Who Gives A Fish Forums

Hi All,

I've got a bit of a situation on my hands. I recently picked up a load of marine equipment, and with it came a small 2' cube tank and a Regal Tang - the fish was basically free, so I wasn't expecting much. At first, I thought it was a different variety, but it's definitely a Regal, just not a very healthy-looking one.

Long story cut short, I got everything home, plonked the bag in the tank to acclimatise, and that's when I saw just how rough this Tang looks. Imagine a Regal with all its colour drained out - that's this guy. Fins are a bit tatty, and it's clearly underweight.

I know it was an unwanted freebie, but I'd love to help this fish recover. Any advice would be appreciated.

I'd be very cautious about adding this Regal Tang to your main display tank, especially given its already weakened state. Tangs are notoriously prone to whitespot, and the last thing you want is to introduce a fish with ich into your display tank - it can be an absolute nightmare to deal with and can have devastating consequences for your other fish. I'd strongly recommend quarantining the fish and nursing it back to health in a separate QT before even thinking about introducing it to your main tank.

I speak from experience, having had a similar issue with two Regal Tangs and a copperband butterfly - it cost me £110 to replace those three fish. I'm sure Ski can attest to the struggles of dealing with ich in a display tank as well.

I think everyone's being a bit too cautious here, I'd get it into QT ASAP and start feeding it a mix of Nori and other flakes to see if I can get some life back into it. I know the chances are slim, but it's worth a shot, right? I mean, I've heard of Regals being pretty resilient, and like I said, I haven't heard of many dying from whitespot - I'm not saying it can't happen, but it's not as common as everyone's making out. At least if it does die in QT, you'll know you did your best and it won't have infected your main tank.

Thanks for the advice, both of you. I'll keep an eye out for whitespot, but for now, it's just looking really under the weather - the colour's gone, and it's super skinny. The pattern's still visible, but it's like a faded photograph.

I'm setting up the little cube tank as a hospital tank, and I was wondering if there's anything specific I should do for this guy apart from regular feeding. Should I get a Cleaner Wrasse to keep him company? Do I need to tweak the water temperature? Are there any treatments I should be using?

The Tang's in a right state - I'll take a photo and post it. I'm not holding out much hope, to be honest. The colour's not the only issue; its fins are all tattered, and there's some weird discoloration around its face.

I've read that tatty fins and loss of colour aren't necessarily a sign of ill health, especially in tangs. Apparently, they can rapidly lose their colour when stressed, but in a stable environment, the colour should come back. I've also come across information that suggests tatty ends on fins aren't a major concern, and with good care, the fins should regrow. Marine fish have amazing regeneration abilities, so keeping it well fed and happy should help.

As for the fish looking a bit thin, I'd recommend feeding it plenty of seaweed, mysis, and brine. This should help it put on some weight and hopefully pull through.

It's worth noting that I've been told every fish can carry the whitespot parasite, it's just that when they're not stressed, it doesn't show. So, keeping the tang happy and well fed should help prevent any issues with parasites.

Hi Shibby,

I've just taken a look at the Tang this morning and I'm not happy with what I've seen - there are a few white spots that seem to have spread a bit since I last checked. I'm getting a bit worried now, I've been trying to nurse it back to health in the hospital tank but this is the last thing I wanted to see.

Any advice on what I should do now? I've been doing some reading and I've come across a few different treatments, but I'd love to hear from someone with a bit more experience. I've got the tank all set up and I've been feeding it plenty of seaweed and stuff, but I'm not sure if I'm doing enough.

Thanks, Sam

If it's in a QT, I'd go with hyposalinity and make sure it's well-fed - that's my take on it. There's this theory that garlic and spirulina can help, not proven or anything, but it's supposed to get the fish eating more, which can only help build its strength.

You might just be overthinking it, though - I've been there, always thinking I see white spots on my fish after dealing with a massive outbreak.

If you do decide to treat, copper-based medication in a QT tank is an option. Just don't make the same mistake I did, trying to treat with Melafix and cleaner shrimps - it's a waste of time, Melafix doesn't work on parasites and the cleaner shrimp won't clean, just get eaten.