Tangs and what to look for when buying?

[rsteagall]

I have put money down Friday night on a Kole Tang at my LFS. I didn't get it and take it home because it was going to be at least 3 hours before I got home and it was already 7PM. I'm kind of glad I didn't because a friend went buy to check him out and said he had a fungus on it and maybe parasites. He said something about discoloration made him know this was the case. Personally, I thought it looked ok. Not that I don't believe him, but I would like to think otherwise.

What I'm needing to know is what do some of you look for when buying a tang in particular? Please as many responses as I can get so I can better understand what to look for.

Thanks,
Ryan

[Kahuna Tuna]

It is critical with the bristletooth tangs (kole, chevron, tomini) that their mouth be undamaged. Their mouth parts are somewhat easily damaged by other aggressive fish and a damaged mouth means a doomed fish. I always look for nice coloration, a lack of torn fins or blemishes on the body, and nice clear eyes. The skin should be free from blotches, tears or other discoloration. I always look for ick or velvet as well buts its not always visible. I would do some research on any species you plan on buying (I only buy fish that I have researched previously) and look at a bunch of pictures to see what the typical coloration for a given species is. There will usually be variability in coloration to some degree and some fishes can change colors very quickly or when stressed or sick, but its good to know what your fish should look like. I look for an active and inquisitive fish, make sure it isn't scratching or breathing too fast, both of these may be symptoms of parasites or disease. I always ask the staff to see if the fish is feeding as well. A fish that isn't feeding at the time may just not be hungry or not like the food being offered but most fish will feed when given the chance. I usually spend a fair amount of time observing the fish before I will buy it. HTH

[rsteagall]

My friend said he saw discoloration along the right side/belly area. I definitely need to take a closer look at this. Maybe I didn't see that because a Kole is much darker than a Yellow. I don't think I've ever seen a yellow tang in the LFS that wasn't blotched/dark in an area.

What do these dark areas mean to a tang?

Thanks for your reply Kahuna Tuna.

-Ryan

[Sk8r]

Get them to feed the fish before you buy. Find out what he IS eating. And do not buy any fish that has a hollow belly or ragged fins or blotches, ribs showing, etc. Be aware that tangs are prone to a skin lesion near eyes and lateral line if fed too much meat and too little green [hlle] and if the fish is on an improper diet from the store, it may be harder to feed him correctly. Mine won't touch nori. If it weren't for frozen spirulina cubes, I'd have real trouble feeding him well, and I think that's why he had hlle when I got him. It is getting better but slowly.

[rsteagall]

Today when my buddy stopped by he said he was picking (eating) at a piece of live rock like crazy, but still felt like he had some kind of fungus and/or parasites because of some discoloration on the belly area and something he saw on a fin.

I probably would have brought it home already, but my friend has be real skittish of this fish. It may be because he bought a kole tang from these people before and it came with parasites. After a month of QT and treatment with meds and fw dips, it died.