The Puffer Forum

Ok I'll try and keep this short.

I am a teacher and a family donated an entire aquarium setup to me for my classroom.
Set up tank and wanted to take my time getting water set up etc.
They were in a hurry and brought the fish in waaaaaay to soon.
Our only savior..hopefully...is that he brought with him all the established bio balls so we hopefully have a head start on bacteria growth.

One of the fish was a puffer...porcupine I am pretty sure. The other fish are a trigger and 4 clown fish as well as three hermit crabs. needless to say the puffer has become a rock star on campus within a week...

BUT...
The puffer is not eating!!

My water temp is about 78, salinity is about 1.018-1.021.. the ammonia levels have stayed pretty constant...the Nitrites are climbing (obviously)...the nitrates are starting to go up too.
I have tried clams, feeder fish, the seafood cocktail stuff from safeway, the only thing he even took a bite at was the clams and that was once and never has since.

The tail fin also appears to be ruffling on the edges and it is bending almost all the time. He spends a lot of time resting on things but does swim around near the top in spurts.

I know I am fighting a big uphill battle here and really did not want the fish in the tank yet at all but hopefully one of you experts can give me advice to save my puffer.

Thanks

Your salinity needs to be between 1.020 - 1.023 at least thats what i recomend. how big is the tank?

What was the family feeding previously?
Try live earthworms, that (along with vegetables) are my porcs favorites.
Also what size tank is it? Chances are it's not big enough, for you will need at least 90 for the porc alone.
Can you post the exact perams also? It'd be best to do daily water changes until you cna get the ammonia and nitrite at zero. See if you can get bio-spira to instant cycle the tank, or Prime to help detoxify the ammonia and nitrite.

Also, in addition to giving us the tank info and water parameters, how large is the Porc, how large are the other fish, and can you see any visible signs of disease on the Porc? Porc puffers have an extremely high occurrence of saltwater ich, as well as the possibility for internal parasites (both of which could be sparking this lack of eating). Does he looked emaciated, or does his stomach look sunken? How strong is he swimming? If you could get pictures for us, it might help us diagnose him if he has some visible symptoms.

I've heard that Porcs initially go for moving/live things (mostly crustaceans and invertebrates), so try to find some Ghost Shrimp (also called Glass shrimp or River shrimp - they're completely clear and about 1-2 inches large). Those might be your best bet. You can also try to soak the other foods in garlic (just mash up a clove and let it soak in a dish with the food, using water from the tank of course).

Yes, we really need to know the water parameters, ASAP. ANY amount of ammonia/nitrite will cause the puffer to be uncomfortable enough not to eat. They can go quite some time without eating, so I wouldn't worry much about that. Uneaten food will just add to the messed up biology of that tank.
Is there any live rock that came with the tank?
What is the filtration?
How large is the tank & fish?
Large daily water changes are in order here, to prevent the fish from being poisoned by their own wastes, until you can get a hold of some Bio-Spira but if there isn't proper filtration (IE: live rock, protein skimmer), you'll still be doing large water changes indefinately, with the amout of bioload a porc & trigger puts out.

Its a 55 gallon tank..sump filtration though his established bio balls without a skimmer. I did put in live sand at the beginning but no live rock

The porc is pretty good size. Definitely bigger than ones I have seen in the stores. The trigger is also good size and I think is the dominator of the tank...takes food very aggressively and is obviously quicker to the meal than the puffer.

The only visible thing I have seen is the tail fin curling and turn a bit cloudy of a color and "fraying" at the edge.

I would say a definite yes on the stomach looking emaciated. Swimming is strong but sporadic...spends a lot of time on the bottom of tank or resting on coral.

Thanks again for all the help.

How large is the tank? It sounds like the puffer is getting fin rot from poor water conditions.

Sorry i edited the last post 55 gallon tank
also what is Bio-Spira?? sorry I am new to all of this

How long are the fish in your estimation? Were these recently purchased? Can they be returned?

trigger and puffer about the same length...4-5inches???

They had been in a different tank than mine for over a year together and so I don't think returning will be an option...may be able to talk the local shop into taking the sick puffer though maybe.

Both the puffer & the trigger will quickly outgrow a 55g tank. My suggestion is to give them to a store that can sell them to someone who can house them properly & that way they won't die in your uncycled tank. Then you can read up on cycling a SW tank & take your time adding fish. If you want a puffer (or puffers) in there, stick with the smaller, snarp-nosed tobies.

Thanks..I will try and look into that...until then Ill have to keep up the water changes I guess.

Don't wait too long or they won't be in any condition for a shop to take them.

can you get hold of a skimmer? or loads of live rock? Best way now to stop your tank parameters crashing..

alternatively research locally and get someone in who is a SW keeper to help you with the set up/correct running... one of the kids at your school must have a mum or dad who keeps them.... they might be able to lend you some of the kit needed...

however as said, both porc and trigger will outgrow the tank fast, so long term they need to be upgraded or re-homed. Good luck

what kind of trigger is it?