My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
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.
My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
I bought 2 GSP a few weeks ago and at that time both of there bellys there white. Well with in a few days one of the puffers belly turned black and its spots are starting to fade. I have been told by someone that it might be because its a girl and will lay eggs soon. But i am unsure. I need some advice please.
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yunachin
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
I am going to move this to the hospital forum. Please try to answer all of the above questions in red so we can help you better.
E.Ridgeway
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manutius
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
This is a sign of stress usually, if you answer the Q's as Yunachin says then we can pinpoint the problem for you 
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t1gerbee
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
I believe here have been no confirmed GSP pairings in captivity, so it's highly unlikely that she's about to lay eggs...
Do a big water change as soon as you've read this to give the puffs a fighting chance... then try and answer all the questions above.
If you don't have to test kits for the ammonia/nitrite/nitrate then you will need to buy them asap...
In the mean time, daily water changes will hopefully make the puffs colours/white belly come back as it's likely the waste in the water had built up beyond what they can tolerate (which to be fair is not a lot)
Do a big water change as soon as you've read this to give the puffs a fighting chance... then try and answer all the questions above.
If you don't have to test kits for the ammonia/nitrite/nitrate then you will need to buy them asap...
In the mean time, daily water changes will hopefully make the puffs colours/white belly come back as it's likely the waste in the water had built up beyond what they can tolerate (which to be fair is not a lot)
1 x 90G Juv stars and stripes puffer, Ceylon Puffer + GSP + 2 black clowns
1 x 30G LPS Reef
1 x 30G 1 x Blind goldfish
1 x 30G LPS Reef
1 x 30G 1 x Blind goldfish
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crazedpuffer
- Former Staff Member
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
Do that.yunachin wrote:I am going to move this to the hospital forum. Please try to answer all of the above questions in red so we can help you better.
Also it sounds like they are in an uncycled tank thats too small, without salt. Thats the general symptoms of those conditions. Read the GSP article in the library.
Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
Tank size- 10gallons I didnt realize how large a tank I needed before buying the GSP.
Inhabitants- 2 GSP, 1 Pleco, and 1 small syndoitis catfish
Feeding, Water Changes- I feed them 2 times a day and, I feed them freeze dried baby shrimp. And i just did a full water change 2 days ago. I have added to the tank, AquaSafe for the chorline, Bullsyey 7.0 for ph, and 2 teaspoons of aquarium salt.
The aquarium has been set up for about 2 weeks, and I cycled for about a day. I am kind of new to owning a fish tank and i live in a dorm room so a bigger tank is not really an option. The funny thing about it is that the other GSP doing just fine its belly is white which is why I was wondering whats going.
Any advice is greatly appreicated.
Inhabitants- 2 GSP, 1 Pleco, and 1 small syndoitis catfish
Feeding, Water Changes- I feed them 2 times a day and, I feed them freeze dried baby shrimp. And i just did a full water change 2 days ago. I have added to the tank, AquaSafe for the chorline, Bullsyey 7.0 for ph, and 2 teaspoons of aquarium salt.
The aquarium has been set up for about 2 weeks, and I cycled for about a day. I am kind of new to owning a fish tank and i live in a dorm room so a bigger tank is not really an option. The funny thing about it is that the other GSP doing just fine its belly is white which is why I was wondering whats going.
Any advice is greatly appreicated.
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Jase
- Mbu Puffer
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
well first thing, you're gonna need a bigger tank. they just won't survive in a 10
the pleco and catfish won't handle salt which is marine salt that you need, not aquarium salt.
the upside down cat is likely to eat your puffers...
puffers need a special diet, so read this: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/lib ... r-puffers/
sadly, your tank is not cycled, so make sure and get those test kits and post the rest of the red Q info.
get ready to do daily water changes if you want them to survive.
the pleco and catfish won't handle salt which is marine salt that you need, not aquarium salt.
the upside down cat is likely to eat your puffers...
puffers need a special diet, so read this: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/lib ... r-puffers/
sadly, your tank is not cycled, so make sure and get those test kits and post the rest of the red Q info.
get ready to do daily water changes if you want them to survive.
-Jase
edmlfc1 wrote:A house without a puffer is not a home.
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crazedpuffer
- Former Staff Member
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1xValentini - Location: Long Island, NY
Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
They need better foods than freeze dried shrimp. Read the feeding article in the libray.
You will need to upgrade that tank. It might be best to return them to the store.
You will need to upgrade that tank. It might be best to return them to the store.
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Jase
- Mbu Puffer
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- Location: Montana
Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
I was going to say that, but they most likely came from walmart... 
-Jase
edmlfc1 wrote:A house without a puffer is not a home.
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crazedpuffer
- Former Staff Member
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1xValentini - Location: Long Island, NY
Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
Yeah good point, bring them to a LFS.
Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
Ok so a werid thing is happening with the puffer know. His belly will be black one second and them he will change in like 30 seconds to white and them change back.
Here is more of my tanks parameters-
nitrate-below 20ppm
nitrite- .2ppm
hardness- above 150ppm (the water here is really hard but i am working on it)
alkalinity-the strip turned blue and its suposed to be yellow so.... its above 300ppm i think
ph-roughly 8.4
Here is more of my tanks parameters-
nitrate-below 20ppm
nitrite- .2ppm
hardness- above 150ppm (the water here is really hard but i am working on it)
alkalinity-the strip turned blue and its suposed to be yellow so.... its above 300ppm i think
ph-roughly 8.4
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Pufferpunk
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
Any ammmonia? You are going to seriously consider getting them a larger seperate (from your FW fish) tank ASAP or find suitable homes for them. Did you read that GSP article?
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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pufferfreak
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
The black belly changing frequently probably shows that your puff is really stressed.
Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
ok i have the same exact thing thats happening to this kid is happening to me, exact same situation, two puffers, one is mostly black on the belly changes white while like eating then changes back to black, and the other puffer is fine, it must be the ammonia like you guys were talking about
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FudgePudgeNibbler
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Re: My puffer is turning black is there anything wrong?
your puffer will be fine....my gsp does that all the time...usually when the lights are off....after the lights go on...and after i feed it...its belly is white again....i have 2 gsps and 1 figure 8 in the same tank...and only one gsp does that...