NILE PUFFER ADVICE

[guesty1982]

Hi all, iam thinking of getting a nile puffer. iam getting a 24"x24"x24" cube tank which holds 220 litres. will the tank be big enough? and if not what puffer whould you reckamend? i want a puffer that grow to a decent size. bigger than a figure 8 which i already have in a 60 litre tank. any ideas?

[pufferpuggirl]

I have a feeling that's not big enough for a Fahaka, but I will let someone that knows more about that species say more. There's several other puffers though that get to be a bit bigger than an F8. Depends on what you want in a puffer.

[Dadof4]

Yeah, I hate to say it but that tank will not be large enough for a Nile/Fahaka. They require a 460 liter tank at minimum to do well and larger to thrive. They get massive and gore very rapidly for the first year. Some will say that it would be OK to keep one in a smaller tank in when they're juveniles but with their growth rate it's not recommended, they will out grow the tank in a few months and also may become stunted. They are beautiful fish though, I'm in the process of setting up a 680 liter right now for one.

One of the problems you are going to run in to is that most of the FW species that get bigger are lurkers and not very active. The more interesting (in my opinion) are the Congo (Tetraodon miurus) and the Arrowhead (Monotrete suvattii ). Very much lurkers but have very interesting personalities and temperament. There are also the Palembang Puffer and the Bailey that get a little larger. One thing you may like to consider is making the tank of irrubesco's. They stay smaller but in a tank that size you can house a few of them if it is planted well.

If you would be willing to look in to a brackish tank, and seeing you have F8's I will assume you are, you could have a GSP or a Ceyleon. Very active and get around 6-8 inches.

Take a look through the PUfferPedia ug.php/v/PufferPedia/ for more choices and information.

[pufferpuggirl]

Ceylons are lovely puffers, and they get to a nice size as well.

[guesty1982]

Thanks for your help. I was going to get a 36" cube but carnt get it in the house. I do like the cross river puffer but as I have read on here they are rare. Does anyone know where I coulld get hold of one in the uk?

[pufferpuggirl]

Be prepared to spend big money for one of those. Wharf just had one for over £600!

[Lil' Swimz$]

Be prepared to spend big money for one of those. Wharf just had one for over £600!

Yikes!!! Even in $$ that sounds like a lot!!

EDIT: Whoops, I didn't answer you question. I like the sound of a nice irrubesco tank, but an idea I'm just throwing out there is SAP's. They like to school, so 3, but preferably more, is needed for some happy puffers.

PP, gave me a link to a liters-to-gallon table, let me go find it and get back with you.

[Lil' Swimz$]

I found the link. http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/calc.php

You've got roughly 58 US gallons there.

[Dadof4]

Thanks for your help. I was going to get a 36" cube but carnt get it in the house. I do like the cross river puffer but as I have read on here they are rare. Does anyone know where I coulld get hold of one in the uk?

Let's see.....(doing the math)......that's 765 liters or 201 gallons roughly, and at 8.5 lbs per gallon......(does more math).......that's 1700 lbs, without rock mind you, all crammed in to a 36" x 36" space. Make sure your floor can handle that much weight in that concentrated of a space.

[LilGreenPuffer]

Cubes are not ideal for most fish, anyway. A lurker would be fine, since they are inactive, but most fish like to be able to swim straight for long stretches.

[mrgreen]

That's why I got a "long" tank.