The Puffer Forum

Red Q's first

pH 8.4
Ammonia 0
nitrites 0
nitrates 15
SG 1.005
55 gallon with a Fluval 405 (340 gph, a little small but effective) and the GSP is the only inhabitant and is about 1.5 inches, if that.
Did a WC three days ago, in the normal weekly 50% WC pattern, with no change in SG, use Prime for a conditioner. Feed every day, snails in the AM, variety of raw frozen seafood at night for a treat every other day. No changes to the tank since setup except a slow rise in SG. The aquarium has been set up of about 5-6 months and was instant cycled by using a well established filter (3+ years on another tank)

So, here's the problem. For the past 5 days my gsp won't eat. I have offered him everything I can think of to get him to eat without luck, he doesn't even show interest. The last thing he ate was a chunk of clam that I left on the shell because he loves to zoom in the shell and tug on what is attached (funny to watch). The Clam was frozen and thawed with tank water. Today, I went to do a mid week water parameter check and I couldn't find him, finally I did and he was hanging out, not moving at the surface. His color is a nice bright yellow, and when he does move around he looks like one of his side fins is clamped and the rest are moving well. Gills look fine and I don't see any white spots on him. The only thing out of the ordinary is he has a black mustache, he usually does this when he eats but not just cruising the tank. Belly is white and flat. I did treat for IP's when I first got him and I haven't seen anymore evidence of them since. One other odd thing is when he is swimming, his mouth stays open and he kind of gulps water. I did discover that somehow the heater got turned up and the tank temp was 86F. Oxygen issue maybe?

I'm perplexed....he doesn't even want to come to the glass when I enter the room like usual. I'm going to do a Primafix and Melafix treatment just for starters. Any other ideas?

Add a couple of airstones and see if that helps. When the temp goes up the oxygen goes down. If it is an oxygen issue he should perk up quickly.

I added MElafix and pimafix just in case too. I have a power head that I can bleed air in to that I'm going to set up...

Appreciate all the helpful insight guys. He's dead.

OMG, I am totally shocked! My 1st thought as I was reading your post was why you bother to do 50% WC on a 55g tank with only a 1 1/2" puffer in it. Probably overkill. I mean I do huge WC on my FW tanks but not my BW, because of the cost of $alt.

Anyway, about your puffer, my only guess would some kind of toxin to cause this to happen so fast. Don't you have 4 kids? Start grilling them. I'm really sorry for your loss...

Puffer floating belly up + fins not moving = Dead, right?
Puffer floating belly up + fins not moving + close to Easter = Resurrection??

I was very shocked when I posted my last one, didn't quite have the heart to take him out of the tank so I left him for a few hours....Went up to go retrieve him and hes floating on top in the current and his fins are moving slowly...went up later to check and he was stuck to the filter intake puffed up so I turned the flow way down on the filter and he floated in the current, deflated and righted himself, fins started moving slowly. He looks awful but is right side up. I earlier added Melafix and Pimafix and I just now added an airstone. Temp is back to normal and there is a new heater.

So, I went to feed my Brown Puffer tonight, he's acting odd now too. Fed them from the same clam, took a chunk of meat from the clam for the Brown and threw the shell in with the GSP. The Brown is still eating but not as well as he usually does. Anybody ever heard of a toxin or bacteria in clams? I'm grasping at straws but that is the only connection between the two.... I'm praying for my Brown now too...

Could be some sort of salmonella or something. I can't think of anything you can do except maybe turn the lights out to keep stress down, maybe a w/c in case.

It must be such a roller coaster for you, but I'm glad he's alive.

If the water changes were done on the same day, perhaps something in the water? The way I test for that is (matching SG of course) using spring or purified water, and put the fish in a 2.5 gallon tank and see if he perks up in the "known safe" water in an hour or so(not long enough to let ammonia build up)

Barometer test to commence! Excellent idea, I would have never thought about that. I have to leave for the weekend and this will give me a way to take him with me too. He's barely hanging on this morning. He floated to the end of the tank with the now sponge covered filter intake and got stuck on the intake. Fins are moving he's moving his tongue like he's gasping but the jaws aren't moving. While He was stuck there I got a good look at his teeth and they aren't overgrown either....

Definitely there can be toxins and/or bacteria in shellfish, people get sick from them all the time due to buying items like these that have died or are close to death when sold. There are also certain kinds of algae that are poisonous that could be carried in the clam. Do you freeze your seafood for a week before feeding it to your puffers?

my fingers are crossed for your little guys!

marksrush wrote:Definitely there can be toxins and/or bacteria in shellfish, people get sick from them all the time due to buying items like these that have died or are close to death when sold. There are also certain kinds of algae that are poisonous that could be carried in the clam. Do you freeze your seafood for a week before feeding it to your puffers?

I buy it frozen from the supermarket here, we can't get it fresh, and then we freeze for about 3 days. Figure that is about a week or more total....I really do think that is what happened here, the clam came toxin loaded and they ate it. The tiny GSP ate more and the bigger Brown never really ingested much hence the difference in effect.

I had to euthanize poor Microfische this afternoon, I couldn't watch him suffer like that anymore.

rip

HE'S NOT DEAD YET!


Jesus returning as a pufferfish. Who wouldda thunk that?

Wow I go out of town for one night and BAM! Sorry to hear about your litle one. I hope the other one gets better.