Hi everyone!
I recently purchased a Green Spotted Puffer, I've had him for about 3 days now and he looked great in the shop. However he didn't take the journey from my LFS to my flat very well and seems to have gotten a little poorly so I'm looking for some help as he's a great little guy and I don't want him to die.
Green Spotted Puffer Illness
When I got him home his dorsal fin had eroded in the middle but parts were still left, he had some grey colouration on his skin and sometimes curls his tail and his skin wrinkles a bit. The other day I also noticed that his caudal fin had some red lumps on it. He is still fairly active and eats bloodworm/daphnia gel that I give him. I've posted a video on Youtube to try and illustrate the issue better than my words can. I also did a water change and cleaned the tank, added the tonic salt and then put him in the tank after having him bobbing in his bag in the water for about 30mins.
Tank Size, Cycling & Inhabitants
180L, tank has been running for about 3 months. About 2 weeks of fishless cycling.
3 Platys, 3 Glass Shrimp, 2 Kribensis, 1 Golden Bristlenose Pleco, 1 Green Spotted Puffer (was told by my LFS that these inhabitants should be ok except the glass shrimp and platys when the puffer gets older)
Water Parameters
pH: 7.6 Ammonia: 0ppm Nitrite: 0ppm Nitrates: 10ppm Salinity: I don't have a specific test for this but I have put in approx. 10 tablespoons of tonic salt from my LFS
Feed & Water Changing
I feed the fish once a day, typically a mix of flakes, bloodworms / daphnia (in gel form) and pleco discs
Water change is about 20% once a week.
Thanks very much for your help - hopefully I can get him on the mend!
GSP - Red Lumps on Tailfin / Greyish Skin / Broken Fin
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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Pufferpunk
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Also kept:
lorteti
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burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
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Re: GSP - Red Lumps on Tailfin / Greyish Skin / Broken Fin
![[welcome]](./images/smilies/welcome.gif "welcome")
If this tank is cycled, you should be showing some nitrate. What test kit are you using? Bobbing a bag for 30 minutes is not how you acclimate a fish. http://www.fishlore.com/acclimating-tropicalfish.htm
Your LFS is totally WRONG! NONE of those inhabitants will go well with your GSP, nor will most of them appreciate ANY salt, especially that pleco.
As far as feeding--glass shrimp are totally on the puffers diet. The rest really isn't what I'd call pufferfood.
You have some reading to do:
library/puffers-in-focus/an-introductio ... d-puffers/
library/feeding/feeding-your-puffers/
Oh yeah--I can't see the vid.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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Silver
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2015 1:47 pm
- Location (country): Scotland, United Kingdom
Re: GSP - Red Lumps on Tailfin / Greyish Skin / Broken Fin
Thanks for your response - your introduction guide was excellent and I think I need to be prepared to lose/re-house some of those fish that I have! I've also realised that I really should not have transferred him into the tank with a net, I'm guessing that probably contributed to the issues for the little guy.
I'm using an API Freshwater Master Test Kit (it's all I have atm).
The video should be working now.
I'm using an API Freshwater Master Test Kit (it's all I have atm).
The video should be working now.
-
Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32773
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Filbert, the 12" T lineatus
Punkster, the 4" red T miurus
Mongo, the 4" A modestus
2 T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
Also kept:
lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Chicago
- Contact:
Re: GSP - Red Lumps on Tailfin / Greyish Skin / Broken Fin
Yep, see it now. He actually looks quite healthy--nothing some Melfaix couldn't heal up. As far as that tank--those plants will "melt" at the amount of salt he's needing. I suggest a new tank for the puffer or a total re-do of that tank without those other fish in there.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
-
Silver
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2015 1:47 pm
- Location (country): Scotland, United Kingdom
Re: GSP - Red Lumps on Tailfin / Greyish Skin / Broken Fin
Thanks very much for your swift response! I will get some melafix and have a look at changing plants / another set up (didn't realise that the plants would suffer so much too).
-
Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32773
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Filbert, the 12" T lineatus
Punkster, the 4" red T miurus
Mongo, the 4" A modestus
2 T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
Also kept:
lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Chicago
- Contact:
Re: GSP - Red Lumps on Tailfin / Greyish Skin / Broken Fin
Plecos don't do well with Melafix. Be sure to add an airstone.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"