Spots on purple tang!

[keithfuchs]

I've had a purple tang for few weeks now and I noticed spots on him last night. I'm so new at this...is this ich? The spots kinda look yellow just like his fins and tail..not sure tho. Any help?

 

[fmarini]

Keith:
w/out a better description, we can't make a eductaed guess. Yellow spots? are you sure? where are they how many (lots, little, few), on the fins main body, around the face, etc. More details please, also details on your tanksetup, tankmates, water paramters, etc
All this will help
last point start doing a search here (use the search command up top) fo ich, and see what you can learn
frank

 

[keithfuchs]

I bought the tang 3 weeks back with 2 percula clownfish and an anenome. A week later I bought a dogface puffer, royal gramma, and scooter blenny. Already in the tank for months has been yellow tang, picasso trigger, gold and blue damsels, and snowflake moray. The yellow tang chases the purple when food is entered, but the purple has learned to use yellow's blind spots and still gets plenty of food.

 

[keithfuchs]

The aquarium is 135 gallon saltwater..I tested the water last night and all levels are fine. The spots are few and are yellow or white(can't really tell) and are on his main body. When i bought the dogfish, he had this white looking flake on his right fin, but it isn't a spot, it truly just looks like somethign stuck to his fin. So not sure if that could do it?

 

[stupid_naso]

I would guess it's ich. Whether it is or not, just start feeding garlic soaked food. If it turns into a bad case of ich then you might have to do other treatment, such as hyposalinity. If not the garlic is good to fight other parasites, including mild cases of ich too.

 

[beth]

Do these spots look as if the fish has been sprinkled with salt? Or does it look like the fish has powder on him?
How is the fish gilling [breathing]? What is the swimming and breathing behavior? Where exactly are the spots and how big are the effected areas?

 

[bammbamm74]

I have a powder blue tang and he has tiny bumps that have white spots on them all over his body ad face. Even on his fins. No other fish have it. He eats fine and breathes fine. Is this ich? How do you soak food in garlic? Can I get garlic oil at the store?

 

[fmarini]

bambam:
Most likely your fish has ich, yes you can feed him garlic enriched or soaked foods. Yes you can also get the garlic extract at the store or GNC. However it sounds like your fish is already heavily involved, and garlic might not be potent enuf. I would do a search for hyposalinity here, and considers getting a quarentine tank up and running if your don't already have one
frank

 

[keithfuchs]

Thanks for everyone's help! I called my aquarium store and they told me not to move the purple tang because that would stress him out even more. They suggested hyposalinity and leaving the lights in my tank on all day for a few days to see if that could get rid of the spots. Any truth to that? I truly do believe now tho that it has something to do with the white flake that is on my dogface puffer's fin. They all swim fine and breathe fine still. What could that flake be? Is there something called cauliflower disease?

 

[carrie]

Uh oh- I called my fish store last night because I too have ich in my tank, they said to keep the light OFF, otherwise the ich thrives on warm temps and adds extra stress on the fish...now what do we both do? You were told to keep lights on and I was told to keep lights off?

 

[bammbamm74]

Don't know about you all, but my Tang seems to be worste in the morning, after the lights have been off, than when I get home from work, when the lights have been on. I'll talk to me LFS today.

 

[beth]

Does your LFS know what type of setup you have? You can only do hyposalinity is a strictly FO tank. That means no live sand, live rock, inverts corals.

 

[keithfuchs]

BETH:
I do have inverts and live rock so I guess I will not be trying hyposalinity! The spots on the tang look like powder I guess. There aren't as many there now though after leaving the lights on in tank for 4 days and lowering salinity to 1.21 from 1.23. Still curious about the flake on dogface tho!

 

[bammbamm74]

I figuered that my Tang has ich just because the sucker is stressed being in a 25 Gal tank. I'm getting a used 55 gallon today, or maybe a 60 gallon, haven't decided. (both under $200 with everything <img src="graemlins//freak.gif" border="0" alt="[freak]" /> ) I'll have a QT tank then. How low should I take the water for hyposalinity?