scratching tang

[seshapir]

My hippo tang is scrathing himself against the LR often. He looks completely healthy, no spots, color is good, he's active, and eats well. All water levels are good. Is this normal behavior or something I should be concerned about??

Thank you!

[Doug1]

well normal for a hippo tang, prolly, its quite liekly the signs of something like ich that has yet to manifest its self visually. Tangs as a whole are prone to ich and other stuff from stress,
Space and diet are the 2 biggest factors in keeping them healthy, how big is the fish and how big is the tank?

[seshapir]

The tang is about a half an inch in a 20 gallon tank. We will be upgrading the tank in a few months to 80-100gallons. This fish isnt showing any signs of distress, eats well and seems generally happy he just scratches against the LR often. This has been going on for maybe a week/week and half (ever since we got him)

[xtopher]

if your salinity is stable maybe get a cleaner shrimp it should keep him from scratching

[seshapir]

The salinity is 1.024 and I test with a refract. (the hydrometer lasted about a day before I wanted to throw it out the window!) We do have a cleaner shrimp and it does clean the hippo. I personally don't think there's anything wrong with the hippo but my husband does. So, is it a normal behavior for a hippo tang to rub against the rocks?

Speaking of the shrimp it's molted or shedded (sorry not sure which is the right term) twice in the past three weeks. Is that too much?

I'd also like to thank everyone for the help so far!

Sara

[btang]

I dont think rubbing is normal. Hes got a itch. Something is bothering him. Do you have a hospital tank. You might want to get him in there and treat with copper if he doesnt stop the rubbing.

I would watch him. I've got a hippo and he does not rub.

Maybe some of the experts will chime in on this.