My hairy puffer

[Myaj]

I would remove him. As Nick said, it will eventually be killed, and then there's a good chance the rotting body will pollute your tank and you'll come home to find not only a dead pleco but a dead or dying puffer (ammonia spike).

[kinghairypuffer]

alright is it normal for my puffer to not want to eat every day i just did a water change and now he seems very shy and skittish and wont touch the shrimp?

[Nick]

I normally feed before water changes, so my puffers will be relaxed. Some puffers only eat when hungry, others stuff themselves no matter how much they have had to eat.

[Myaj]

Yes, that can be normal. As I said, lurker species often won't want to eat for several days.

[kinghairypuffer]

wats up guys its been 5 days and he still hasnt eaten he just sits at the bottom breathing hard what should i do?

[Nick]

First, test your water for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, then do a 50% water change. Then come on here and tell us your numbers.

[kinghairypuffer]

everything is good now

[kinghairypuffer]

should i put any salt in the water the pet store told me a tablespoon for every 10gallons is this correct?

[Nick]

Don't bother, your water has all the electrolytes it needs, and once your fish is full adjusted to the salt level in the tank it no longer "relieves stress" or any of the other typical salt benefits. So leaving salt in a FW fish's water is only going to make salt a less useful tool in the future.

[kinghairypuffer]

alright thanks my puffer still seems to breathe a little hard i did the water change 50% and everything checked out normal his mouth seems to be open all the time?

[Nick]

Mine usually have their mouths open a bit all the time, but not wide open...

[kinghairypuffer]

my hairy puffer died this morning i found him laying on his side i think i was due to the decreased water temperature over night i had my fan going overhead and it cooled the tank from 78degrees to 73degrees this morning.

[kinghairypuffer]

my ph was 8.4 and my phosphates were high would that have killed him?

[Nick]

Phosphates are mostly an algae growth concern. That is VERY hard water, but if he is used to it from having lived in it for a long time, it's not likely what killed him.

[bazil323]

I bought uncooked frozen shrimp with the shell on from the grocery store. One shrimp is about 1.5-2 inches, so they last a long time for my 2 F8s. I chop them up into small pieces and feed a small amount. They gobble them up in about 2 sec! I also feed live snails (I have to crush them 'cause my guys are too small yet), frozen brine shrimp, and sun-dried baby shrimp. The dried shrimp is only occasional because they don't eat them very well, too much left over. Plus I have to crush and then soak them a long time in garlic.

This weekend I'm planning on going to a larger city where there's a bigger store to see if I can get some more foods for variety and nutrition.