tank set up

[colin_elcolbol]

I'm currently in the works of getting some more of these avocado puffers, I'm thinking of a 35g tank, what would be a type of environment that they would be really happy in, what would i need to maintain these tanks, for the gravel is it better to have the pebble type deal or sand....lots of plants....how many could i drop into a 35g tank, how big of a filter and so on, thanks

[Boxermom]

2 max in a 35 gallon.

[colin_elcolbol]

why only 2, that seems so much for such small fish, how big can they get and why only 2

[Boxermom]

They get to be about 4 inches and they each require about 15 gallons because they are messy eaters, poop a lot, and are aggressive and territorial, which tends to get worse as they get older, and need to room in order to stay away from each other's territories. I have two in a 29 gallon tank with nothing else other than a nerite snail and trust me, they NEED the room!

I had one in my semi-aggressive tank with tiger barbs, a red tail black shark, electric blue jack dempseys, and it started eating the fins of all of them, including the aggressive dempseys.

[colin_elcolbol]

holy, so I'm guessing these are very aggressive fish, when they get to 4" could they take down a piranha ha ha

[Boxermom]

Yes, almost all puffers are very aggressive and should be in species-only tanks. Most don't even get along with others of their own kind. They can take down fish or other critters many times their own size. Ask PufferPunk sometime about her fahaka.

[colin_elcolbol]

k so as to a tank setup, which filters/heaters, overall set up would be recommended

[Boxermom]

There's a wide variety of filters and heaters available. Here's a wizard that can help you figure out what you need:
http://www.ratemyfishtank.com/freshwate ... wizard.php