New tangs just laying around

[rleepremier]

So I just bought a 4-5" blue hippo and a 3-4" Blonde naso tang. I purchased them and they were in my tank within an hour and half. I acclimated and released them into the tank but they were discolored and just basically fell to the bottom. Now they are just laying on the bottom breathing heavy. All params were perfect and I turned off all lights to let them unstress. Is this a normal behavior or should they swim right out of the bag? Hopefully they make it through the night.

[sanchoy]

um. they are stressed out. Tangs like those will swim to the bottom and lay flat if there is no other places for them to hide under/inside. What kind of rocks/decorations do you have in there.

Also, if your claim that all parameters are fine, then they are stressed out with no where to hide.

[Recty]

What's the specific gravity of the fish store water and then your water? A lot of fish stores maintain their salinity pretty low in their fish tanks, they might just be going through some osmotic shock type "stuff" as their are struggling to adjust to a NSW salinity level.

[dzfish17]

Please dont tell me you put those tangs in a 46g tank. I would check your water again or it could be the way you acclimated them. Did you leave them in the bags for a long time? Both of those tangs need to be in a bigger tank.

[THEDLO]

First, how big is the tank? im going to assume its not the 46g.... cause if it is than that means you just made a big mistake, you purchased something for your tank on impulse. being impulsive is the quickest way out of this hobby, if you want to be successful then you need to read before you make ANY decision...it will save you money and heartache. how long has this tank been running? and like asked above what are the parameters and what kits did you use?

things you SHOULD know; hippos are ich magnets and are very shy at first. Naso tangs dont always adjust well to new tanks or captive life..also they can be difficult to get eating.

If you havent done so, read up one both of these fish! that is step number one when considering buy new livestock! fish from the sea arent going to forgive for not knowing their special requirements. I've had/have both of these fish (sold the hippo, the naso is still with me) so im pretty familiar with their behavior. hippo tangs can become very aggressive, and they grow FAST. Mine went from 2.5" to 4.5 in just 6 months. The naso will become very personable when it comes around, but its a very passive fish so no adding aggressive fish for some time..also they like to swim....A LOT...all night my naso swims from one end of the tank to another. Why? i dont know, but it just does, therefore ample swimming room is a must, i actually need to upgrade soon for that matter.

HTH,

David.

[rnscross]

if your naso is pacing, its probably outgrown the tank.

[THEDLO]

if your naso is pacing, its probably outgrown the tank.

yea? whats odd though is that it only does this at night. during the day he forages and fallows me around the room. hes at about 5" and the tank is a 120 48" long, with about 80lbs of LR. so the rest is just open water with plenty of current (my turnover rate is 68x120).

P.S. yup its time to go big cause i have plenty of water flow...... "This is very common behavior with Naso tangs as well as Powder blue, Whitecheek and powder browns... cause by undersized tanks and/or lack of water flow" - Wet Web Media

darn and i finally had the aqua scape how i wanted it...but getting rid of him is out of the question.

thanks rnscross

[snorvich]

Well, let us see. First fish that require long tanks of a couple hundred gallons or more were placed in a 46 gallon bowfront tank. Both of these fish are swimmers and grow to over a foot in length. Secondly, the fish were not quarantined. Thirdly, no measurements of SG were taken of the transport water or the target tank. And, of course, this is a new tank with undefined water parameters. Hmmmm. I wonder why there are problems.

[BrianD]

Return the fish and research the care requirements prior to your next purchase.

[rleepremier]

I get that these get to be big and that all of you decided to be the holy protectors of tangs but being that they were already purchased and in the tank why not just help people instead of repeating how they need a bigger tank 10000000x. And yes the tangs are in the 46g WHICH has now been converted into my quarantine tank for the 180g. I'm really very tired of seeing so many posts with you guardians going nuts on people who are obviously asking questions and posting because they ARE tryin to research. If you really want to help just answer the questions and keep your opionion to yourselves.

[BrianD]

Here's a news flash. There is no advice we can give that can change the 48 to an adequate tank. You are a new member here. If you want to remain one, I would recommend a change in attitude.