Tang itching

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sternicus

sternicus

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Had the same tang for 6 months, no signs of ich or anything like that. Haven't added fish in 3 months or so, no new coral recently . Today I saw my tang doing alittle itching and scratching a rock a couple times. Does that sound like it could be ich? Could anything else be the cause of itching? Very worried and want to help if he's bothered but he seems fine with swimming and eating. Could he be getting sand off that many times??
 
Ecoscape Reef Rock
Moving this over to the fish disease forum. If you can provide some pictures of the tang, it will help with diagnosis.
 
The itching is a sign that something is bothering the fish. Typically that means a parasite. Can you tell whether he is targeting his gills or body?
 
Ecoscape Reef Rock
b9dd5c3279a81d575b1c03eba60a3791.jpg
 
To me it looks likes repeatedly scratching right by his fin area, close to his gills
 
Chewy.com
He's a little thin, but that won't cause the scratching. My first step would be to perform a freshwater dip to check for flukes. Flukes, like most parasites, generally attach to the gills first. Flukes are the most simple thing to check for and treat, so we check for that first. Here's how:
 
So should I try dosing prazipro? Online I've read a lot that this is way better than treating with a fw dip as it's a lot less stressful
 
Top Shelf Aquatics
sternicus said:
So should I try dosing prazipro? Online I've read a lot that this is way better than treating with a fw dip as it's a lot less stressful
Click to expand...

I'm suggesting the freshwater dip to check for flukes (not treat them). If the infestation is too heavy dosing prazi can do more harm than good. The flukes spasm as they die from it and cause the fish so much stress that they can die from it. The freshwater dip will kill the flukes (as shown in the video) without stressing the fish very much at all. If flukes are confirmed you can then treat the whole tank with prazi.
 
Should I do a freshwater dip without any salt? Like just rodi? And for 5 minutes? I don't want to kill my yellow tang
 
WWC
sternicus said:
Should I do a freshwater dip without any salt? Like just rodi? And for 5 minutes? I don't want to kill my yellow tang
Click to expand...

Watch the video. It shows myself doing a freshwater dip on a powder brown tang. It's easy and fast. Yes, RODI water the same temp as the water the fish is coming from.
sternicus said:
And how long does my tang have before he dies??
Click to expand...
That's hard to say since we don't know what he has yet. Take a second.... get what you need to do the freshwater dip and report back after it's done. Be sure to follow the directions exactly.
sternicus said:
Also how much do I need to get rid of flukes for a 55g?
Click to expand...
How much of what? You don't need anything yet, let's figure out what the fish have before we start jumping to treat for things.
 
ReefBot Lab, Automated Water Tester
sternicus said:
Okay sounds good. I don't have an airdrome though, what can I do to supplement this?
Click to expand...

You don't have to have an air stone. As long as you have the air pump and air line tubing, then your good. This is an important step and shouldn't be skipped.
 
I don't own an air pump, any other way I can aerate the water? What about a powerhead on the surface breaking the water line?
 
Today I have been observing and no itching at all. Not even one pass by of the rocks. Should I still do a fw dip? I don't want to over stress my fish for no reason
 

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