thinking of getting a Blue Hippo tang

[ynotme4886]

I know these are really hard to deal with and getting a healty one is difficult so I was looking for pointers on how to pick a good one.
My qt tank is setup for about 2 wks. Its small ( 10 gal with a bio wheel and 2 pieces of Live rock from my main tank) and has cycled and is ready to use.
So if you were going to buy one of these how would you do it successfully. I know they tend to carry Ich and its hard to get them to eat and diet is a big thing with Tangs or you can get LLE from lousy conditions.
So lets hear some input on how to do this right and thanks for the help

 

[miaheatlvr]

Originally Posted by ynotme4886
I know these are really hard to deal with and getting a healty one is difficult so I was looking for pointers on how to pick a good one.
My qt tank is setup for about 2 wks. Its small ( 10 gal with a bio wheel and 2 pieces of Live rock from my main tank) and has cycled and is ready to use.
So if you were going to buy one of these how would you do it successfully. I know they tend to carry Ich and its hard to get them to eat and diet is a big thing with Tangs or you can get LLE from lousy conditions.
So lets hear some input on how to do this right and thanks for the help
I would not put in a hippo as one of you first fish, I would prefer you add one if you have the following criteria: well established tank, Live rock with hiding areas, enough swimming space, people like to use 6 ft swimming space MINIMUM. Specific diets: Lots of greens, nori, vitamins..

 

[ynotme4886]

It will eventually go in my 90g display tank. It has 120lbs of Live rock and been set up for about 9 months. The other residents are a bicolored angel a pair of mated maroon clowns and a pearlscale butterfly. I currently feed formula a & b mixed with algae cubes and angel formula soaked in selcon and occasionally throw in the mix some brine shrimp/Krill/mysis shrimp all soaked as well and use Julien Sprungs clip on algae too. The hippo would go from quarantine ( I am thinking at least a month ) To my 38 gal long tank with my false perc and a yellow tail angel for at least another month before it makes its way to the display tank. I dont wanna rush it and end up with a problem

 

[m0nk]

Well, personally, I wouldn't QT a hippo in a 10 gallon, unless you get one of the juvenile ones that start out around the size of a quarter. They're tough to keep alive though, and if it's a juvenile, when it ends up in the display tank it'll likely get picked on by the maroon clowns, which could help onset HLLE or ich because of the stress. Maybe if the tank was 150+ that wouldn't be so bad, since the clowns would stake out a certain territory, but IMO it might trouble in a 90 gallon.

 

[ice4ice]

A 90G tank will not be big enough for the tang. They need much larger tanks - at least 125G or larger.

 

[ynotme4886]

They are small Hippo's about and inch to an inch and a half long. Trust me if I could fit a bigger tank I would have one LOL. My floors in this place just wont hold the weight. Am looking to move in the next 2 yrs to a house with a basement and do a huge setup but for now I have to settle for a 90 gal. The Maroons are actually very calm and dont seem to bother anyone. The female is about 5inches long and about 2.5 inches high and the male is maybe 3in long by 1.5 tall. The male will swim with the butterfly and the angel and doesnt bother them at all. The female just ignores everyone but the male and its been this way since day one. I know maroons can be aggressive but I think they are more territorial than anything.

 

[dragonzim]

Even at very small sizes Hippo Tangs really need a long horizontal swimming space of at least 6 feet. Once you see how fast these guys can zip from one end of a tank to the other you will see why. These fish are open water swimmers and need that space. A standard 90 gallon, at 4 feet long is not big enough.

 

[m0nk]

Originally Posted by ynotme4886
They are small Hippo's about and inch to an inch and a half long. Trust me if I could fit a bigger tank I would have one LOL. My floors in this place just wont hold the weight. Am looking to move in the next 2 yrs to a house with a basement and do a huge setup but for now I have to settle for a 90 gal. The Maroons are actually very calm and dont seem to bother anyone. The female is about 5inches long and about 2.5 inches high and the male is maybe 3in long by 1.5 tall. The male will swim with the butterfly and the angel and doesnt bother them at all. The female just ignores everyone but the male and its been this way since day one. I know maroons can be aggressive but I think they are more territorial than anything.
Just because they don't bother anyone now doesn't mean they won't. Personally, I just don't think it's a good idea.... especially with a maroon as big as you say the female is. By the time you get the blue tang in there those clowns will become territorial and with not as much room to swim around as tangs would generally "like", there could very well be some territorial disputes....

 

[lesleybird]

A ninety gallon is not by any means big enough for one of these as they are very fast distance swimmers and will not be happy at all. They need at least a 6 foot tank. Please listen as we know what we are talking about. We are not asking you to get a bigger tank, just not to put the poor hippo in there if that is all you can provide as it is very cruel to the fish. A small hippo turns into a big hippo. Be a responsible fish keeper and don't do it. If you want a big type fish that will be ok for two years in a ninety then why don't you try a Majestic angelfish, Scribbled angelfish or a Goldflake angelfish as these are slow swimmers and slow growers. They would be ok in a ninety for two years if you get a small 4 inch one as they only grow about an inch a year. I also agree with what everyone is saying about your clowns. If you want to ignore the truth that we are all telling you then why do you ask? We are giving you good advice but you may just be stubborn and do what you want even if it is bad for the fish. Don't bother to think of what is best for their needs. Also, I just saw that you were going to put another clown into the tank with the maroon pair. They will kill another clown in their tank. Lesley

 

[nigerbang]

I have about a 4-5" one in my tank..With another Yellow as its only tankmate so far...They are in a 180..To watch it pace back and forth...."Just Keep Swimming" is more than a song..I wouldnt feel good about putting one in a 4' tank...They grow fast and when they get stressed is when Ick sets in and explodes...I would just wait..

 

[ynotme4886]

If you want a big type fish that will be ok for two years in a ninety then why don't you try a Majestic angelfish, Scribbled angelfish or a Goldflake angelfish as these are slow swimmers and slow growers. They would be ok in a ninety for two years if you get a small 4 inch one as they only grow about an inch a year. I also agree with what everyone is saying about your clowns. If you want to ignore the truth that we are all telling you then why do you ask? We are giving you good advice but you may just be stubborn and do what you want even if it is bad for the fish. Don't bother to think of what is best for their needs. Also, I just saw that you were going to put another clown into the tank with the maroon pair. They will kill another clown in their tank. Lesley
1st of all if you bothered to read and understand a complete sentence I never said anything about putting another clown in my tank. I stated
The hippo would go from quarantine ( I am thinking at least a month ) To my 38 gal long tank with my false perc and a yellow tail angel for at least another month before it makes its way to the display tank. I dont wanna rush it and end up with a problem
I only said I was moving the Hippo tang not the clownfish. I am not that stupid thank you very much.
Now onto your next mistake from not reading what I said in my 2nd post.
If you want a big type fish that will be ok for two years in a ninety then why don't you try a Majestic angelfish, Scribbled angelfish or a Goldflake angelfish as these are slow swimmers and slow growers.
My tank stock list is as follows
The other residents are a bicolored angel a pair of mated maroon clowns and a pearlscale butterfly.
Now if you read anywhere on this site or listen to anyone with any info on angelfish they you would know its not a good idea to mix them. Trust me if I thought it was safe I would put my yellow tail in with the bi-colored angel. I really am not interested in killing anything.
Yes I realize hippos CAN get big and if it did outgrow my tank I would be the 1st person to admit it and trade it in at my LFS. Oh and on the maroon clowns... I was planning on moving them before putting in the hippo and moving some stuff around in the tank and then putting them back after the hippo was settled. I have 4 tanks in the house if you count the QT tank.
So can anyone suggest another type of tang that might work for this size tank? I really am not interested in getting a yellow tang.
Thanks

 

[mcbdz]

Kole or purple are smaller, also the mimic tangs I've seen are beautiful .

 

[dragonzim]

Wonderful attitude to have towards people that are just trying to help.
I personally dont think ANY tang will do well long term in anything smaller than a 6 foot tank. I have had a hippo and a yellow in a 75 before I really knew what I was doing and I will never put one in a 4 foot tank again after seeing how miserable they were in such a small tank.

 

[ynotme4886]

Why is it a wonderful attitude? I asked a simple time frame qt question and all I got was " dont do that " I never said I was going out tomorrow and buying one now did I? I try to collect all the info I can on a fish and make sure it will thrive and I can provide all the necessary requirements for it before I buy it and then usually think about it for a month or so and make sure that is what I want to do before I actually go out and do it. An impulse shopper I am not
My "attitude" came from people who dont read all of something and then post their opinion and in doing so make a suggestion that could end up with fish fighting and killing each other.
Now if someone would have said that "hippo tangs are one of the fastest growing species of tangs and can outgrow your tank faster than many other types of tangs" that would have been useful info to know. BTW I got that tidbit from my LFS when I was talking to them about the different tang species. I had never heard that from anyone and it was good info to know.
Also if you look at the fish description on THIS site you will see the various minimum tank sizes for hippo tangs are as follow
3-5 inches 40 gal
4-6 inches 150 gal
1-2 inches 40 gal
less than 3/4 inches 90 gal
This is the info listed here on this site under the fish section. So if you want to yell at people for giving out bad info on fish that need larger tanks I can point you in the right direction.
I am sorry if this comes off the wrong way but the way some people post here with a condescending attitude towards others really annoys me.
As for getting a hippo I really havent decided... I want a lot more info on them cause I know they can be a complex fish and really want to understand them more before making any decision it was more a question of the ICH issue than anything since most people who actually get one seem to have this problem lately. You see posts every day that say "My hippo has ich" and it is a definite turn off about buying this fish and was wondering if it was really worth the trouble to even consider one in the future.
BTW If I could get away with it I would have a tank full of angelfish because they are my favorite fish. I just cant see a way of doing it unless you have a huge setup of a couple hundred gallons and even then I am sure there are risks involved.
Thanks again
Ynot

 

[m0nk]

Well, SWF.com certainly isn't clear about tank sizes vs tang size, so that is definitely confusing. They also don't note the actual max size that this one gets, which is 12+ inches. The fact that they get to be nearly a foot long makes the 4 foot tank thing a hot topic around here. Being a quarter of the length of it's home, and being an open ocean swimmer, certainly isn't the greatest idea. So that's what most people mean about the 90 gallon not being big enough. Now, granted, you can do a small tang in your tank no problem for the first couple years of it's life, but that again comes back to the aggressive nature of the maroon clowns. Personally, I have a juvenile in my 55 gallon just while I put together it's new home, which gets setup in January (a 180 gallon tank). It's only about 1 inch, got it at about 3/4 inch in august knowing it would need a bigger tank within a year, and I knew I was absolutely going to do it too. I hope that helps some.

 

[ynotme4886]

I was gonna move the maroons one way or the other to another tank. No matter what I add they will be bigger and I will need to mix things up and move things around and let whatever I decide to get get situated before I even think of putting the maroons back. I never heard they got to a foot long. I have heard about 9 inches long.
BTW SWF.com is not the only place that has confusing tank sizes. Most online retailers recommend a 75gallon tank minimum for a 1-3 hippo tang.
I have about 2 yrs before I move and the floors here just cant support any more weight so bigger is out for now.
Thanks for the info though Monk
Ynot

 

[1boatnut]

ynotme4886,
I can't agree with you more. As soon as people see Hippo Tang and tank size under 6' around here they rarely bother to address most questions the poster is asking,they jump right on tank size.
I have a Blue Hippo in a 29 gal,who will be moved to a 75 shortly and after that we'll see.
I am not sure as how the 6' rule of thumb has come about,but that is the magic number for the Tang Police.
I believe if all they say is true,6' is not sufficent either and this fish would be better left in the ocean.
As far as the Ich issue,mine did get Ich,but truthfully it was mostly due to my own ignorance.I treated him with hypo and all is well.
I like the fish,and it is the KING of the tank,but if I had it to do over again,I might shy away from the Hippo,or most Tang's in general.
Good luck with whatever you decide

 

[nycbob]

a blue hippo that small is fine imo. its not really gonna grow big til another 2-3 years. a 90 gallon for a 1 inch tang is plenty. we tend to look too far into the future. maybe after 2-3 years, he will fall in love w the blue hippo and get a bigger tank! and who knows whether it will even live that long. but definitely qt the tang for 3-4 weeks.

 

[keith burn]

To find a good fish question #1
1) Imo, if you know the lfs...ask how long they have had it?
Most lfs... it is in and then out. it is hard to say it is a good healthy fish if they have had it 2 days the worker on a 8 hour shift saw it swimming 3 times...
So get to know (your fish guy)some one you trust...
2) Ask if the fish is feeding. Most will feed it with you looking (if it will not feed ask to hold it until it will). My lfs will hold fish 3/5day for me.
3) Look at the fish to see if it is the fish that they say it is.A book will help with this...
If it is a fish that is a Juvenile or will it look like what you see?
Alot of fish have a juvenile phase and look quite different than the grown fish of the same variety.
4) Look to see that the fish is symmetrical no odd bumps/color
Look to see that it is free swimming not just swimming in the corrner as this may be a sign it's not doing well.
5) After all of this, price a lot of lfs. They will normally be getting the same fish in at the same time. Look at other lfs to see if it will be at the same or around the same price.
Imo I will gladly pay more to my lfs for the people I trust but only so far.
Good luck hope it helps.
And as far as all the hub bub about size of fish to the size of tank;
Imo (ONLY)1in of fish to 12in of swimming room. Now if that is front and back/top to bottom/side to side. It's your call. We as fish keepers do try to make the home away from home the best we can.