The Puffer Forum

Last week I noticed one of my F8s had a red swollen lower lip. I thought he had chipped a tooth so I have been treating him with Melafix. Today, I caught a glimpse of his lower jaw and it worried me. I finally caught the little rascal and examined him more closely. Both bottom dental plates are gone! It looks as if they have been pulled out. (Very similiar looking to that of a child's gums after loosing a couple of teeth — two little red-dotted holes). I don't know what to make of it. Could one of the other Puffs bitten them out? Could he have gotten his lower jaw stuck in something? Could he have gotten an infection that resulted in the plates falling out? (I've seen one of them get a bit of argonite caught between his teeth before). Does anyone have a suggestion as to a better treatment than Melafix? Poor little guy…

There are three F8s in this 30g long, heavily planted/decorated. There has been nothing added for three years. The only thing I've done differently lately is to soak their food in a couple of drops of Prazi-Pro (dewormer). Could this Puff's tooth loss be a result of a bad reaction to the meds? Or just a coincidence? (His two other F8 tankmates are doing fine. And a fourth F8 who resides in a separate tank is doing well also.)

Pami, I remember one of your guys chipped a tooth, correct? It didn't come completely out?

Uh oh. Doesn't sound good. I can't really offre any personal experiences, but what I would suggest is if the F8's mouth heals, he might not be able to crush the shells of snails anymore, so a diet of blackworms/bloodworms/etc will be his staple for the rest of his life, with regular dental trimmings to keep the top plates under control.

I feel sorry for the poor fella =/

If you think of it, puffers do grow (like people). Is there a possibility of baby plates? then new ones grow in?

Yeah...Mags lost her upper right plate. Her mouth was red for a while, but it's ok now...she seemed a bit skittish for a few days, but didn't lose her appetite.
It was a bit of a mystery, but I decided not to get her out and examine closer, as she's not as bold as Robert and has more of a tendency to puff (she's puffed when Robert startled her in the log once).
I'd say the tooth has gone, and I'm waiting to see if it'll grow back.
I don't think it's a case of replacing baby teeth, as the development runs along completely different templates (as it were) in humans and puffers.
Damn...hope your guy'll be ok.
Pami.

Ok, that puts out my idea....

elp…

The Melafix isn't helping anymore. The F8s mouth is red again and it is in obvious pain when it attempts to eat. It is getting so bad that it is having problems eating bloodworms.

Personally, I'd be worrying about a bacterial infection. Granted, the BW should help ward against that, but I'd be tempted to try an antibiotic at this point. I prefer to save drugs as a last resort, but infection is your main worry here.

Eric

Have you got a 10G quarantine tank where you can do daily changes? I think if not, then the antibiotics are a good idea. Mags' mouth was a bit red for a few days, but soon cleared up, but your guy sounds like he's having trouble there.
Hope he'll be ok.
Pami.

You try Pima Fix to help fight against a bacterial infection?