Hello, from Cali!

[sweetpoison]

Hi everybody I just got five Dp's and I love them very much. Been reading for weeks and researching so I have a 20 gallon tank lots of plants and caves and they all seem to be doing well.

Some of the things that I want to clear up that I find different answers to in my research. Most places I read that with dwarf puffers they do not need to have their teeth filed down. But some sites say they absolutely do. So then I read also that they can have snails every two weeks but then I read again somewhere else they must have them all the time. So I figured I'd come here and see what the experts say

Also how can I tell if they've eaten the snail? Do they eat the shell too or no? because I can't tell if the snails are empty or what. They are so tiny ...pinhead tiny. But then again so are the puffers!

I also have frozen blood worms. Should I chop them up because they seem so long for them to eat.

and also how often do I feed these guys I've been hearing contradicting things on that as well.

Can I post pictures of my tank?

I'm sure I can I just need to go find out where.

Thanks for being here!

Marie

[sweetpoison]

Thanks for all your help

[Pufferpunk]

DPs do not have overgrown teeth issues. It the snails are that tiny, I'd think you'd notice the pieces of shells around their substrate. They can easily bite chunks of the worms, I'd thin k you would not need to chop them up.

library/puffers-in-focus/dwarfpuffercare/

[Welly Puff]

I am a newbie with 5 DPs also, so not 'expert' advice but, 3 months of dinner time experience at mine is... my crew eat defrosted and live bloodworms whole, live whiteworms whole, live daphnia, live mosquito larve, love earthworms (I gather small ones and mash/chop them up into small bits, this is quite traumatic so I dont do it often ) Their main diet is snails, I feed snails of medium size 3-5mm but I squash them before adding them to the tank and they clean them up leaving the shells behind. You can see the difference between left over shell and gooey snail meat. They also started getting into the Repashy Grub Pie I feed my Bumble Bee Gobies - which I have since shifted to another tank. I still feed the Repashy to Bump as this has become his preferred food! I feed mine daily because I cannot bring myself to fasting them but I previously asked about fasting on this forum and had I think? 2 replys from DP keepers who fast their happy healthy DPs once a week, but said daily feeding is also fine for Dwarfs.