Sores on my Sailfin Tang

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Nighthawk80

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Mar 31, 2003
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Hi Guys, I'm new to the forum here. A very brief background first on my tank: 55 gal. saltwater, fish only, established 8 months, 1 blue/yellow damsel, 1 firefly goby, 1 choc. chip starfish, 1 hermit crab, 1 sailfin tang.

Now, the problem: My sailfin tang has had a couple of sores around his eyes and face for a couple of months, but they didn't seem to be troubling him. He still appears happy, bright, and hungry, but they are getting a little bigger, and I thought I'd try to figure out what's up before it gets worse. I don't have a digicam so I can't attach pictures. Best detail I can think of is that they are on both sides, and shallow but definitly not just removed scales. They look like little divots, basically.

If you guys have any ideas, I'd appreciate your input.

Thanks!
 

OrionGirl

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Aug 14, 2001
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Here's a webpage with a pic (and a tiny bit of info)...It sounds like Head and Lateral Line Erosion to me. http://www.ageofaquarium.com/diseases.asp?name=HLLE

There isn't a whole lot that is known about this disease. Beyond general recommendations (make sure you maintain good water quality, provide a varied diet heavy in algae, etc), I can't help much. There's a lot of speculation about causes, from water quality, voltage concerns, parasitic infections, ect. Tangs are known to be prone to the problem, so I suspect that it may have something to do with problems acclimating to the aquarium environment (ie, low grade, long term stress).

http://www.cichlidfish.com/Adam/hith.html provides a bit more information, as well as some tips to try. One point--this article targets cichlids, so any advice on adding salt should be ignored.
 

Nighthawk80

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Mar 31, 2003
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Oriongirl, I think you nailed it. Those pics look a lot like what my guy has, but thankfully he's not that bad yet. I'll first give the waterchanges a shot. They get a good 20% every 3 weeks to a month, but I'll try stepping up the frequency a bit. Thank you for your help!
 

MonoSebaelover

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Apr 20, 2001
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What are you feeding? Their might be a lack in the nutrition department. If so it is easily fixed. Sadly many tangs and angels succumb to this and the best thing to feed him right now is Special Formula VHP (Very High Protein) by Ocean Nutrtion. Hope this helps and hope get gets better.
 

VoodooChild

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Dec 17, 2001
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Other options include any form of freeze dried sea weed and frozen Hikari Angel Diet.
 
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