The Puffer Forum

In my 50gallon FW tank I have 3 x SAP's and 2 x Red Eyes that have lived happily together for about 6 months now. (Although the male Red Eye can get a bit terrotorial now and then.)

My problem is despite feeding regulary with shellfish and crabs etc one of the SAP's won't eat until the rest of the puffers have cracked the shell etc.

Hence he now has big teeth which, unless I sort something soon, will become problematic.

Can anybody recommend a solution so that I can avoid performing dentistry (which i really, really don't wanna do)?

Cheers in advance

With SAP's, you'll likely have to do dentistry even if they are crunching shells on a daily basis. Its one of the major considerations when buying this species.

So other than separating him into his own tank where he MUST crunch his own food, no, I can't see of any other way of slowing it down, and nothing will prevent the need for dentistry completely.

Neale has some SAP's who rarely need dentistry, and the only thing he can figure has to do with it is his sand substrate. But its only a guess...

Ta for that.

Dentistry was something I found out about after the purchase... I'll do it if i HAVE to but would rather not.

I have a sand substrate too but doesn't seem to make much difference? Ah well, I might try dusting off an old small tank see if I can wean him back on crunching.

Cheers again

There's actually a boy in the town I live, who hasn't had to do dentristy at all on his SAP, believe it or not. It's the only one I've ever heard about. He has made his SAPs eat catfish food (the kind of food that is like pills), and together with snails, that keeps the teeth wore down. He's had his SAPs for a year and a half now (if I remember it right). I guess (or rather hope) he feeds them something besides this too, but at least it has worked on the puffer's teeth. But I have no idea how he managed to make his puffers take this food in the first place. I would consider that being very, very difficult, and was very surprised when I first heard about it (Well, actually I am still surprised by it, even though I've talked with that boy several times, and it still works). It's not common puffer food I wouldn't recommend it.

I think separating the SAP from the others is the only way. Unless feeding in different parts of the tank works.

If you let the teeth too long you will have to clip them. I had to.

Once they are overgrown, there is nothing to do but clip them. Have you read the article?

I wil not enjoy clipping my puffers teeth if the time comes.

i have 4 saps and i have clipped there teeth twice in there life and it is rather easy believe it or not.. go to the local drug store and acquire clove oil. the ratio is one drop of oil to 1 cup water.. i do three cups water out of the tank with three drops oil in a prawn tub and fill another prawn tub with 3 cups aquarium water.. net your sap( i always like to not expose them to air until there tranquilized) and let them chill in the clove oil solution for about 2 min when there out hey will float upside down and they wont be moving there mouths.. gently grab him with the net in your fingertips (don't touch directly with hands) use a finger to pull his lips back to expose the upper fused jaw and clip it with cuticle clippers or fingernail clippers as low as you can with out cutting him, then do the same with lower teeth, try to make it quick under 15-20 seconds then drop him in the 3 cups of aquarium water only, when he regains conciseness ( 2-3 minutes) drop him back in the tank and he will swim as though nothing happened... don't worry if his skin has funky blotches of or mis coloration it will be back to normal after 20-30 min..i suggest you repeat this process at least every 6 months.

Cheers Guys,

I'm gonna try isolating him for a while see what happens; I have read the article on dentistry; just don't trust myself

Will give it a week or so and then go buy the clove oil and snips

i would have to say you can try isolation but to be honest if they dont like crunchies its very hard (atleast with my experiences) to get them to eat snails and other crunchies even in isolation.. you best shot is to probably crush a snail with your fingers and let him eat it to get him into eating snails in genral then hopfully his predator side will come out and tear them apart.. if not, looks like some one is going to dentistry school lol.. i have it to 8 puffers over the past year and once you get familiar with it its not hard at all..although the first time you do it he will probably look like he just got out of a middle eastern dentist he should still be fine afterwards....

redeyeguy wrote:i have 4 saps and i have clipped there teeth twice in there life and it is rather easy believe it or not.. go to the local drug store and acquire clove oil. the ratio is one drop of oil to 1 cup water.. i do three cups water out of the tank with three drops oil in a prawn tub and fill another prawn tub with 3 cups aquarium water.. net your sap( i always like to not expose them to air until there tranquilized) and let them chill in the clove oil solution for about 2 min when there out hey will float upside down and they wont be moving there mouths.. gently grab him with the net in your fingertips (don't touch directly with hands) use a finger to pull his lips back to expose the upper fused jaw and clip it with cuticle clippers or fingernail clippers as low as you can with out cutting him, then do the same with lower teeth, try to make it quick under 15-20 seconds then drop him in the 3 cups of aquarium water only, when he regains conciseness ( 2-3 minutes) drop him back in the tank and he will swim as though nothing happened... don't worry if his skin has funky blotches of or mis coloration it will be back to normal after 20-30 min..i suggest you repeat this process at least every 6 months.

Hmm... I think I read something like this somewhere before... & it had pictures too!

Pufferpunk wrote:

redeyeguy wrote:i have 4 saps and i have clipped there teeth twice in there life and it is rather easy believe it or not.. go to the local drug store and acquire clove oil. the ratio is one drop of oil to 1 cup water.. i do three cups water out of the tank with three drops oil in a prawn tub and fill another prawn tub with 3 cups aquarium water.. net your sap( i always like to not expose them to air until there tranquilized) and let them chill in the clove oil solution for about 2 min when there out hey will float upside down and they wont be moving there mouths.. gently grab him with the net in your fingertips (don't touch directly with hands) use a finger to pull his lips back to expose the upper fused jaw and clip it with cuticle clippers or fingernail clippers as low as you can with out cutting him, then do the same with lower teeth, try to make it quick under 15-20 seconds then drop him in the 3 cups of aquarium water only, when he regains conciseness ( 2-3 minutes) drop him back in the tank and he will swim as though nothing happened... don't worry if his skin has funky blotches of or mis coloration it will be back to normal after 20-30 min..i suggest you repeat this process at least every 6 months.

Hmm... I think I read something like this somewhere before... & it had pictures too!

sorry wasn't me i never posted pics of it being done...

LOL, it's been published in Tropical Fish Hobbiest: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/lib ... dentistry/
Good rendition though!

yes i am sure it is somewhere on this forum but im just giving advice from my experiences.. im sure just about every topic of puffer care is on this forum but that doesnt mean im going to look for it before i post my advice... it seems like every thread i post on your right there to get in my grill about some topic, mabey its your way of correcting me but it comes off quite ignorant and disrespectful and quite frankly makes me uncomfortable posting on this forum...

Sorry, I think maybe you don't get my sense of humor... I've never meant anything towards you about it. I'm on this forum posting all the time, because I have to. Your description about trimming teeth was dead on.