Blue Hippo Tang Acting Strange

[JackD]

Hi there!

A few days ago I purchased a Blue Hippo Tang from my local shop. It hasn't eaten since introduction (even with the use of Seachem Garlic Guard), and it is hiding all the time. All of this seems to be natural as most tangs (especially Blue Hippos) exhibit this behavior when introduced to a new environment. But now hes scratching against the substrate, a sign I know too well. This tank is new about 2 months old, so pre-existing ich/velvet is out of the question. Is it sick? Should I bring it back tomorrow? Should I leave it alone?

Thanks!

 

[Old Fritz]

if its "scratching" or "flashing" its almost always ich/velvet. You should assume ich or velvet are in your tank. You should treat all fish before putting them in your display tank. A qt tank will save you money long term. I'd treat all your fish with copper for 30 days and let your tank go fallow

 

[Dave Cureton]

If there are no corals/invertebrates in the tank you could try hypo. Realistically you should put into a QT, treat for ich and velvet, and wait 90 days before reIntroducing. I have a handful of fish in a 140 gallon DT for this reason. I hate QT. Good luck!

 

[JackD]

Thanks guys! I actually got it out right after I posted, and put him into a container which I brought back to the store the following morning. I asked them to let me know if there was any ich or velvet on the fish appearing after I brought him back. So far so good. I got a foxface instead which is eating and happy as of right now. Thanks so much for the speedy replies!

- Jack D

 

[Hugh Mann]

Sorry to say, but if that Hippo had ich, it's now in that tank. Any fish in there is going to get infected. However, they may never show signs of it if they are kept healthy in clean water.

There's two routes you can take.

Ich Management, which is to keep pristine water, healthy diet, possibly run a UV sterilizer (there seems to be a debate if this actually helps), to prevent an outbreak in the future. Healthy, happy fish can usually fight it off, but it will always be present. One thing gets thrown off, and suddenly all your fish are showing it.

Ich Eradication. If you only have a handful of fish in a new tank, this is by far your best option. Copper, tank transfer, hyposalinity, there's a bunch of different ways to eradicate it. If possible, take this option and save yourself the hassle. Then quarantine any new arrivals.

Quarantine is super easy, and can be very inexpensive >$100, and will save you loads of headache. 20 gallon tank (or rubbermaid bin), sponge filter, air pump, heater, cheap lighting, couple pvc fittings and a powerhead if you want to be fancy, though not necessary. Either observe the fish for at least 30 days, or prophylactically treat for diseases/parasites and you're done in 3 weeks or less.

My own Hippo came with a hidden case of ich that took weeks to show up, which fortunately it did before it went into my display. Currently undergoing the tank transfer method to cure it.