The Puffer Forum

To me, there are many reasons, but these are the main ones:

1. They are the cutest fish, but at the same time you can't really mess with them as they can seriously hurt you, or even be potentially lethal. I like the juxtaposition
2. For many puffers, their faces have some resemblance to the faces of mammals--that roundness of the face and positioning of eyes and mouth when you look at them straight-on. I find their faces so much more expressive and interesting than the other fish.
3. They are so responsive to human! It's hard to not love them when they follow you around and look at you with those sad eyes if you don't feed them.
4. They are so much fun to watch when they tear into their food hungrily. It's like having Discovery Channel in my tank at feeding time.
5. They are lazy after they eat, just like me.
6. Many of them can live a long time (~15 years) if given the best environment in captivity --> Less frequent fish death.
7. They have attitudes. I know that my fish are angry with me for at least a day if I am out of town for a few days.
8. Puffer lovers are generally really cool. I'm glad that we share something so awesome in common!

for me i was first drawn to the mbus - but havnt got space for a big enough tank - at least i dont think so -

just love the way they look- and swim - the way they great you and beg for food - just like a puppy dog - just think they are one of the most interesting fish around - so glad i didnt get the pirhanas instead

i love their faces and podgy tummies

I first was attracted to GSPs because they had little fins like eyebrows. Since then, I've found that what I really enjoy about my DPs is no different from what I enjoy about my other fish. Most people are used to seeing fish in cramped tanks full of dirty water, lethargic, malnourished, etc. But so many fish, when cared for properly, are active and interactive and fun to watch and far more beautiful. I enjoy the personality that my fish show, how they're all different. I also find the hobby to be very fulfilling. I have twelve little creatures, none of them longer than my finger, too delicate for me to touch. I love being able to make such fragile creatures healthy and happy. There are lots of challenges - I've dealt with a rash of bacterial infections in my rescue bettas, open wounds, parasites, semi-crashed tanks, and (currently) trying to make something green grow. So far, I haven't had any true failures - some bad stuff along the way, no complete successes, but everything turned out okay in the end. It's so rewarding! Now, if I could just get my slate cave to look exactly right, THAT would be rewarding...

The oddness of them. I've always been attracted to weird or different things and as far as fish go puffers are strange. The faces won me over along with just the energy some of the puffs have. For the most part fish don't do a whole lot but in my opinion puffers are one of the few fish you can interact with.

The first puffers I got were Dwarf puffers, and they are what started my addiction to puffs. I remember that, unlike most fish, the little DP's were very aware of my presence.
I love the way puffers cruise around, much smoother than a helicopter, maybe a Harrier Jumpjet? And yes, I think they are adorable, just so cute, and they do have expressions, but always look happy! I like how I've got more than 20 puffers (not including the DP's) and they all have their different personalities and characteristics. They are all puffers, but they are not all alike in how they behave and the things they do.
But I think the very best thing about my puffers, and puffers in general, is that I can't look at them and not smile. They ALWAYS bring a smile to my face, and if I'm feeling a bit down, all I have to do is look at my puffs and I am smiling or laughing even.
God definitely has a sense of humour, which is evident in the face of a puffer.

aww i just love everything about them!! theres just something more about them than any other fish imo they seem 2 know whats going on around them etc...and theyre soooooo cute

1) personality

2) how the eyes are like chamelions how they operate independently

3) aggressiveness behind the puppy dog eyes

Puffers are oddballs. They do not look like a child's drawing of a fish. They do not swim like most fish. They do not have scales. They do not even have the usual fins, and they use their fins in different ways from most fish.

They are bright (intelligent). They have moods which are recognizable. especially when kept as singletons, they recognize more than one individual.

They have faces - I agree with recombinantrider - and we can see them as faces, with expressions.

Internally and externally they are strange - they have quite a number of unique features not found outside their family.

They are worldwide in distribution in the tropics and into some temperate areas, and available in wide range of lifestyles- hunter-predators, lurker-predators, schoolers, and range from tiny to too big for average home. A smorgasbord of fish, all with their special features and interests.

I like how their fins look like propellers. I love that they have personality traits. My dad likes them because they were cheaper than a tank full of community fish. (But technically, if I went with the community fw, I would not have loved fish so much that I bought another tank so HA!)

for me, its everything already posted.... AND the bragging rights... i LOVE it when i mention i have a 9" fahaka puffer.... people kinda go WWWHHAAAA, you mean those fish that fill up with air????? i also like having the bragging rights of having one of the largest, and one of the smallest puffers (i also have a DP). people think its funny to compare the 2. but most of all i love how Kukah seems to appreciate everything i do for him.... makes fish keeping more rewarding..... my red devil cichlid on the other hand, he hates everyone... hes very aware of whats outside the tank as well, but in a very different way.... he bites when you clean the tank and rams the glass when you walk by, kukah just seems excited.... gives me that warm fuzzy feeling lol.

for my boyfriend.... he likes kukah because he likes to masacre his dinner

and my kitties, they like my puffers because they cant figure out what the heck they are!!! haha

Puffers are total loonies

I look at my puffs (Celons called 'Bonnie and Clyde') and start talking to them (nutter) - then I look at my small trop tank with common community fish in and go 'Boring!' They just drift around looking pretty. Like piranha, they don't DO very much. The trop tank was set up for my wife BTW and so I could have at least one 'normal' tank to remember what it was like.

Tetraodontiforms are some of the most evolved fish on the planet. And maybe one of the least understood groups.

Its the behaviour that gets me

I've heard of a MBU who sulked because his tank was moved and he couldn't see the telly

They moved it back...

Nothing is more evolved than something else. We all came from the same place and we all took the same amount of time to get to the present. Nothing is higher or lower or more advanced vs primitive. Evolution does not work like that.

I really enjoy Kaleekos cute little face! He always looks extremely curious.
& They certainly are oddballs - which makes them so darn cute!!
I love how they beg for food. & I especially love when Kaleeko fans out his tail.
I love their fins, It is kind of funny if you think about it, small fins with a big round body
Who would have came up with that! lol

The puffer fish is like no other fish I have ever had.
They are truely an amazing creature, and I am happy to say I am the owner of one.

recombinantrider wrote:To me, there are many reasons, but these are the main ones:
2. For many puffers, their faces have some resemblance to the faces of mammals--that roundness of the face and positioning of eyes and mouth when you look at them straight-on. I find their faces so much more expressive and interesting than the other fish.

kind of like this? :