New Porcupine Puffer

Oh no! Sick fish?! Come here and see if someone can help!
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Read this before posting!!

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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mikeosoft
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by mikeosoft »

I had a Porc. that died within 15 hours of showing symptoms of velvet. It appeared perfectly fine the night before, eating well and in good spirits. The next morning he had a fine dusting. I treated with copper and an antibiotic dip and he died that night. I think that velvet attacks a puffer much faster than other fish.
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Sooner_Reefer »

Ok they did not have an SeaChem but had some parasite off stuff that I got. I told them it was for a puffer and the lady said she has had sucess using it to treat her puffer before. Added two capfuls supposed to treat 20g. She said to do 3 capsx2times a dayxten days. I only did it once today and I'll do it twice tomorrow. I also took out 3g and added 3g DI water.

The Temperature is up to 80degrees and the lights are off. Hopefuly that, plus turning it into hypo, and the medicine will all work together to help my poor lil puffer.
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Pufferpunk »

I hope the lil fella makes it.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Sooner_Reefer »

Yeah I sure do too. Today I'm at my mom's house, but I will be going to my dad's for a little while to finish re-re-setting my 125g up. Lots of good times with that tank. I'll also check up and give the puffer a dose of some hopefuly good medicine.
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mikeosoft
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by mikeosoft »

Whats the active ingredient in what you bought?
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Puffer Queen »

Rid ich is formalin and malachite green - this is not effective against velvet. Formalin can also decrease the oxygen in the tank.
For Ich: hypo OR copper.

Velvet: copper.

When in doubt - I always treat with Seachem Cupramine. It is safe and can be used with sensitive fish and sharks! But the key to any treatment is careful water parameter monitoring and following the directions. Never treat in a tank with substrate or live rock or any porous materials.

DO NOT raise the temperature in the tank. Fish with parasites have parasites in the gills which impairs oxygenation. Tanks with higher tank temperatures have lower oxygen levels. Higher tank temps increase metabolic rates in fish which also increase the oxygen need/demand. Fish with parasites have to breath faster, which increases metabolic rate and oxygen demand as well.....viscious cycle. Raising the temperature may shorten the life cycle of the parasite by only a day or two at the expense of lowering the oxygen level and suffocating the fish.
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by crazedpuffer »

Pufferqueen-Does Cupramine treat Vibrio too?
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Puffer Queen »

Vibrio is a bacteria. Treatment is an antibiotic.

Cupramine treats external parasites.
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by crazedpuffer »

Thought so, wasn't sure.
Thanks!
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Sooner_Reefer »

Ok Puffer Queen thanks for the advice. Unfortuanetly I was pulled to Florida for a week vacation and my dad left a little while later(last Thursday) for out of town. Last he checked the puffer was alive. We have a neighbor feeding, and I think my dad will give me updates on what's going on tomorrow or Wensday.
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Sooner_Reefer »

Ok got to look at the puffer today and seems to be doing realy good. It has so much more color now. I'm turning on the lights back to normal. I'm going to leave it in there for a couple more weeks then I'll add him to my 125g and get started on the next fish to QT.(Got a sailfin that has HLLE that I want to put it in a seperate tank so I can monitor the vitamized food it's getting)
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mikeosoft
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by mikeosoft »

I'm glad to hear things are looking better.
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by yunachin »

I am happy he is better!
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by crazedpuffer »

Good to hear!
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Re: New Porcupine Puffer

Post by Sooner_Reefer »

Thanks guys, I am happy about it too. Can't believe I haven't lost one fish the past hetic month.

Too bad I lost a dog though. :( My beagle got hit by a truck and we had to put her down today, my birthday. Kinda sad. But my fish are doing great. Will take some pics over the weekend.
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