Best live food for Pete the Valentini?

[elwood dowd]

I am feeding him fiddler crabs from a bait shop. One or two a week. He bites they eyes off, then lets them roam around in darkness occasionally bitting at a leg or claw. Some days I come back two hours later to find a crab pieces every where. Other times I find a whole blinded crab dead a day later.

Is there a better option or are my 1$ a month for all he can eat fiddlers more than sufficient? Just so we are clear I am feeding him mysis, nori, blood worms, NLS Thera-A sinking pellets, as well as a frozen prep (squid, mussel, crab, shrimp, nori, scallop, all soaked in spirulina and topped off with some garlic). He gets plenty food. The crabs are about his teeth and giving him something fun to do.




As a side note, I originally purchase Pete to try out in my reef. That lasted all of 1 minute. He bit the growth tip off of a tricolor Bali acro the second he hit the water I love him. So he now has his own 48 gallon bowfront beside my bed.

[Pufferpunk]

I am surprised he could eat a Fiddler at all, considering how small their mouths are. You can also try gut-loaded ghost shrimp.

[elwood dowd]

After the eyes, its easy for him. Legs, then claws, the the body. Ghost shrimp aren't really sufficient for tooth care though are they?

[Pufferpunk]

Yes, so are freeze-dried plankton.

[hadla]

Those poor crabs... did you try brine shrimp? That's more suitable for his size

[Sgchick]

Where do you get "gut loaded" ghost shrimp?

[Pufferpunk]

You feed the shrimp in a container.

[Sgchick]

Thanks Pufferpunk. I recently picked up a Valentini also and want to keep his teeth filed down. I’ll see if my LFS has any ghost shrimp or frozen plankton. He hasn’t been fond of clams in the half shell as of yet. He is so cute. I e wanted a puffer for a long time. I have him I’m a fowlr tank with a pair of clowns and a pistol shrimp goby pair. They all seem to be getting along fine so far.

[Pufferpunk]

library/feeding/feeding-your-puffers/

[Sgchick]

Will it be ok to drop pond snails in my saltwater tank for my Valentini, or will the snails die too quickly to be good for my Valentini?

[Pufferpunk]

Please don't ask the same question in 2 different threads. I already answered your Q in the other thread.

[Sgchick]

sorry...didn't get a notification...Was worried that I put it in an old thread that might not be seen. Thanks