The Puffer Forum

Walrus Head wrote:It could be a Swim Bladder Infection

I thought puffers don't have swim bladders

jnheinz wrote:My plan tonight is to change about 1/4 of the water and go for a Melafix dosing on the main tank.

If you go Melafix don't forget to add an airstone to increase the O2 level.

J-P wrote:

Walrus Head wrote:It could be a Swim Bladder Infection

I thought puffers don't have swim bladders

According to this thread: http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/viewto ... 25&t=46335 and this: http://www.pufferfishinfo.com/pufferfis ... _Page.html they do have a swim bladder, which they are born with - "Hatching occurs after roughly four days. The baby Puffer Fish have a functional mouth, eyes, and a swim bladder. After the first ten days, they shed their thin shell and spines begin to develop." and if you think about it J-P how else is a fish meant to control its buoyancy other than thru a swim bladder?

Duh, magic!

Turgidus kind of just... died. I noticed he didn't eat his food one night, so I netted it out. Few hours later.. dead. No puffiness in eyes, no bulges, no external abnormalities really.

He stayed in his cave a lot that they seem to enjoy for security. Tough to diagnose if you can't see. The only link I am putting them together with is the fact that they are attempting to die on me at the same time, and they eat the same food.

The airstone will be going in the tank.

Should I bother with Pimafix?

Pufferpunk wrote:As far as I know, puffers don't have swim bladders.

1) the first link you quoted is also a forum that mis-quotes wikipedia. There is no mention of swim bladders in that article at all. Actually that quote does not exist in that article.

2) http://www.pufferfishinfo.com/pufferfis ... _Page.html mentions it yes.

PP says no .. the article says yes (and after reading it ... It wasn't professional at all, I am inclined to believe PP)... could SW and FW be different? But we digress....

jnheinz wrote:Turgidus kind of just... died. I noticed he didn't eat his food one night, so I netted it out. Few hours later.. dead. No puffiness in eyes, no bulges, no external abnormalities really.

He stayed in his cave a lot that they seem to enjoy for security. Tough to diagnose if you can't see. The only link I am putting them together with is the fact that they are attempting to die on me at the same time, and they eat the same food.

The airstone will be going in the tank.

Should I bother with Pimafix?

Pimafix is for Fungal infections

Puffers don't have swim bladders, hence the continuous moving of fins to keep it upright.

So I'm home.. He's still alive. Lump is still there.

The problem with his eye is he's hitting it against the gravel.. Probably causing irritation or problems.

Dadof4 wrote:Puffers don't have swim bladders, hence the continuous moving of fins to keep it upright.

O ok thanks for the headsup , I was gonna say though that bump your puffer has Heinz is located near the the stomach area. But then that begs the question why is his swimming out of control?

Doing 25% water change (+Prime) and adding Melafix + air stone now.

He is kind of just looking at me every once and awhile.. laying sideways. He possesses the energy to get up and swim around cockeyed... but then he gives up and comes to a halt upside down.

I will try and get a picture or small video tonight. Will shoot one with my Canon instead of the Droid X. Tonight or tomorrow.

I am not certain, but Epsom salts. Don't try it until someone higher up gives you the Ok on that one.

Epsom salts are used for constipation and help relax the muscles. In this situation it may help pass the air he has swallowed (along with another attempt at burping). I don't know if they can be used in conjunction with Melafix.

These show the lump -- His other eyeball is puffy.. Didn't get that one in the picture.

http://img845.imageshack.us/i/img0672n.jpg/

http://img64.imageshack.us/i/img0673fn.jpg/

I just tried burping him again.. That bump feels really odd, it very well could be air. I didn't succeed.

Off to do some errands for a bit. I did keep epsom salt in mind -- I do not keep it on hand though. Would have to visit a store tomorrow or w/e.

Did you try my method? He may inflate with water but that's what you want--to replace the air with water.