Help! Hippo tang not eating!!-ASAP-3reef Forums

TBar100 · 09-30-2007, 06:45 PM

Hello everyone, I have a dilemma. I just recently got a hippo tang yesterday and it is not eating. I have tried to give it my regular reef food, (very meaty full of fish, brine shrimp and basically all meaty types of food, a customer at my LFS makes it and it is a great food) dired marine algae, lettuce, and I have a TON of hair algae for it to feed on. Water is *perfect* no ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, or phosphates. pH around 8.2, spg 1.123. I just got him yesterday and I can understand that he may be nervous but he got really skinny since I got him, and his anal, and belly area have turned a pale blue. Also, his breathing seems a little quick but nothing terribly unusual. All he does is swim on the right side of the tank, little ups and downs along the wall. I thought I would try to hatch some brine shrimp tomorrow to feed him with. I have some corals in the tank (all soft) and I also have a maroon clown, a yellow tailed damsel, and a royal gramma, 2 shrimp, and some hermits. My tank is 36 gallons, I thought it may be small but my LFS said it is fine, as long as he had enough algae to eat, and he does, it is everywhere! Also, I have some feathery caulerpa in my tank, I had that in there before he was added in but IDK if tangs eat that stuff. I really don't care what he eats from my tank right now, just as long as he eats!!!! Please give me any advice you can!
Thanks!
Marc

Matt Rogers · 09-30-2007, 07:08 PM

Marc how long did you acclimate this fish?
How large is your tank? 36? That is pretty small, most will say it's too small.
The biggest problem here that I have had is water stability in such a small aquarium.
This particular nemo fish is really delicate.

A Hippo Tang is certainly one that I would recommend waiting until your tank is mature, then putting money down and having the LFS hold it for a while to make sure it will make it. Good idea to see it feed too. My tangs were big on the Formula I & II frozen food (thawed) for what it is worth..

(Oh, please don't post in multiple forums - ASAP board should be enough.)

Thanks... good luck!

matt

TBar100 · 09-30-2007, 07:14 PM

Sorry about the multiple posts. I acclimated him for an hour. My tank has been up for over a year now, but I got some other responses on other sites that said it is too small. I will take him back tomorrow. Thank you.

Marc

msbdiving · 09-30-2007, 07:19 PM

I saw something that kinda alarmed me and I hope it was a typo. Is your sg 1.123 or 1.023, big, big difference and if it is 1.123 it is probably not getting the oxygen it is supposed to which could explain erratic swimming. If it was just a typo, and your fish is still swimming erratic, then keep an eye on it for a few days and see if it mellows out. I am not sure how it was acclimated, too qiuck and you can see the same thing. My Kole still will do some weird stuff every now and then but I look at the long term overall health and eating is fine. I think you mentioned brine, mine likes that weird for being an herbivore. I have heard success stories of soaking in melafix or garlic. I have tried the garlic before and they ate ravenously but then again, they always are.

Matt Rogers · 09-30-2007, 07:30 PM

I was wondering about the SG too. Good catch msb.

Np Marc. Thanks for joining 3reef.

TBar100 · 10-01-2007, 04:22 AM

Yes it was a typo, sorry sg - - 1.023. He doesn't swim erratically, just little ups and downs in the same spot. I will try the brine and if he eats that, maybe I can get him eating other stuff later on. He was acclimated for an hour.

Marc

Tangster · 10-01-2007, 05:29 AM

It may take a week or more for it to acclimate to tank life and learn how to eat.. We just had a powder blue to go 3 weeks with doing nothing more then just pecking around the tank.. I took lettuce and broccoli and left it on a clip and soaked some frozen brine shrimp in reef success vitamins ..
But the hanging of of the letttuce is about the best way I have ever found to get tangs to eat.. Also the brine was just to get it and to keep it interested in eating and as soon as it was eating that stopped being offered.

TBar100 · 10-01-2007, 01:52 PM

That is what I am going to try to do. Just keep him alive, until he learns to eat other things. Don't they come from the wild eating algae and stuff, I have a TON of hair algae, he should be as fat as a pig. When I came home today, he was in the middle of the tank, but his mouth is ALWAYS open, can they close it? It seems wider than it was before when I just got him.

Thanks!

Marc

crappyballer · 10-01-2007, 04:25 PM

Paracanthurus hepatus is mainly a planktivore. so they don't eat algae like the yellow tangs, and kole tangs. their main diet should consist of meat. although they will take the algae when it is offered. i have never seen my blue tang eat hair algae off the rocks.

TBar100 · 10-01-2007, 05:00 PM

Ok, that is good to know, so hopefully he will snick up some BBS when they are ready soon, in like an hour. I will keep you posted.

Marc