New Purple Tang in QT need help. Wont stop swimming in sharp circles

Eredus

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Hello all! I received a purple tang in a shipment yesterday. When I opened the shipment it was swimming aggressively in circles in the bag. I assumed that this was due to stress so I dimmed the room lights and proceeded to acclimate. 6 hours after introduction into the QT, it was still exhibiting this behavior and upon closer inspection noticed that the tangs eyes were twitching rapidly. It only stops for brief moments and continues the sharp circular swimming pattern. It, for the most part, doesn't seem to be aware of its environment. Does not respond to touching, food, my hands in the tank, nothing. I checked on the fish multiple times throughout the night and other than displaying nighttime coloration, its behavior had not changed and has continued this morning .I'm starting to think that this is neurological and not sure what to do! I have searched online and cant seem to find anything leading me to a diagnosis or treatment. I am concerned for the well-being of this animal and I feel kinda lost. Please help! This shipment also included a Flame Angel and Multicolor wrasse, both of which are doing fine. I have a video but cannot seem to attach it.
 
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Eredus

Eredus

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It was spiral swimming like this when I opened the shipping box and has since. I at least think it would respond to touch or visual stimulation or try to hide. It does nothing of the sort. its not even breathing rapidly at all and just has a vacant look to its eyes. I can literally touch it with a gloved hand and it pays no notice.
 
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Eredus

Eredus

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I am a tad concerned about the tank size as well. When I placed this order it was for a smaller tang. Apparently they upsized. I have quarantined similar sized fish (only one other tang) with the two 10 gallon setup without issues. I can assure you that I have ample filtration (very mature sponge filter) and good aeration.
 

ngoodermuth

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It does look and sound neurological... I doubt it’s the tank size, although a 20g would probably be better for him.

Have you tried feeding him yet? I’d notify the supplier, send them the video. He may have been injured during shipping.
 
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Eredus

Eredus

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I have fed the aquarium twice using LRS fish frenzy. The purple tang did not respond in the slightest. I also have nori on a clip that it pays no attention to. I notified the supplier yesterday via their website with the same video provided here when I realized that this issue is probably more than just shipping stress and more likely neurological. They have yet to respond.
 

ngoodermuth

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I would wait to see what they say, before trying any last-ditch treatments. In case it would void any guarantees.

I don’t think there is much you can really do here anyway. Maybe a bath in MB or if he starts eating, treat for internal parasites which can cause damage to the spinal column.... but these are long-shots at best.
 

ngoodermuth

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Thank you for your time @ngoodermuth . I will wait and see what the supplier says. It's heartbreaking to watch :(

You’re welcome, and I’m sorry you are dealing with this. He’s a beautiful fish :(
 

HotRocks

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I agree this is a neurological condition. Likely a shipping injury of some sort. A 10g tank isn't ideal, but should not be the cause of this. I have seen much larger fish kept in 10g tanks for short periods of time without issue. Plus the fact that the fish was exhibiting this same behavior in the bag confirms the tank shouldn't be the issue. All you can do here is keep the lights off, low stress, and see if the fish will recover. IMO this isn't anything requiring treatment. Time will tell, best of luck.
 

rkpetersen

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Could it be blind? This is so sad. I hate seeing fish in distress with little to be done.
 

FishGuru281

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There is zero indication to show that the fish has any injury on his eyes, spine, or anything that would cause him to swim in circles. Neurological issues usually display in color issues. He is stress colored, but not going through a range of colors, thus there is zero indication there is a neurological issue present. He seems to right himself and hold himself up and steady (aka normal) after displaying the circular pattern. He also seems to have avoided the heater at one point in the video. He clearly is in way too small of a tank for the size of the fish, with a lot of extra equipment hindering swimming room in the water column even further. That's very clear from the video. Additionally, he can see his reflection which is a common issue for tangs. It's stressing him out to see an equally large purple tang in the same tank, which is already too small. These fish swim all up and down miles of reef daily. Putting him into a 10g tank is not in the slightest adequate for holding that size of fish. Can you provide us with a video showing he doesn't see your hand, etc when you put it in the tank? Because visually, theres zero indication the fish has anything wrong with it besides a lot of stress in that video. I would also check for stray current. Other than that, it just looks like you messed up on setting up your qt system and the fish is showing visual signs of that.
 

FishGuru281

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Lower the lighting and leave the fish alone to calm down. Check on him in the morning and hopefully he's calmed down from shipping. And if you can get him into a bigger system, do so immediately.
 

FishGuru281

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I agree this is a neurological condition. Likely a shipping injury of some sort. A 10g tank isn't ideal, but should not be the cause of this. I have seen much larger fish kept in 10g tanks for short periods of time without issue. Plus the fact that the fish was exhibiting this same behavior in the bag confirms the tank shouldn't be the issue. All you can do here is keep the lights off, low stress, and see if the fish will recover. IMO this isn't anything requiring treatment. Time will tell, best of luck.

Neurological conditions usually display themselves with different symptoms than those present in the video. All signs point to a stressed, scared fish. Tangs are known to swim in circles when the tank is too small.
 

Ling_Thing

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That 10 gallon is way too small to qt that purple tang imo. Just gonna stress it out even more. I would suggest a 40 breeder for larger fish qt. Even a 20 tall is pushing it to qt juvenile and up tangs...
 

FishGuru281

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I would wait to see what they say, before trying any last-ditch treatments. In case it would void any guarantees.

I don’t think there is much you can really do here anyway. Maybe a bath in MB or if he starts eating, treat for internal parasites which can cause damage to the spinal column.... but these are long-shots at best.


Please don't use MB on that fish. There is no indication the fish needs it. There is also no indication of parasites, internal or external. Spinal issues are not a result of internal parasites. Do not treat prophylactically. It causes more harm than good.
 

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