I have a sick blue tang

jmt1030 · Jul 18, 2017

I got this little guy on Friday and he's not doing so good. Not sure what to do at this point. I have other fish in the tank and they're doing fine. He hides in the rocks pretty much all day and today I noticed his eye is swollen.

What can I do at this point?

Sorry for the crappy pictures, but he won't come out of the rocks so it's the best I can get.

leahfiish · Jul 18, 2017

Those white spots look like velvet.

do you have a way to quarantine him?

jmt1030 · Jul 18, 2017

leahfiish said:
Those white spots look like velvet. do you have a way to quarantine him?

No, not at the moment. Is there anything else I can do that doesn't require that? I'll go get a setup if need be.

leahfiish · Jul 18, 2017

Unfortunately I don't think so. Even if it's not velvet you will still need to treat the eye. If it is velvet you may soon see symptoms on your other fish. Lethargy, lack of appetite, hiding and avoiding light, heavy breathing, swimming into a powerhead.

Maritimer · Jul 18, 2017

jmt1030 said:
No, not at the moment. Is there anything else I can do that doesn't require that? I'll go get a setup if need be.

Sadly, there isn't anything else you can do besides quarantine. Tangs, due to their reduced slimecoat, are vulnerable to ich and velvet (and Leahfiish is right - this is almost certainly velvet). Unfortunately, this fellow's brought it into your display - and pretty much everything that kills velvet will cause widespread devastation among your invertebrates and corals.

Pacific blue tangs will do best with a copper treatment - they don't tolerate CP (Chloroquine Phosphate) well. With that in mind, here's a write-up on treating the beast: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/velvet-amyloodinium-ocellatum.217570/#post-2499399

You'll want to remove and treat _all_ of the fish in your tank, and move quickly - Velvet moves fast and leaves little but heartache behind.

~Bruce

4FordFamily · Jul 18, 2017

That's velvet, I am 100% certain. It's also very badly affected. By the time you see that many spots on the outside, the gills are often severely damaged. That one needs immediate removal and treatment per the protocol in the above link, as well as all fish that share the tank. That tank will need to be left fishless for 76 days.

jmt1030 · Jul 18, 2017

Thank you all for the replies. Can velvet hit that fast? He showed no signs at all on Friday. He has been all over the rocks which I'm assuming have cut him a little.

Here's a picture of when I first got him.

melypr1985 · Jul 18, 2017

Yes. Velvet can and will hit very fast. I agree that this is velvet and the eye is infected. You'll want to treat him and all his tankmates according to the link Bruce posted https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/velvet-amyloodinium-ocellatum.217570/#post-2499399 .

You'll need to leave the display fallow (without fish) for a minimum of 6 weeks for velvet and 76 days to be sure the tank is clear of all parasites. Act quickly as velvet isn't something to take lightly.

aykwm · Jul 18, 2017

Agree with the above, unfortunately it's velvet. You need to remove all fish from the tank and treat with copper and run fallow for ~76 days.
And yes, velvet can appear appear and kill fish within days and sometimes hours, thats why quarantining is important.
To buy you some time do an acriflavine or formalin bath, or FW dip
Best of luck with treatment

bellasdad0911 · Jul 18, 2017

Feed it crushed garlic whole, the fresher the better. You can use the canned garlic and just cut it up a bit more. Don't be afraid to really add it. I had this exact situation with one I rescued a month ago and now he is the gem of the tank. I also used garlic guard and selcon added to my frozen food soaked overnight. Make sure your feeding tangs a good diet of greens. This is very important. Along with all that I added a cheap uv sterilizer in my sump running for half the day to all day, with 5 days it was clear and now eats like a horse. I completely believe in the treatment. Inexpensive and healthy. Keep us posted !

Humblefish · Jul 18, 2017

Classic velvet unfortunately.

I agree with advice already given.

May I use these photos to show the difference between ich & velvet on a Hippo Tang?

aykwm · Jul 19, 2017

bellasdad0911 said:
Feed it crushed garlic whole, the fresher the better. You can use the canned garlic and just cut it up a bit more. Don't be afraid to really add it. I had this exact situation with one I rescued a month ago and now he is the gem of the tank. I also used garlic guard and selcon added to my frozen food soaked overnight. Make sure your feeding tangs a good diet of greens. This is very important. Along with all that I added a cheap uv sterilizer in my sump running for half the day to all day, with 5 days it was clear and now eats like a horse. I completely believe in the treatment. Inexpensive and healthy. Keep us posted !

Garlic + selcon + uv ddo not cure anything and especially not velvet. If symptoms disappear it doesnt mean its done, rather it became a ticking bomb waiting to reinfect again

jpcrash1 · Jul 19, 2017

I just went through this with a blue tang with velvet and lost all my fish . Get him out of the the tank as fast as you can. You can get a ten gallon tank cheap or stick him in a bucket for now.

jpcrash1 · Jul 19, 2017

aykwm said:
Garlic + selcon + uv ddo not cure anything and especially not velvet. If symptoms disappear it doesnt mean its done, rather it became a ticking bomb waiting to reinfect again

+1

jmt1030 · Jul 19, 2017

Thanks for all the responses. I will go out tonight and setup a quarantine tank. I'm assuming I shouldn't setup the tank with my current tank water, correct?

jmt1030 · Jul 19, 2017

Humblefish said:
Classic velvet unfortunately. I agree with advice already given.

May I use these photos to show the difference between ich & velvet on a Hippo Tang?

Yes, no problem.

LuckyPhil · Jul 19, 2017

Yes definitely not the same water.
What type of fish do you have? Copper is the easiest to purchase and CP is a lot harder (through a vet).

aykwm · Jul 19, 2017

You would want to add the fish to new salt water so you avoid getting parasites in quarantine with it. You can still use same water as anyway medication will kill them, but if you used dt water the fish might get reinfected, while new water will buy you sometime, along with fw dip, or acriflavine or formalin bath it will buy you some time until you ramp up the copper in tank to therapeutical level. You want to get it there within 24 hours( make sure you dont have copper sensitive fish) and make sure to get test kit for copper, as details on bottle are based on lab results, but each tank varies.

jmt1030 · Jul 19, 2017

LuckyPhil said:
Yes definitely not the same water.
What type of fish do you have? Copper is the easiest to purchase and CP is a lot harder (through a vet).

aykwm said:
You would want to add the fish to new salt water so you avoid getting parasites in quarantine with it. You can still use same water as anyway medication will kill them, but if you used dt water the fish might get reinfected, while new water will buy you sometime, along with fw dip, or acriflavine or formalin bath it will buy you some time until you ramp up the copper in tank to therapeutical level. You want to get it there within 24 hours( make sure you dont have copper sensitive fish) and make sure to get test kit for copper, as details on bottle are based on lab results, but each tank varies.

I currently have the following fish:

Naso Tang
Foxface
Yellow Tang
6 chromis
3 clowns
barlet anthia

How likely are the other fish to contract velvet? is it a 100% certainty or can I wait until they show signs? The only reason I ask is because I would have to get a pretty large tank to be able to hold them all (thinking a 55g minimum)

Also, how about the coral in the tank? will they be OK staying in there?

Last questions, will stores like Petco carry Copper or is this a LFS type of purchase?

Thanks again for all your help on this!

melypr1985 · Jul 19, 2017

jmt1030 said:
How likely are the other fish to contract velvet? is it a 100% certainty or can I wait until they show signs?

100% certainty. IF any survive this, they will become carriers (ticking time bomb) that will infect all new additions to the tank and allow the parasite to continue it's life cycle.