Yikes. What's wrong with my fish?
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helen ann
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GHsaltie
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I'm curious to know if it could be a bacterial infection of some sort? Week before last there was a juvenile Koran angel that came to the store I work at. It died about 3-4 days after exhibiting these pale blotches. (Not trying to freak you out!) Hopefully @Humblefish and others will be along soon for input and advice.
Mele__Reef
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Look up LLD (LATERAL LINE DISEASE) or LLE (LATERAL LINE EROSION) I did some research and pictures match what your fish has. Hope this helps.
GHsaltie
Valuable Member
Hmmm, some pictures do look similar to what the OP is experiencing, except that it seems to mostly effect the head area. I can't quite tell from the pics but most of the discoloration seems to be towards the back end.
But that's only my observations, I'm no expert with diseases.
GHsaltie
Valuable Member
I dunno, LLE seems like a possibility but it just doesn't seem quite right to me. I also notice that your tang,otherwise, seems rather full and healthy, whereas malnutrition or lack of certain nutrients is thought to be a contributing factor to LLE. I think that's right? Someone correct me if I'm wrong please. Just out of curiosity, and to answer some questions @Humblefish and others may want to know, what are you feeding this fish? How long have you had it, any other odd behaviors?
@melypr1985
@melypr1985
nojinnyc
New Member
No new coral or anemone. Eats a mixture of mysis and brine with pellets. Eating and acting normally,nothing changed. I turned off red and green lights in led? Reduced pellets as I have some red turf algae I'm battling
GHsaltie
Valuable Member
melypr1985
totally addicted
would you be able to pull him out for a freshwater dip? I've seen these on fish that have flukes and it gets infected. You end up with these blotches. The freshwater dip will confirm/rule out flukes and give us a bit of direction here.
Freshwater Dip: Provides temporary relief for Brooklynella, Flukes & "Black Ich", Marine Velvet disease (Amyloodinium); possibly even Ich & Uronema marinum (both unproven). Can be used to confirm the presence of Flukes.
How To Treat - Fill a bucket with RODI water, and use a heater to match the temperature to the water the fish is coming from. Aerate the water heavily for at least 30 minutes prior to doing the dip, then discontinue aeration while performing the dip. Fish aren’t overly pH sensitive for short durations like this, but you can squirt a little tank water into the dip just before the fish goes in to help bring it up.
Place the fish in the freshwater (FW) dip and observe closely. It is not unusual for them to freak out a little at first. Also, tangs are notorious for “playing dead” during a FW dip. The important thing is to watch their gills; they should be breathing heavily at all times during the dip. If breathing slows, it’s time to exit the dip. Dip the fish for no longer than 5 minutes. Multiple dips may be done, but it’s important to give your fish a day to recuperate in-between dips.
For flukes, use a dark (preferably black) bucket so you can see if tiny white worms fall out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 minute mark. The worms will settle to the bottom, so you can use a flashlight to look for them there as well.
Pros - Provides temporary relief for a wide range of diseases in a chemical free environment. Can “buy you more time” until a proper treatment can be done.
Cons/Side Effects - Not a permanent “fix” for any disease, as FW dips are not potent enough to eradicate all of the parasites/worms afflicting the fish. Some fish can have an adverse reaction to a FW dip by appearing unable to maintain their equilibrium once returned to the aquarium. If this happens, hold the fish upright (using latex, nitrile or rubber gloves), and gently glide him through the water (to get saltwater flowing through the gills again). It is also a good idea to place the fish in an acclimation box until he appears “normal”.
Freshwater Dip: Provides temporary relief for Brooklynella, Flukes & "Black Ich", Marine Velvet disease (Amyloodinium); possibly even Ich & Uronema marinum (both unproven). Can be used to confirm the presence of Flukes.
How To Treat - Fill a bucket with RODI water, and use a heater to match the temperature to the water the fish is coming from. Aerate the water heavily for at least 30 minutes prior to doing the dip, then discontinue aeration while performing the dip. Fish aren’t overly pH sensitive for short durations like this, but you can squirt a little tank water into the dip just before the fish goes in to help bring it up.
Place the fish in the freshwater (FW) dip and observe closely. It is not unusual for them to freak out a little at first. Also, tangs are notorious for “playing dead” during a FW dip. The important thing is to watch their gills; they should be breathing heavily at all times during the dip. If breathing slows, it’s time to exit the dip. Dip the fish for no longer than 5 minutes. Multiple dips may be done, but it’s important to give your fish a day to recuperate in-between dips.
For flukes, use a dark (preferably black) bucket so you can see if tiny white worms fall out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 minute mark. The worms will settle to the bottom, so you can use a flashlight to look for them there as well.
Pros - Provides temporary relief for a wide range of diseases in a chemical free environment. Can “buy you more time” until a proper treatment can be done.
Cons/Side Effects - Not a permanent “fix” for any disease, as FW dips are not potent enough to eradicate all of the parasites/worms afflicting the fish. Some fish can have an adverse reaction to a FW dip by appearing unable to maintain their equilibrium once returned to the aquarium. If this happens, hold the fish upright (using latex, nitrile or rubber gloves), and gently glide him through the water (to get saltwater flowing through the gills again). It is also a good idea to place the fish in an acclimation box until he appears “normal”.
^^If its not a coral/nem sting, then a FW dip to check for flukes would be prudent. If no flukes show I would assume it is a bacterial infection and treat with this combination of meds in a QT: Furan-2, Kanaplex, Metroplex
4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
The strain(s) of velvet that won't show spots often causes pale blotches as it damages the gills, but this is more common in angels although I've seen it in a chevron tang and hippo.
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GHsaltie
Valuable Member
I wonder if that's what happened with the Koran angel at my store. During that time there were 3 other fish with what I believe was velvet (my manager doesn't believe me, he thinks anything spotty is ich
). I only noticed some spots on the Angel for a day then they disappeared and it got all blotchy and pale, then died a couple days later. I've been tiring to figure out ever since then if the Angel had velvet and a bacterial infection, or if it was some odd expression of velvet.P.S. OP sorry for going off-topic! Not meaning to derail your thread, and whatever is going on with your tang I hope he gets better for you!
NJHC
Active Member
They are becoming stressed, put your finger tips on the top of your water, do you feel electric vibration ? Your pump could be shocking them and stressing them out unless you added something new to the tank that was very sick.
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