Help purple tang sick

[bseth90]

I just got back from work and my purple tang is breathing extremely hard. I see no marks, spots, anything wrong. He is just staying in the hardest current area in my reef tank. The other fish in the tank seem fine - kole tang, coral beauty, and a blue damsel. Corals are fine and all open, levels are good. He is just sitting there upright and almost panting - any ideas..He is about five years old probably four inches - ate well yesterday and is still real fat no discoloration at all.

 

[promisetbg]

Anything new added recently at all? Even inverts? You say parameters are all good..what are you using to test your SG. a hydrometer or refractometer? If a hydrometer,they are known to be innacurate and should be replaced yearly. Most refractometers need to be calibrated. Sometimes SG. can inch it's way up without notice if the tool you are using is wrong..then on top of that if the tank needs top-off at a certain time..a tank's SG. can be as high as 1.030 or higher. If it does get high it can make it tough on the fish to breathe. Is there any way something foreign could have gotten into the tank via yours or someone else's hands? Cleaners used around the tank, handlotion, etc.
Can you post all parameters..including alk,PH, PO4, NO3 etc...maybe we can see something and can help. These are all just possibilities. There are diseases that will make a fish breathe hard, such as black ich, white ich, bacterial infections, marine velvet...but something most likely would have to have been added to the tank to introduce it. Is it possible frozen food was left out too long before being fed and could have gotten bacteria?

 

[bseth90]

The food thing possibly since I rotate with three kinds....possibly old. Nothing new was added. His eye is kinda going silver. All the fish ate the same food yesterday. I checked the salt level and it is a little high which I keep for my corals around 1.028-1.027. Could that effect him in this manner. The eye is the only thing besides the breathing I notice. Again everything else clams, anenome, all wide open all other fish, inverts out and about.

 

[promisetbg]

Is it only one eye? Is there any way he could have scratched it..and you did'nt notice? Perhaps bacteria was able to enter? Do you have or are you willing to set up a QT for him? Doing this and lowering the SG. slowly may help relieve his problem of breathing until you can either figure out what the problem is, or just to give him a quiet place to recover. He may have gotten into a spat with another fish..and he's pouting or showing signs of stress. Is there any fish that he gets into it with? Purple tangs can be quite aggressive. As I said if you are keeping the SG. on the high end...it can get pretty high when it is due for top-off unless you have an automatic top-off which keeps that in check. Lastly,the anemone could be in question..perhaps he got mildly stung by it?

 

[bseth90]

I can't see the other eye...he won't turn...just keeps his head facing into the strongest current. His stomach does look a little bloated. I topped off my tank to lower the salt level a little and shut the lights off. I do have another fish only tank that I just set up. There's not much in there a few damsels and a clown....thought about putting him in there, but I'm afraid to move him....this is my favorite fish....ughhhh.