The Puffer Forum

Hey everyone!
My name is Danielle i recently bought 3 GSP's at walmart of all places. (BAD IDEA)
they did not give me any information regarding GSP's besides they like salt.
so i got some came home set up the aquarium and after some time i put them in there.
the next day i was watching them and noticed they had teeth! i had no idea. so i did some research and learned that they are semi difficult to maintain and keep healthy and happy.
long story short, 2 of them have died ive done most everything i could do that i know how, burping was a success for the smaller one but he just passed
so im very worried about the one i have left, i dont know if it was because i transferred them into brackish water too soon too fast, or if they are sick. could it be the ammonia or oxygen levels?
If someone is willing to explain a few things or give me some tips it would be appreciated!!
Danielle

Hi Danielle,
Puffers can adapt to salinity changes if acclimated properly (it's the bacteria that needs time to adapt). Ammonia and Nitrites need to be zero, Nitrates have to be less than 20ppm. So you need to test for all of these, they sell test kits. My kit didn't include Nitrates so I had to buy that separately. If your tank isn't cycled you need to buy a bottle of Dr. Tim's or BioSpira ASAP, for now you can do a partial water change to lower any high Ammonia/Nitrite levels. Make sure to dechlorinate the water and test the salinity. You need a hydrometer or refractometer to test the salinity (hydrometers are cheaper but refractometers are more accurate). You should also familiarize yourself with your tap water's chemical components. Puffers don't respond well to swinging PH changes so keep the PH constant. Puffers need snails to keep their teeth filed. Puffers are messy eaters so one GSP needs 30gallons to themselves. If the Walmart you went to is anything like the one near me the Puffers were near death when you got them-I know it's a horrible for you to find out this way. Most of them are very skinny and have IPs. If he looks thin and doesn't hold onto his food you need to treat for IPs. There's an article in the library.

There is an article on cycling in the Library, so you can better understand the biological balance of your tank. Don't let the store sell you any other bacteria than the ones mentioned above. At this point, your puffer is living in an uncycled tank. It is poisoning itself with it's own wastes (living in a toilet). You must do large, frequent water changes (sometines 2x/day) to keep the water as clean as possible.

Be sure to read the GSP article too.

If you can't get ahold of the two products mentioned above (Dr. Tim's or BioSpira), then hunt around for a product called Prime. It's a water dechlorinator, but it also detoxifies the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate during the cycling process. Although using Dr. Tim's or BioSpira is a better solution, it's not always a plausible solution if you can't find the products. Doing a double-dose of Prime should help remove the toxicity (along with water changes), allowing your puffer to hopefully survive.

Hopefully the little puff pulls through, but you need to act fast in order to save him/her.