cat had just scratched me. What on earth is that, and how do I treat it?
If blue tangs weren't so darn beautiful, I would have just left them at the LFS. I've never had so much trouble with one little fish.

 

[zelfin]

I have a beautiful Koran Angel in the middle of its color change that has the same symptoms. It scratches regularly and once I noticed a cut in its side about 1/4in in size. The cut healed in less than a week but now I can see the beginnings of another.
I am currently searching the threads here but it has become evident the consensous seems to be a parasite of some type.

 

[beth]

Do you have a QT? How long have you had this fish?

 

[zelfin]

Do you have a QT? How long have you had this fish?
I do not. I have a 30g I was going to make into a sump but I am thinking it is becoming a QT now. I took it down after putting this guy in my MT because I didnt really plan on adding anything again. (yes still a newbie)
I have had this fish about 1 1/2 months. When I got him he had one eye blurred/scratched got a fair deal on him for it and thought I had him healed. Was wrong on that.
The QT will get set up again tonight and I will move him over. I will try soaking his food in garlic extract (kent) and wait another few weeks. I dont want to medicate him yet because I have no positive idea of what the problem really is.
I will try to get a picture of it tomorrow.

 

[beth]

You really can't just move a fish into a newly setup tank. The QT will need cycling time. Try using all the water to fill the QT from the display. Add a few pieces of LR rubble and a few cups of sand. Let the tank get stable for a few days, then move him.
I'm thinking hyposalinity might be in order.