As many of you know, I have a collection of "rescue" tangs. 4, from 3 different places, all disfigured by long-term, chronic HLLE. They are "in remission" meaning the illness has been stopped, but they are permanently disfigured - scarred.
Today, another tang was brought to me, same situation. Horrible, horrible, advanced HLLE. I'm struggling with being angry that it was left to go so long, with at least being grateful that the fish was brought to me so it can live out its life in better circumstances.
I'm not writing this thread to pass judgment on his keeper, but I am hoping that this poor fish's plight can help educate, so more fish don't meet a similar fate. Judging by my collection of misfits, it is happening far too often, and this ailment is reversible if caught early on.
I am told his name is, "Houston." This brings new meaning to, "Houston, we have a problem."
He was accompanied by an A. ocellaris (common clownfish) who shows zero symptoms.
I tested the water they came in. SG was 1.023, pH was 8.2, the nitrate was so far off the chart (my test reads to 50 ppm as "dark pink" on the colour chart, this was darker than beet red - literally). Date of last water change was unknown.
I sold this fish 6/3/2008 so it has been just over 2 1/2 years. He was healthy and robust when he was purchased here. Now, his body weight is good, but he is a mess. From the previous keeper's purchase history I only see Spirulina Flakes and Formula 2 Flakes as foodstuffs bought from me.
There are a number of theories as to how this condition is caused. We can discuss them here (respectfully, please). I'd like this thread to carry out discussion about this issue and its possible causes and treatments in an effort to educate, so please let's keep it constructive.
I have read a number of ideas about how this happens. I subscribe to these ideas (and some may disagree, that's OK), and I'm open to other notions too.
Conventional literature suggest this can be caused by any or all of the following:
Poor water quality
Poor diet
Stray voltage in the aquarium
And, more recently, the presence of carbon fines in the water.
I did ask Houston's keeper about carbon use and he did specify that he did change the carbon, "regularly" but I'm not sure how often, or what brand. For what it's worth, we routinely use carbon in tanks we maintain and our own systems and have not made a similar observation, but it could also come down to the type of carbon used, etc.
Poor water quality: 2 yellow tangs I've had now for a couple of years, came from a tank that had no water change for 2 years prior to the fishes' arrival back at my shop. I didn't have an opportunity to test the water at that time, but odds are it was less than pristine.
Stray Voltage: I know this is controversial, but I've seen it more times than I can dismiss as coincidence. 2 of my rescues came from separate tanks which both had faulty heaters that were causing stray voltage in the tanks (no grounding probe). Both tanks had very good water quality (nitrate below 5 consistently), and both were fed varied diets of frozen preparations for herbivores. Carbon *was* used in both of these tanks, but since the voltage issue was corrected, none of the remaining fish in those tanks has displayed symptoms, and carbon use continues. Water quality has always been very good in these tanks, they are regularly maintained.
These are anecdotal experiences, not hard science, but I do think they are relevant.
I've attached a picture of Houston, and I plan to take photos regularly as we are starting his rehabilitation today. I don't expect him to look perfect again, but I do expect to see significant improvements in his appearance over time, and I intend to let him live out the rest of his days in clean water, eating good food with vitamins, and staying safe from being picked on because of his "disabilities". This was the best picture I could get, he's still rather unsettled from his move today.
Jenn
<fieldset class="gc-fieldset">
<legend> Attached files </legend>
Today, another tang was brought to me, same situation. Horrible, horrible, advanced HLLE. I'm struggling with being angry that it was left to go so long, with at least being grateful that the fish was brought to me so it can live out its life in better circumstances.
I'm not writing this thread to pass judgment on his keeper, but I am hoping that this poor fish's plight can help educate, so more fish don't meet a similar fate. Judging by my collection of misfits, it is happening far too often, and this ailment is reversible if caught early on.
I am told his name is, "Houston." This brings new meaning to, "Houston, we have a problem."
He was accompanied by an A. ocellaris (common clownfish) who shows zero symptoms.
I tested the water they came in. SG was 1.023, pH was 8.2, the nitrate was so far off the chart (my test reads to 50 ppm as "dark pink" on the colour chart, this was darker than beet red - literally). Date of last water change was unknown.
I sold this fish 6/3/2008 so it has been just over 2 1/2 years. He was healthy and robust when he was purchased here. Now, his body weight is good, but he is a mess. From the previous keeper's purchase history I only see Spirulina Flakes and Formula 2 Flakes as foodstuffs bought from me.
There are a number of theories as to how this condition is caused. We can discuss them here (respectfully, please). I'd like this thread to carry out discussion about this issue and its possible causes and treatments in an effort to educate, so please let's keep it constructive.
I have read a number of ideas about how this happens. I subscribe to these ideas (and some may disagree, that's OK), and I'm open to other notions too.
Conventional literature suggest this can be caused by any or all of the following:
Poor water quality
Poor diet
Stray voltage in the aquarium
And, more recently, the presence of carbon fines in the water.
I did ask Houston's keeper about carbon use and he did specify that he did change the carbon, "regularly" but I'm not sure how often, or what brand. For what it's worth, we routinely use carbon in tanks we maintain and our own systems and have not made a similar observation, but it could also come down to the type of carbon used, etc.
Poor water quality: 2 yellow tangs I've had now for a couple of years, came from a tank that had no water change for 2 years prior to the fishes' arrival back at my shop. I didn't have an opportunity to test the water at that time, but odds are it was less than pristine.
Stray Voltage: I know this is controversial, but I've seen it more times than I can dismiss as coincidence. 2 of my rescues came from separate tanks which both had faulty heaters that were causing stray voltage in the tanks (no grounding probe). Both tanks had very good water quality (nitrate below 5 consistently), and both were fed varied diets of frozen preparations for herbivores. Carbon *was* used in both of these tanks, but since the voltage issue was corrected, none of the remaining fish in those tanks has displayed symptoms, and carbon use continues. Water quality has always been very good in these tanks, they are regularly maintained.
These are anecdotal experiences, not hard science, but I do think they are relevant.
I've attached a picture of Houston, and I plan to take photos regularly as we are starting his rehabilitation today. I don't expect him to look perfect again, but I do expect to see significant improvements in his appearance over time, and I intend to let him live out the rest of his days in clean water, eating good food with vitamins, and staying safe from being picked on because of his "disabilities". This was the best picture I could get, he's still rather unsettled from his move today.
Jenn
<fieldset class="gc-fieldset">
<legend> Attached files </legend>
