Hey guys, I was wondering what is going on with our tang. The redish spots happened about 5 days ago. We went to our LFS and they suggested Rally Pro treatment. It is day 4 and the redness has dropped but it is getting white spots and starting to not want to eat. I love our boy and don't want to lose him.
The red blotches look like septicemia, which is bacterial. Unfortunately, it looks like antibiotics are needed here. Quarantine him, and provide heavy filtration and an airstone for added oxygenation. In my experience, most truly effective medications are not reef safe, so quarantine is a generally a must. What has he been eating? Tangs need a lot of greens in their diet, but will usually eat meaty foods, too. If he's reluctant to eat, try opening a live clam, mussel or oyster for him. Be aware that the shellfish will cloud the water temporarily. Normally, I use Kanaplex when I see red spots or blotches like that, and it might apply in this case, as well. The lacking appetite and fin deterioration are of concern, but Kanaplex may be sufficiently broad spectrum to handle all of the symptoms. I have a pearlscale butterflyfish in QT who was showing similar symptoms to your tang, but less advanced. I did a regimen of Kanaplex, followed by General Cure, and he appears to be recovering well. Should his appetite return, you'll want to really push the seaweed, and treat it with Selcon and a vitamin preparation like Zoe. Various herbivore preparations should be offered, as well. Get an algae clip, or rubber band the nori to a rock so he can pick at it all day. Mysis shrimp is also good. Last year I received two pyramid butterflyfish who were in poor condition and not eating. After a few days, I was able to restore their appetites with live copepods. I thought that the copepods were too tiny for the fish to bother with, but they fed very enthusiastically.
It is very important to keep up with water changes while medicating in order to ensure steady water quality. In my 40 gallon fish QT I do a small water change of about 8-10 gallons between doses. So, if I dose on a Monday evening, I'll change a few gallons just before Wednesday evening's dose. After the dosing regimen is completed, I'll change about 15 gallons.
