The Puffer Forum

Hey guys,
this is going to sound really strange but i have a figure 8 puffer and she was just at the bottom of her tank and it looked like one of her fins was stuck to one side of her body, i just gave her some shrimp and she ate it up but the fin still looks stuck, what should i do??

does it look like its holding its fin against its side? like flat against its body?

It did look like it was holding it against the side of his body. I actually did a bit of a water change and dropped the temp of the tank somewhat and she seems fine. Just wondering if anyone thinks i could add a second F8 with her?

how large is the tank? and chances are she held it to her side becuase she hurt it. my fish do this all the time if they injure their fins. usually after netting one if it was hard to net them. it also happens after getting into fight with other fish alot.

Side19 is probably right about it hurting it's fin. Just keep an eye on her to make sure. What size is your tank? You should have at least a 25g tank to have 2 F8s, 30 is better. F8s are usually okay with having another F8 in the tank as long as there is enough room for both of them to get away from each other. Have lots and lots of places to hide and many plants or decor of varying sizes.

What is the temp? And pH, nitrites, nitrates, ammonia?

Also, F8s are actually brackish, so you should add marine salt and use a hydrometer (or refractometer if you've got the money) to make sure the levels are good.

The temp was a bit high, I added some cool water and some salt and she seems to be fine!! Thanks for all the info guys!!

no prob, glad to hear she's doing ok.