The Puffer Forum

I just tried trimming my fish's teeth for the first time and failed at it... i don't know how long i should keep him out of the water for.....

i read the article in the library here and it says 3 cups of tank water and 3 drops of clove oil, then the fish should turn upside down within 60 seconds... well that was not the case for me, it took almost 4 minutes... he was just lifeless, but still moving... so i really rushed the trimming and didnt get the teeth that good.. the teeth are really bad, at the point where hes not eating..
how soon can i try this again without stressing him out more???

Prolong contact with clove oil even in water seems to cause O2 problems, I'd recommend finquel(ms222) instead next time, should be far less stressful on you. I have seen that most recommend removing the fish from the water to trim, but I see no reason if you can manipulate the fish well enough underwater you could not do it there.

Did you stir or airate the water, to mix the clove oil?

i mixed the water really good...... i think hes just a strong fighter... would 4 drops be okay? i really am afraid of how long he should be exposed in clove oil water, i mean 4 minutes seems way to long.. thats why i failed at the teeth.. too much in a hurry to put him back in the tank water to see if he'd recover.....

I hope you don't mean you put him back in his tank afterwards. You should have a bucket of declorinated water to put him in for recovery so the clove oil doesn't get into his main tank.

Boxermom wrote:I hope you don't mean you put him back in his tank afterwards. You should have a bucket of declorinated water to put him in for recovery so the clove oil doesn't get into his main tank.

oh yes, i had a seperate container of his tank water.. i left him in there for a good 20 minutes before putting him in his tank... it just seems like he wont go upside down in 3 drops of clove oil.. so it really is strange cuz im following the directions right....

4 drops maybe? i just dont want to harm him.....

can i try again tonight or is it too soon? they really need to be cut....

I think it also depends on how big the puffer is. Larger puffers would need a higher dose, IMO.

I would definitely try again tonight if they are interfering with his ability to eat.

Boxermom wrote:I think it also depends on how big the puffer is. Larger puffers would need a higher dose, IMO.

I would definitely try again tonight if they are interfering with his ability to eat.

hes not really that big yet... Maybe 2 inches long, so i think that would do the trick? but if i add another drop would that increase his chances of not recovering?

You definitely need to use more if its taking him 4 minutes to go under. That's a long time for him to be exposed to it.

Boxermom wrote:You definitely need to use more if its taking him 4 minutes to go under. That's a long time for him to be exposed to it.

thats what i was thinking.... thats why i rushed the trimming....
4 drops should do it then? will it harm him if i add to much?

Well, we use clove oil to euthanize as well, so yeah, too much can harm him. But if you just add one or two drops more, it should be okay.

Boxermom wrote:Well, we use clove oil to euthanize as well, so yeah, too much can harm him. But if you just add one or two drops more, it should be okay.

thank you... if he dies i'll blame you... just joking...

Go ahead, if it makes you feel better, although I will point out that I did say “should.” Unfortunately, it can happen where they don’t wake up afterwards, so it’s a nerve-wracking procedure, especially the wait afterwards while they come out of it. But if I can do it, so can you.

Hi--
I have a green spotted puffer, tetraodon nigroviridis, and I just trimmed his beak...shaking hands and all. He's about 2.5" long, beak to tail, and I used 4 drops of clove oil/gallon, as recommended in the Puffer chapter in Monks' 2006 "Brackish-Water Fishes" book. I netted him from the tank, put him in a bucket w 1 gallon of tank water + the clove oil, and after 5 minutes I decided he was sedated enough to try. His gills and fins were still moving a bit and he had not rolled belly up as some people reported, but he was calm enough to hold. I pulled him out of the water to do the trimming, so that I could see what I was doing.

I was surprised that his beak was as thick as it was! I planned to use a pair of baby nail clippers, but in the end I used a normal sized pair because they opened wider. It took several clips before I got the beak to the size I wanted it. Also... I had not realized that there is a beak on the lower jaw, inside the mouth, that was even longer than the outer beak! No wonder the poor guy wasn't eating... So I trimmed the lower beak too.

After I finished I put him in a second bucket w a gallon of tank water (wo the clove oil), and after ~10 min he was swimming around merrily, just as Monks predicted. He's now back in his tank and looks just fine, except that I didn't trim his beak straight, it's a bit lopsided just like the way my mom cut my bangs when I was a kid...