Dwarf Puffer might die :( help!!

Oh no! Sick fish?! Come here and see if someone can help!
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Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.

1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.

2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.

3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)

4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.

5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.

We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.

While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.

Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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sparks42
Figure 8 Puffer
Posts: 231
Joined: Mon May 07, 2007 12:45 pm
My Puffers: Green Spotted Puffer named Chomper!
Location: London Ontario Canada

Dwarf Puffer might die :( help!!

Post by sparks42 »

I have 3 dwarf puffers, I've had them for about 2-3 weeks now. They're tiny and cute :)

BUT

One of them hasn't eaten AT ALL and it doesn't have a belly it looks flat...and dark. And it hides and it doesn't swim around with the other two.
We have a 10 gallon tank with a decent amount of plants and decorations...we will put more plants and stuff in there next payday!!
We feed them snails and worms....the other 2 eat perfectly, and seem happy.

But the "sick" one barely even has yellow...just looks brownish yellow....and it looks like someone picked him up and squished him!!
Most of the time he'll just sit on a plant....and sits there :(

I need help, I don't know why it won't eat. The other two are happy.

Any suggestions????
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Boxermom
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Post by Boxermom »

Welcome. I moved this to the hospital forum.

What are your water parameters (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates)? How long has the tank been set up? How did you cycle it? Are there any other tankmates besides the DPs? Have you noticed any interactions between them?
Tina

Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
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sparks42
Figure 8 Puffer
Posts: 231
Joined: Mon May 07, 2007 12:45 pm
My Puffers: Green Spotted Puffer named Chomper!
Location: London Ontario Canada

Post by sparks42 »

I know this is bad, but it's best to be honest.

haven't had a chance to test the water...I know it' very important to test it, but we are waiting for payday...to buy a testing kit.

It's just the 3 DP's in there.

The other two swim round with eachother ....they come chase my finger when I'm near...and sometimes they'll chase eachother.

The "sick" one doesn't take part in any of this. Right now, he's hiding under a rock on the bottom.

We cycled the water before putting them in the tank, and we've changed about 40% of the water about 4 or 5 days ago.

The "sick" one has been acting like this ever since day 1.....but gradually he's less and less active.

The thing that worries me the most is that he will not eat. He hasn't ever eaten that I'm aware of. I'm wondering if I should put him in his own tank and try to get him to eat?

I DO understand the importance of the quality of the water....I'm just wondering if there's anything else that would cause my poor little fish to seem so......unhealthy.

The other two are great!!!
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Boxermom
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Post by Boxermom »

Ok, when you say you "cycled the water," what exactly do you mean by that? This is what we mean when we talk about cycling a tank:
http://aquariumboard.com/forums/articles/26.htm

Take a sample of the water to your pet/fish store and they will test it for you for free. Tell them you need precise numbers, not "fine" or "good." You need ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings.

Its possible he was sick before you got him, possibly with intestinal parasites. If you can't get him to eat, you can't treat him for it unfortunately. However, putting him in another uncycled tank is not a good idea.

Try using a turkey baster or pipette to target feed him. You can try soaking the food in garlic slices, which is an appetite stimulant.
Tina

Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
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