Sick hippo tang

[Ray D]

it did eat the food but is now swimming about the tank randomly after the food is gone, very uncharacteristic.
The tang is in the hospital tank which has been dosed with Kanaplex. Plenty of fight in the little guy as evidenced from the difficulty netting him in the display tank. Now we have a better view of the lesions and they are not pretty. Also some tail fin deterioration. Pix below. Hope this works!
Thank you for your sound advice!

And one more photo.

 

[Ray D]

And one more photo.

And one more photo.

That’s what I said

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

And one more photo.

Whoa - the lesions did not look nearly this red in the first image! Seems like a very aggressive bacterial infection.

 

[Ray D]

Whoa - the lesions did not look nearly this red in the first image! Seems like a very aggressive bacterial infection.

No they didn’t look that red - that was a change from when we first noticed them. Aquarium store owner recommended supplementing with Seachem Stressguard when he saw the pics - any thoughts?

 

[Ray D]

No they didn’t look that red - that was a change from when we first noticed them. Aquarium store owner recommended supplementing with Seachem Stressguard when he saw the pics - any thoughts?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

No they didn’t look that red - that was a change from when we first noticed them. Aquarium store owner recommended supplementing with Seachem Stressguard when he saw the pics - any thoughts?

Stress guard isn’t a medication, and doesn’t preferentially seek out damaged tissue. It is just wishful thinking or “it can’t hurt” sort of thing.

Even a true antibiotic can take 3 to 5 days to begin working. In serious infections, the fish just may not have that long.

 

[Ray D]

Stress guard isn’t a medication, and doesn’t preferentially seek out damaged tissue. It is just wishful thinking or “it can’t hurt” sort of thing.

Even a true antibiotic can take 3 to 5 days to begin working. In serious infections, the fish just may not have that long.

 

[Ray D]

Thanks! He’s hanging in there, with the wounded area looking no better but no worse. I suspect the angry redness is the result of the fish trying to itch the irritated area by rubbing against coral and abrading the lesion - is this a possibility? I say that because in the hospital tank there are no rough edges but the fish rubs against the smooth side of the tank. Also seems fascinated by his own reflection in the glass.

Thanks again for your advice,
Ray

 

[Ray D]

Thanks! He’s hanging in there, with the wounded area looking no better but no worse. I suspect the angry redness is the result of the fish trying to itch the irritated area by rubbing against coral and abrading the lesion - is this a possibility? I say that because in the hospital tank there are no rough edges but the fish rubs against the smooth side of the tank. Also seems fascinated by his own reflection in the glass.

Thanks again for your advice,
Ray

 

[Ray D]

Day 6 update - noticeable improvement thanks to the Kanaplex treatment. See pix (before and after) below. Have dosed with Kanaplex three times now. Any harm in trying another round?
Thanks for your excellent advice!
Ray

 

[Ray D]

Day 6 update - noticeable improvement thanks to the Kanaplex treatment. See pix (before and after) below. Have dosed with Kanaplex three times now. Any harm in trying another round?
Thanks for your excellent advice!
Ray

 

[Ray D]

Question- should we keep dosing with Kanaplex until the infection clears up completely?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Question- should we keep dosing with Kanaplex until the infection clears up completely?

Kanaplex can be toxic to the fish's kidneys. They say a maximum of three doses. I wouldn't go beyond that. If you see a relapse, I would try a different antibiotic like Neoplex.