New to puffers

[IkeepPuffers]

Currently i own 2 green-spotted puffers which is around 1 inch each(bought 2 days ago). I am thinking of moving them into a 18 gallon tank after the fish in it dies. The current tank that the puffers are in lack any substrate, filter, air pump, etc... it is just a basic tank with brackish water. I was over eager in getting the puffers even before i learn more about them on this site. They simply just swim up and down and it is easy to tell that they were bored.
Now I am thinking of getting crushed coral or sand as the substrate with some fake plants and rocks in it. The puffers are already excreting alot even without eating much and if i were to have a substrate wouldn't I be accidentally removing them while i vacuum out the waste? Also, how would I be able to check the water parameters? Do i need a testing kit and is cycling a tank really needed? My dad has kept fishes over the past few years without cycling his tanks and the fishes are still alive and kicking.
I am feeding my puffers with some small fishes now while i let my snails breed. They hardly eat though, maybe it is due to the stress that they endured and they always try to jump out of the tank when someone nears it. Is this normal? Sorry for the questions, my first time keeping puffers.

[crazedpuffer]

Welcome to the forum!
GSPs need 30 gallons each when full grown along with high end brackish to full marine conditions. Yes you should definitely get a liquid test kit. Also cycling a tank is needed. Does your dad use old filter media and stuff when he sets up new tanks? Thats basically cycling the tank. You should read the fishless cycling article in the puffer library (under the learn tab)

Fish are not reccomended food for puffers. Chances are thats why there not eating it (along with the loads of stress they currently have) Try bloodworms or prawn instead and see if they eat them (there are plenty of much better food you should feed them though)
Also if they are trying to jump out of the tank they are stressing out really bad. Get some decorations in there.

Also what size tank are they currently in?

[t1gerbee]

Definitely get some substrate in the tank straight away, and a filter... that way the good bacteria will have something to build up on and begin to 'eat' all the bad bacteria caused by the fish waste.

Do daily water changes for the next few weeks to keep the bad bacteria build up from poisoning your fish. That will give the good bacteria time to grow and keep the bad bacteria in check.


Decorate as well, puffers are like little puppies, they like to be amused, have things to play with and explore... and get easily bored.

Good luck!


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[crazedpuffer]

Woah totally missed the part about no filter. Seriously get 1 ASAP. Use filter media from old tanks to help the cycle tremendously.

[t1gerbee]

only use old material if the other tank is of similar SG (salinity).

I made a mistake of transfering material from a mature freshwater tank to a new brackish one (Stupid i know- but it just didn't occur to me that it wouldn't work..)

Anyway, bacteria on the mature material died from the salt shock, and gave me a scary ammonia spike! Not what you need in an uncycled tank!


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[manutius]

I think the best thing you can do is to take the puffers back to the store and research the fish. They will die in no time if you don't

[crazedpuffer]

Yeah I agree with manutius.

[t1gerbee]

to be fair, when i got my ceylon.. i was told he was a freshwater fig 8 'community friendly' fish (evil shop) so I put in in my large freshwater community tank!!!!

It was only after he started looking ill (dark belly, clowdy eye) that i found out from here what he REALLY needed (as well as a correct ID) so rushed out and bought everything new.

I did manage to get him through a brand new cycle in a new tank, with a new filter, new everything... by working hard, using melafix for his bad eye and doing water changes every day for three weeks to keep the ammonia/nitrates down.

Now several months on, he's doubled in size and is my favourite fish, even though he lives on my bedroom floor in his own tank as I have nowhere else for him.

So it can be done, if you're willing to learn fast and put the work/money in...

BUT... these puffers are WILD, beautiful creatures so please try and make sure they're happy and in an appropriate home... if you don't have the time/money to get them through the cycle and provide a large enough home for them... then please take them back.

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[IkeepPuffers]

I will be doing a water change rite after i type this post and blb told me to get decorations to provide cover for them. Anyway they are adapting really well rite now, they no longer jump when i near the tank and they start eating again. The 18 gallon tank is a fresh water tank so if i use back the old filter i just have to slowly build up the salinity so as to let the good bacteria adapt? And i've researched A LOT about these puffers in the past few days so returning them to the shop is no longer an option for me. I believe i can keep them alive and happy.

[groovitudedude]

Good luck keeping them!

[yunachin]

I hope they can make it as well. Good Luck with them. IMO, a couple of days of research is not long enough to be able to set up exactly what they need to survive. I do hope that everything is ok though.

[IkeepPuffers]

can someone answer my question. If i were to move my puffers from the current tank into a 18 gallon tank which currently is a FW tank, can i still use the filter that the 18 gallon tank has? I just have to slowly build up the salinity so that the good bacteria in the filter would be able to adapt can kill off those evil ones. Am i right?

[Pufferpunk]

I agree with the others. Retun the fish until you can properly house them in a fully cycled tank.

How much salt is in there?
What kind of salt? How large is that tank?

I wouldn't keep 2 GSPs (no matter what size) in anything less than a 20g fully cycled, heated, decorated, well filtered tank.

[manutius]

Yep that tank is way too small for them to be healthy, they produce a lot of waste which will poison them very quickly, in a larger tank this waste is more dilute and has less of an effect on the puffers health this is whay thet tank sizes for puffers seem excessive to people who have little knowledge of keeping puffers. Your best solution is to buy a 60G tank and cycle it and slowly bring the salinity up. Puffers stress easily and the combination of a new environment, cramped conditions, no salt and their own watse burning the skin and gills they will perish fairly quickly.

You obviuosly have become attacthed to them so why wouldn't you want them to have the best conditions to thrive in?

[IkeepPuffers]

my parents are against the idea of me keep the puffers and thus they don't fund me. I can't afford a bigger tank than the 18 gallon one so i might just return 1 of the puffers. Anyway if i were to move my puffers from the current tank into a 18 gallon tank which currently is a FW tank, can i still use the filter that the 18 gallon tank has? I just have to slowly build up the salinity so that the good bacteria in the filter would be able to adapt can kill off those evil ones. Am i right?