Is this normal for Fahaka?

[zhasan]

Hey Guys!!

My first post on this forum so please advise if I'm not abiding by any rules or anything.

Okay so I got a 2 inch Fahaka last week on Thursday.

I've temporarily put him in my BioCube 14 which was cycled and is planted with ADA soil as substrate.

I fed him some blood worms the first day and decided to get some snails for him but wasn't able to get any till last night. I was just concerned about the growth of his beak so anyways i got him snails and tried to feed him and he seems to just eat the snails from inside the shells and leave the shells aside. Is that normal?

Also since saturday I've noticed that he burrows himself in the substrate and kinda tries to hide there. I don't really have a hiding spot except for plants... do I need to add like a piece of drift wood so he can hide behind it?

Also he seems to be snapping a lot as well.. the first couple of days he seemed like fighting with the glass on one side of the aquarium and now he just comes out of the substrate and snaps around for a bit (almost seems like he's having some sort of a fit) and then burrows himself again.

Please advise on his behaviour, also what are somethings these guys like to eat so I can arrange for that... Also Can I possibly breed snails in one of my other aquariums so I don't have to keep on spending money for them? I know these guys like cray fish but its hard to find really small ones since this guy is pretty small.. anyways please help!!

Thanks in advance for you help everyone!!

Cheers,

Zee.

[zhasan]

Also he seems to be breathing heavily...

[J-P]

welcome to the forum!

You do realize that the tank you are keeping him is far too small don't you?

ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/T_Lineatus/

You're if you added a "0" on to the end of that 14 you might be able to scrape by

Even as a fingerling, that tank is tiny. All the behavior issues will become more manageable in more adequate housing. As for the snail breeder tank, it would be an excellent idea. The sooner it gets set up and established the better.

[zhasan]

Hey J-P, thanks for your response!

Yes I know its a very small tank for the Fahaka... I'm looking to setup a 36 Gallon for him in the next week or so for a while and by the summer I'll be moving so i'll have ample space to give him the space he desrves! For snails, do I need to have a lot of filteration and heater and everything or just need a basic tank setup? Also can I breed snails and maybe self cloning cray fish in the same tank?

[Pufferpunk]

Fahakas are the coolest!!! He's not going to last long in that tank. Do you have larger ones for him to move up into? Mine started out at 1" in a 15g but quickly moved up to 29, 40, 55 & within a year, a 125g (I have lots of tanks ).

Sounds like you've got a feisty fella. Probably not a good one to try any tank mates with (I know you didn't ask that but eventually, everyone does...).

Here's lots of reading on feeding: library/category/feeding/

As far as his breathing, can you post all the water parameters please?

Oh & about the decor--some fahakas like to burrow--mine never did. But he loves his fake mangrove root "cave" I got him at Petsmart:



Filbert says hi!

[J-P]

Depends on the snails you want to go with. For the most common types of inverts, they don't HAVE to be heated and a simple sponge filter will work. The warmer the water the quicker the turn over in offspring though.

Also the crayfish will eat the snails.

[zhasan]

hmm, I'm setting up a 5 gallon tank to breed snails in... my house temperature is warm enought that I won't have too much problem... however, I seem to have a new problem at hank.

There seems to be some sort of white fungus type stuff on the top of my Fahaka. I don't know what that is... I've tried to take the best possible shots I can, he keeps on moving.

Also he keeps himself burrowed in the substrate for like 95% of the time... but this white furry stuff is a bigger concern now.

Also here are the water parameters:

0 Ammonia
0 Nitrates
7.0 PH

I don't have any swings in my water parameters. The tank is very stable.

Please advise what this white furry stuff is and how I can make sure my Fahaka does not get sick.

[allycat]

Hey,

Do you have any live plants in the tank with him? I ask because a cycled tank usually shows nitrAtes (less than 20 parts per million for puffs) but your nitrItes should always be 0, as close as possible... I was confused by this at first, too, but it is important, I have learned.

I think the white furry stuff you're talking about could be a fungal infection or possibly (guessing here:) a stress-related damage to his slime coating, from staying burrowed all the time? I don't have a big puffer, but I have seen some sad things at pet stores that have no puffer knowledge, like algae/slime covering puffs. I think PufferPunk might recommend Melafix at least, but you should get a good pic or find a way to identify the infection and get appropriate medicine at a pet store.

I hope he's doing better! I think you could benefit from the information shown when you post in the Hospital Form.

Lots of pet stores sell frozen krill, I'd try that as it's relatively easy to get, not too pricey if you can find some. Feed with some tongs so you can remove what he doesn't eat really easily, works well for me.

[Pufferpunk]

Be very careful with krill. Never feed it as a staple food. It's like puffercrack--once they start eating it, it's difficult to get them off it.

[Dadof4]

The burrowing is a normal thing for Fahaka's as they will ambush hunt as well as actively hunt. Your water parameters a mildly concerning but not overly concerning because you show 0 ammonia, I'm guessing that the tank is pretty heavily planted. How was the tank cycled? If it was with just plants the tank really isn't cycled, just stable enough to house live plants...Really keep an eye on the water conditions in there, Fahakas have a huge bioload (even at that size) and can overwhelm that 14 gallon tank in a real hurry, even the 36 gallon just as fast. I'd be checking daily if not twice a day. It's know that immature Fahaka's grow on average of one inch per month for the first 12 months and then settle down to a slower growth rate after that. The growth isn't constant at one inch per month but is very uneven, one month may grow 1/2 inch and the next he may grow two inches. The 14 gallon will stunt him in a hurry if you don't get him out of there with in the next month, he won't be able to turn around, or have much swim room either. Not very fair to him.

As for the white coming off his back, can you describe it a little more in detail or can you get a picture? Sounds like it may be fungal but it could be other things.

[Pufferpunk]

0 Ammonia
0 Nitrates
7.0 PH

Are you sure that isn't 0 nitrite? You should be showing some nitrate. Please explain how was that tank cycled, right up to when you put the puffer in there. Try adding Melafix & Pimafix to the water & add an airstone.