The Puffer Forum

So I finally got my F8 healthy and happy. I had so many problems but I think now everything is good . I got a great new heater that works so much better then my old one. I got rid of the ich and the cloudy water! Now my puffer is so happy. He has the best 8 on his head and pretty blue eyes. I wish I had a better camera (I have a great camera but I don't know how to use it very well) so I could post better pics. But I just wanted to let everyone know how thankful I am for all the help that was given to me. Everyone here has helped me so much and I am thankful becaue now my puffer is happy and healthy. So thanks everyone! This forum and everyone here is the best!! Yay and thanks again!

Awesome Glad he's doing so well now.

Hey! Glad to hear great news!!! I'm happy you and your F8 are doing fine.

Well after I was so happy about the water and the ich being gone now both of my f8s look like they are getting sick again! My little one has always been good about eating and he has never been sick( the one original puffer I still have) Now hes not eating and at first I thought it was just him but now his big brother is not eating either! I have treated them both for IPs and they have been fine for the last week and a half or so but I put some frozen bloodworms in there last night and they didn't even care. The goby and the shrimp loved it though (stupid shrimp). I tried to get my puffers to eat by grabbing my trusty plant grabber and tried moving the bloodworms to make them look alive even though my filter does a fine job of the already. I have never had a problem wiht them not liking the bloodworms before. Everytime I put them in there they go nuts over them. I don't know what is going on but I hope they just have like a 24 hour bug and will be better when I get home. The only thing that has changed is the light isn't on as much since I just got a job, but their day and night were just opposite mine. At night so I could watch them I left the light on and when I was at school I would turn it off (or if I was home I would just leave it off till 2:30) so now that I work the light is off a lot longer during the day. Could that have something to do with it like they are stressed because of the change?

Well after I came home today I found my little puffer dead. I hope the other one is ok he seems happy and is now eating but I never know with puffers they are a mystery to me! I am keeping my fingers crossed and I am going to work and taking a water sample since I still don't have liquid tests (not until I get paid) and why use mine when I can use works for free and they have every test so if things get worse I will post my tank numbers but for now everything is fine I just did a 75% w/c today and he seems happy so we will see.

You must continue the ich treament (temperature above 86F) for a full month. Ich has 4 life stages, just because the spots are nolonger on the fish doesn't mean it's gone.

I am still treating him for the ich, he still has a few spots but not as many and I just got a new heater that works so much better then my old one so the temp is much more stable.

RIP little puffer!

I am so sorry to hear of the problems and the loss of your little F8! I've only just caught up with things. That's such a shame

Sorry about your loss!

I'm sorry you lost your puffer.

Katie, first off sorry for you lost, girl. For me, puffers are still a mystery too, I lost my first one 4 months ago and I never knew what was the matter with him. Suddenly he stopped to eat, started to pace much more and was dead after 3 days without eat.

I'm assuming they can be stressed by something we don't know the reasons. Try your best to keep the other one alive and healthy, the puffer family is here to help.

Well thank you so much for everyones kind words. My puffer is eating and still has good color so I hope he is still healthy. I will keep everyone posted and thanks again for your kind words.

So I am at my wits end. I can't stand to lose another puffer in the same week I lost my little bear(baby puffer)! Now my big puffer only eats once a day maybe. I feed him a little when I get up like just a small pinch not even enough to make his belly round. Then at night I feed him frozen bloodworms and he used to go crazy over that stuff I could barely get it into the tank before he would start attacking it and it would be gone and I would have to net him(underwater) just so little bear could get some food. Now that little bear is gone he seems depressed he sits in the cornor under where my filter is and just stares out at the wall. I don't know what to do I was going to get him a new friend Wednesday since I had my boss order one but none came in with our other fish. He won't eat, it seems like he never sleeps. He used to sleep in a tree in the front of my tank and that was the same tree I found little bear in so now he won't go near that tree. Even though there are other trees/plants in the tank he doesn't care. I don't want him to die, I have been treating him for ich with melafix and the temp is 82 right now and the ich is almost gone. He ate yesterday but I have only seem him eat this morning and I tried to get him to eat some krill and he had one bite and swam away after that. I tested the water and the ammonia was high about 1 I think a green color. So I did a water change and added prime to the tank. One person that came into work (at my lfs) and he had salt water and he had the same problem no matter how many water changes he did the ammonia would never go down so he added prime to the tank everyday and got the ammonia down after a couple of days. Does anyone think it might be hes tired of bloodworms and I should try something else. At work we feed our salt water fish Spirulina brine, do you think I should feed him some of that, or at least try it? He is picky (I know weird for a puffer) he doen't eat clams, shrimp (ghost), or tubifex worms, or plankton. I am so tempted to take him out and force feed him, even though he doesn't like me very much. I have also treated him for IPs and now I just don't know what to do. Can anybody help me and my puffer?

When Shakespeare has no tankmates, he eats sparingly, only till slightly rounded maybe, and is less active. My experience is most puffers, especially bigger ones, eat MUCH more when there's competition for the food.

Well I guess that makes me feel a little better. But I know that he is sick and I can't figure out whats wrong with him. I am so sad I really really like this one. He is sitting in the cornor all the time which is not normal for him or I think any fish. I mean if he was sitting on the bottom I would understand but he is swimming in the top cornor. Right next to where I have my filter. I just don't know what to do anymore. Most of my puffers last a healthy week where they are eating and being very active and then all the sudden they stop being normal and stop eating and then soon after they die! I just don;t understand