The Puffer Forum

GETTING WORRIED ABOUT MY MBU KNOW HE HAS NOT GONE TO TOILET SINCE THURSDAY AND HE HAS A HUGE LUMP IN HIS BELLY AND DIDNT EAT YESTERDAY!
DOSED WITH EPSOM SALTS YESTERDAY , HOW LONG DOES THIS TAKE TO WORK?? IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I CAN DO FOR HIM
PLEASE HELP

You can try raising the temp btw 81-85 and it should soften the stool and increase their metabolism. Unless it an IP or and undigested shell causing blockage.

Has he/she been treated b4 for IP's you should always do this with any wild caught species such as puffers. And its a cheap preventative measure. Also it will help other higher up's if you answer the ?s above in red.... and how long he's been in there and maybe a pic and how long the tanks been up and running(thats probably one of the ?s in red anyways)

800LTS HOLDING TANK TILL NEW ONE ARRIVES
BEEN RUNNING FOR 18 MONTHS
PH7.5 AMM 0 NITRI O NITRA 0-0.5
TEMP 80
20% WEEKLY WATER CHANGES
USE PRIME
FEED ON COCKLES IN SHELS MUSSELL IN AND OUT OF SHELLS PRAWNS LANCE FISH
HE CAN BE GREEDY AND ON A COUPLE OF OCCASIONS HE HAS SWALLOWED MUSSELLS IN THE SHELL WHOLE!!

Id try not to feed him any shelled food like snails and such that are bigger than its eyes. Its easy for them to swallow chunks of shell and it may be causing the constipation. Hopefully he passes something soon and its over. Has he been treated for IP's ever?

Also are you freezing any fresh seafoods b4 feeding? this way it helps kill any possible hitchhiking parasites.

Now Im not sure about MBU's but I kno most puffer owners of GSP dont feed Guppies (lance fish). Its very bad for their digestive track and they hardly have good nutrition. Im pretty sure ppl say it just make your puffer fat too. Try to stop feeding the lance fish. Maybe the small spines are causing the constipation.

I DONT KNOW IF LANCEFISH ARE THE SAME THING IN ENGLAND AS THEY ARE IN THE USA(3INCH LONG SILVER IN PREPACKED FROZEN BAGS) I ONLY GIVE ONE OR TWO ONCE A MONTH FOR A CHANGE HIS MAIN DIET IS MUSSELLS IN SHELL OR COCKLES WITH SHELL LESS MUSSELLS. HE HAS NOT HAD LANCEFISH FOR 3WKS .
I ALWAYS FREEZE BEFORE FEEDING MY SHELL FISH
HE HAS NOT LATELY BEEN TREATED FOR IP WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMEND

I'm going to lock this thread due to it being a double post, it will save on confusion (people answering in different posts don't always get all the info).
Please don't post in all caps, it's considered shouting by all and very rude by most.