my tangs scalpel

he was acting odd tonight. he was hanging out in the corner in direct flow of water
which ive noticed he normally avoids
so i stuck a net in to see if he would move away
and he swam away but not as fast as possible
so i caught him in the net and examined him

[hes a scopas tang by the way]

and he appeared to be okay. just natural color changes[tangs do that i guess. hes very pale as of right now]

and i went to empty the net
and his "scalpel" [the thorn on the side of the tang] got caught on the net
i went to put him back in the tank after i got him untangled [he pulled away quite hard]
and i put him back in and watched him. he seems to be acting normal
but the scalpel is sticking out

will it go back?
did i cause perminent damage?

my mom was like ITS ATTACHED TO HIS SPINE, YOU MIGHTVE BROKEN HIS BACK

and i was confused as to her logic... but hey i wanted someones thoughts.

 

Not sure about the scalpel but netting a fish because you THINK something is wrong with it and examining it out of the tank isn't the best way to deal with things. Not trying to be harsh or mean just giving you advice.

 

i understand, i was more shushing him out of the corner out of worry.
and he was in the corner by the liverock
so i needed him out in the open
i didnt take him out of the tank
until his scalpel was stuck

i shouldve went to sleep
or known better

 

His probably just in defense mood. Leave him be and im sure he will be fine. As long as hes eating tmrw you should not have much to worry about!