Naso tang

[Mgoc]

Hi everyone, we just got a Naso tang 2 days ago and it is pretty skinny, he doesn't move around too much and before buying it we saw him eating mysid at the LFS but now he wont. He eats caulerpa algae and that's about it. I ordered Selcon and PraziPro. Is there anything else I can feed him. I really want to make him as strong as possible before going into the main tank since we already have 1 yellow tang and 1 blue regal tang in there.

Any advice is appreciated.

By the way:

S.G. 1.023
Temp 77
NO2= zero
NO3= zero
NH4= zero
pH= 8.0
Alk= 10

 

[Reefing Madness]

Nori Sheets
Roamine Lettuce
Seaweed Selects
Mysis
Squid
Macro Algaes is you can get enough

 

[AJsTank]

Try some frozen blood worms. That's what I finally got my Naso to eat.

 

[TJ's Reef]

Hands down the very best food to offer a new Tang or Angel is Red Nori, in 35+ years of keeping Marine Fish nothing I've seen/used comes close. Even very finicky Leopard Wrasses will usually indulge as well.

Cheers, Todd

 

[Palting]

Naso tangs are voracious eaters. Mine eats right out of my fingers, and he will eat anything. Just give him time to acclimate to the QT. If all he will eat is Caulerpa, that's certainly nutritious enough for this herbivore for now. Once he gets acclimated, you can try to feed him Nori, some herbivore pellets, even some flakes. When you try the Nori, cut it into strips then attach it to a clip.

Here's a vid on how to feed Nori:
<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/yeH4kDVAM0Y" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


Here's a vid of them eating IO gel food, Omnivore blend, what I use as foundation for food:
<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/yeH4kDVAM0Y" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[Palting]

Hmmm. Did not embed. Here are direct links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGN-9TgV0qw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeH4kDVAM0Y

 

[Mgoc]

Thanks everyone. I tried feeding him Nori sheets attached to a veggie clip before but he didnt even get close to it. Maybe I'll try it again with a small rock and a rubber band to hold the Nori in place.

 

[Mgoc]

Hands down the very best food to offer a new Tang or Angel is Red Nori, in 35+ years of keeping Marine Fish nothing I've seen/used comes close. Even very finicky Leopard Wrasses will usually indulge as well.

Cheers, Todd

I will try to get my hands on some red Nori today. I'm assuming I can find it wherever they sell Asian products right?

 

[Lidofishieboi]

Give him some time and he'll be fine.

 

[whixley101]

Red Nori

 

[reeffirstaid]

If he is very thin, such as his belly is clearly sunken in and some resemblance of a rib cage is visible, he may be suffering from an internal parasite, or worms. Have you seen him have a bowel movement, if so was it white and stringy. Fish shed intestinal tissue normally, though if they are stricken with an internal parasite, they will shed it more often and in greater amounts. New Life Spectrum Thera A, selcon, norri, along with pristine water quality. Those are all your best bets. He will recover if he's able to beat the parasite naturally with aid from the products mentioned. If he's too far gone, you may lose him.

 

[TruRacr314x]

When I got my blonde naso, he didn't really show an interest in eating in QT. I fed live black worms as it is my go to for when fish are hesitant to eat. Mine kills green and purple nori...but doesn't really care much for red. I've had this one for about 3-4 months now and it lives seaweed and bubble algae, but shows no interest in pellets, flakes or frozen. Mine is a bit of a shy guy though...hoping it accepts other foods at some point...but is super fat now, so not worried.

Just be patient and offer as many different foods as you have access to. Live black worms are my success with all fish to this point.

 

[Marshall O]

I will try to get my hands on some red Nori today. I'm assuming I can find it wherever they sell Asian products right?

My fish LOVE TLF Julian Sprung red seaweed, as another option. You can get good sized bags for cheap.

 

[miyags]

I feed my tangs brown nori cut in thin strips 1/4in wide x 3in long. and san francisco spirulina brine shrimp.maybe a little garlic extreme on the nori, to get him interested.

 

[Mgoc]

If he is very thin, such as his belly is clearly sunken in and some resemblance of a rib cage is visible, he may be suffering from an internal parasite, or worms. Have you seen him have a bowel movement, if so was it white and stringy. Fish shed intestinal tissue normally, though if they are stricken with an internal parasite, they will shed it more often and in greater amounts. New Life Spectrum Thera A, selcon, norri, along with pristine water quality. Those are all your best bets. He will recover if he's able to beat the parasite naturally with aid from the products mentioned. If he's too far gone, you may lose him.

Thanks aquaman. This is really useful information. So far I don't suspect a parasite or worm based on what you described in your post, but I will pay a closer eye on his bowel movements for sure.

 

[Mgoc]

Thank everyone for the tips. So far he only wants to eat grape caulerpa and the smaller pieces of spirulina brine shrimp from HIkari. But he seem to have a little more energy than he did 3 days ago. I'll keep you updated.

 

[reeffirstaid]

One thing to try Mgoc is attaching algae sheets to a rock with a rubber band. This creates a more natural feeding area for the fish. In the wild, tangs don't typically feed on a solid algae sheet swaying on aquarium glass, so the rock approach is more realistic. I know some angelfish species I've kept aren't keen on accepting food, and often the rubber band/rock approach will spur them to feed.