Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
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.
Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
Hello
I have a young porcupine puffer fish, named Squirt, who has a hole in one of his fins. I am not sure if this is some version of fin rot, a bad case of ich or if my pufferfish injured himself. Either way, I would like your opinions on what you believe it to be as well as the best way to treat him.
At the moment, he is acting normal. Begging for food, swimming around, sleeping at his normal time and reacting to us. See my answers to the normal questions below.
1) Your water parameters -
Nitrite: 0 ppm
PH: 7.8
Nitrate: 40 ppm
Ammonia: 0 ppm
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants - 46 gallons. He lives alone outside of some live rock and some live sand. He is the king of his own castle.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank -- He eats a small piece of frozen, "people" shrimp every other day. He is only about 2-3 inches (if even that big). So, this usually gives him a "food baby" that lasts until we feed him. We usually check his stomach to see if he needs to be fed. His water gets changed every 2 weeks about 30% each time. We are working on making this a weekly occurance. There are no other products in the tank. We try to keep it au-natural.
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. -- When we noticed the hole, we did a 50% water change and cleaned away all the algae we could find. Previous to that, though, there were no changes.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? -- The tank was cycled before we got Squirt for about a month. We have had him in that tank since we got him around May/June.
I attached a photo that shows the hole on his fin. One other thing I wanted to mention, is that we have the live rock in the tank and it's in a sort of "cave" form because we know puffers like to "get away" from humans and have "me time." However, there is a small section in the cave that he likes to WEDGE himself in. Like he barely fits. So, I am not sure if one day when he was sleeping there, wedged up, if he "ripped" his fin on one of the rocks. However, the other fin does have some of the "white" marks like the one with the hole.
I have a young porcupine puffer fish, named Squirt, who has a hole in one of his fins. I am not sure if this is some version of fin rot, a bad case of ich or if my pufferfish injured himself. Either way, I would like your opinions on what you believe it to be as well as the best way to treat him.
At the moment, he is acting normal. Begging for food, swimming around, sleeping at his normal time and reacting to us. See my answers to the normal questions below.
1) Your water parameters -
Nitrite: 0 ppm
PH: 7.8
Nitrate: 40 ppm
Ammonia: 0 ppm
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants - 46 gallons. He lives alone outside of some live rock and some live sand. He is the king of his own castle.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank -- He eats a small piece of frozen, "people" shrimp every other day. He is only about 2-3 inches (if even that big). So, this usually gives him a "food baby" that lasts until we feed him. We usually check his stomach to see if he needs to be fed. His water gets changed every 2 weeks about 30% each time. We are working on making this a weekly occurance. There are no other products in the tank. We try to keep it au-natural.
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. -- When we noticed the hole, we did a 50% water change and cleaned away all the algae we could find. Previous to that, though, there were no changes.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? -- The tank was cycled before we got Squirt for about a month. We have had him in that tank since we got him around May/June.
I attached a photo that shows the hole on his fin. One other thing I wanted to mention, is that we have the live rock in the tank and it's in a sort of "cave" form because we know puffers like to "get away" from humans and have "me time." However, there is a small section in the cave that he likes to WEDGE himself in. Like he barely fits. So, I am not sure if one day when he was sleeping there, wedged up, if he "ripped" his fin on one of the rocks. However, the other fin does have some of the "white" marks like the one with the hole.
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- Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32773
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- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Filbert, the 12" T lineatus
Punkster, the 4" red T miurus
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2 T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
Also kept:
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burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
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Re: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
That hole doesn't look too bad, although I am wondering a bout the whited ring on it. Does it appear fuzzy?
Your nitrate is about double of what it should be. How much live rock is in what-size tank? Is there a sump, protein slimmer? Tank mates?
Your nitrate is about double of what it should be. How much live rock is in what-size tank? Is there a sump, protein slimmer? Tank mates?
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!"
Re: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
No tank mates. We use a sump pump. We are working on getting the nitrate down doing more than one water change this week.
It doesn’t appear fuzzy in person from what I can tell. But there are some other white marks on his fin near it and on his other fin. But no where else.
I believe it is about 10 lbs of rock in a 46 gal tank
It doesn’t appear fuzzy in person from what I can tell. But there are some other white marks on his fin near it and on his other fin. But no where else.
I believe it is about 10 lbs of rock in a 46 gal tank
- 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: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
This is why you are having nitrate issues. LR is the MAIN source of filtration. For a healthy working marine system, you must use 1 1/2-2 lbs LR/gal, along with a good-working protein skimmer.I believe it is about 10 lbs of rock in a 46 gal tank
You can try SW Melafix for the mark on his fin.
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!"
Re: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
Ooohhhh!!! Thanks! I didn’t want to overcrowd the little guy so I didn’t add anymore rock. Thanks for the help (:
- 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: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
You're not using any FW filtration, like a HOB filter or canister?
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!"
- 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: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
You might want to upgrade his tank soon.
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!"
Re: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
Oh don’t worry! That is definitely the plan! We were just doing research on how to do it in the same area his current tank is in (he gets a view of everything and is protected from getting bumped into) without stressing him out. (:
Re: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
We do have a canister filter. Sorry missed your other response
- 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: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
OK then remove the canister--they are known as "nitrate factories" when used for SW systems.
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!"
Re: Fin rot? Ich? Accident Prone Puffer?? Please help!
Oh wow!! Okay. We looked at a bunch of fish supply sites/reviews and I didn’t see that!