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07/11/2008, 04:34 PM | #1 |
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Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Florida
Posts: 80
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Tang food..
So I bought a Powder brown tang today and so far I have formula 1 and 2 flakes and some Nori. He hasnt really been touching the forula 2 flakes which I find odd because it is specially for herbivores. The good thing is he has been eating. I have yet to put in the Nori because Im going out tonight with the wife and I hear its good to soak the Nori in some liquid vitamins. Is that enough for the Tang? He is looking a bit skinny but not much and I do want to fatten him up. Anything else I should give him? Is there a method to soaking the Liquid vitamins in the Nori? Any reputable liquid vitamins I could buy at LFS?
BTW he is in QT. |
07/11/2008, 04:42 PM | #2 |
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try soaking the flake in garlic guard or a similar product. Fish love garlic.
My tangs also eat frozen mysis shrimp that you can also rinse first and soak in garlic
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I prefer my substrates stirred but not shaken Current Tank Info: 150gal long mixed reef, 90gal sump, 60 gal refugium with 200 lbs live rock |
07/11/2008, 04:48 PM | #3 |
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: capitola ca
Posts: 1,729
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Nori is fine it doesn't need to be soaked in vitamins however a powder brown tang is better suited for a more advanced aquarist(difficult to keep) also a more mature tank. If you don't return it to your LFS the chances are great that it will die.I am not trying to make you feel bad ,I have 3 years experience with my own tank and many with our customers ,I have kept difficult fish but am not ready to try a powder brown or blue, I love how they look though.
Regards , Lee |
07/11/2008, 04:50 PM | #4 |
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Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Cleveland,OH
Posts: 23
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I think if you can get him eating a good quality flake food you are home free as these are usually formulated with a good balance of nutrition, plus as above they will definitely fatten up on mysis. But remember in the long run too rich foods can lead to fatty liver. But now we are talking about getting the fish out of the starvation woods, no need to worry about that now
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07/11/2008, 04:52 PM | #5 |
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You have him in the right place--the qt----just take your time experimenting with different foods--but little amts so as not to cause ammonia problmes
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I prefer my substrates stirred but not shaken Current Tank Info: 150gal long mixed reef, 90gal sump, 60 gal refugium with 200 lbs live rock |
07/11/2008, 05:06 PM | #6 |
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Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Florida
Posts: 80
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I have researched the Power Brown Tangs and it says the care level is moderate. I will experiment with different foods. I didnt even know you can feed them Mysis. I have made my own food that I will try to give him. Its a seafood mix I bought from an oriental supermarket. The mix includes scallops, mussles, shrimp, and octopus. I have mysis also but I also know they have to have algae to eat in between. Do I have to break up the Nori in pieces or can I just rubberband a long piece to my fake decor? I will also try a garlic product. Thanks
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07/11/2008, 05:27 PM | #7 |
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Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Portland, Oregon
Posts: 3,805
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My 02
Eating is what counts .. what he eats is secondary. Your initial goal is to get the fish to eat and acclimate to captivity. I tend to start out all of my fish with live brine shrimp (like candy to most fish) .. I then soak the LBS in some selcon or garlic so the fish associate the smell with food .. then I start to soak the next "food" in selcon or garlic so that they associate the new food as "food". Hope this helps. |
07/11/2008, 07:10 PM | #8 |
Super Saiyan
Join Date: May 2007
Location: NorCal
Posts: 2,522
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feed him whatever he will eat..... keep feeding him, that's the most important part. I have two yellow tangs that were sooooo skinny that the bones were showing. and now after a month, they are almost as fat as the one that was already in my tank.
the only thing they were eating was frozen mysis, and so that's what I fed them/all the fish... at least once to twice a day. from my experience, it helps to have the tang around the other tangs. they seem to learn what to eat/how to survive in the aquarium from the others. the two yellow (after about 1 week) started to eat nori/flake just like the other tangs, whenever I come up to the tank and grab the bottle of flake, they all wait up top by the right side where I always feed, and most of them actually eat right out of my hand.
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Elos 160xl | Profilux 3.1Nex ultimate | BK DC200 | (5)Mitras 6200s |(4) Vortech MP40QD | 3155 ATO | Schuran CaRx | Carbon-Doser | Red Dragon return | 500G Starphire FOWLR | BK SM200 | (6) Tunze 6105 |
07/11/2008, 11:01 PM | #9 |
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Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Florida
Posts: 80
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Wow thats great....right out of the hand. Hopefully I get to that point as well. I also love your occupation LOL.
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07/12/2008, 12:31 AM | #10 |
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: Above water
Posts: 1,442
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I feed NewLifeSpectrum pellets and all the fish go nuts for it!
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07/12/2008, 07:46 AM | #11 |
Passer of gasses
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Space Coast, FL
Posts: 837
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Julian Sprung's sea veggies are loved by my 7 tangs + gobies. I drop some garlic extract on it and put in a clip and is gone by next morning.
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MOLON LABE - King Leonidas I A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you have. – Barry Goldwater Current Tank Info: Semi agressive reef-400 gal.-8 tangs,2 rabbit fish,zebra moray,blue ribbon eel,Janss' pipe,pair bangaiis,wrasse,tomato clown,maroon clown |
07/12/2008, 08:39 AM | #12 |
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Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Reading, PA
Posts: 327
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I've been through a few tangs and I've noticed a pattern in their acclaimation process. It seems that when you first add them, they spend most of their time picking at the rock and glass and refusing food. After about a week, they begin to accept food probably realizing there is not enough of a natural source of algae. After that, they seem to eat whatever you throw at them. Seaweed on a clip gets them pretty excited and they need this source of nutrition. Don't get lazy because they like flake. They need their veggies. It seems that the 1 week mark is the critical point for feeding and the 2 week mark is the critical point for disease. Once your past this, I think you're over the hump. Not scientific by any means...just my observation.
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