The Puffer Forum

Had my guy for about 3 weeks now hes about 2 inches he will only eat Ghost shrimp and sometimes the guppies i have been breeding he wont touch worms or crabs or mussels and he seems to get rly scared and stressed easily and he will charge back and forth at the glass jumping out of the water and wont stop for 30 mins he also gets spots when this happens is it normal behavior and does anyones else seem so skiddish or should i be worried? He dosent seem to recognise me at all either

Hi Robertbp17. Welcome To The Puffer Forum!

hard to say whether normal or not, still needs some time to "settle in."
it would be easier to opinionate if we knew a little more about him & his tank.
their behaviour can have a lot to do with how comfortable (or uncomfortable) their environment is to them.
the food he is accepting may be what he has been accustomed to, and there are many other foods that he can be encouraged to eat.
it takes patience with these guys, and they're sometimes very stubborn.
what size tank is he in?
does he have sand, or fine gravel, to bury in?
plants?
hiding places for when he wants some privacy?
are his water parameters in good shape?
do you do weekly water changes?
sorry for all the questions, but their behavior & overall health depend so much on these things.
and if things are not suitable for them, it can cause them to be stressed.
they're my favorite of the puffers!
that's my little "ollie" pictured in my avatar .

Congo puffers are one of the hardest puffers to get eating, in my opinion. Actually I think all piscivore (fish-eating) puffers are difficult eaters. Some Congo will take other foods and some won't, so I don't think that's very odd. As to the skittish behaviour, well that's a bit normal too, and you've only had him a short time, so he's still adjusting, same with recognising you, give him more time. They do get spots when they are stressed, so nothing to worry about with that.

At least your guy is eating. I've got 2 Congo puffers and while one is very healthy and fat, and eating good, the other is just the opposite with being skinny and very picky about what he will eat, which isn't very much. I don't think your puffer is being any different in any of the things you've mentioned. Give him time, he will settle down, you must be patient, especially with that species.

Thanks for the welcome and the replies. He is in a 30Gal Tank with pool filter sand as the substrate as far as plants hes got 2 young amazon swords a white ribon and afew java ferns the tank is very bare because i was having issues with him seeing the food so no he has no hiding spot other then the sand should i add alot more most tanks with congos i have seen are bare so i jsut wnet with it his ammounia is 0 but nitrates are around 10 so working on them still and i do weekly water changes along with a cleaning every 3 days or so to get his waste out and any food peices 2 small to get after eating his tank stays at 78Degrees also

Most Congo prefer to bury rather than hide inside something, at least that's how both of mine are.

Robertbp17 wrote:Thanks for the welcome and the replies. He is in a 30Gal Tank with pool filter sand as the substrate as far as plants hes got 2 young amazon swords a white ribon and afew java ferns the tank is very bare because i was having issues with him seeing the food so no he has no hiding spot other then the sand should i add alot more most tanks with congos i have seen are bare so i jsut wnet with it his ammounia is 0 but nitrates are around 10 so working on them still and i do weekly water changes along with a cleaning every 3 days or so to get his waste out and any food peices 2 small to get after eating his tank stays at 78Degrees also

excellent!
PS: though they can easily be spoiled with them, they love earthworms!

Thanks for the Responses and very fast ones at that ill keep working with him didnt know it would take so long for him to get used to his tank im normaly around reg freshwater fish and salt tanks so this guys way diff. But jsut to be sure it is good to leave his tank bare or should i add more places for him to hide

my preference is to have the tank somewhat bare, mainly for the same reasons you mentioned
it tends to be easier with the feeding & cleaning maintenance
they are indeed, way different .........
oh yeah, I forgot to mention earlier, "ollie" is very fond of crickets

How do u feed crickets they would jsut float on the top wouldnt they? or do they sink and gain instrest trying to swim back up

Robertbp17 wrote:How do u feed crickets they would jsut float on the top wouldnt they? or do they sink and gain instrest trying to swim back up

sometimes they float, and sometimes the filter current will sink them
either way, "ollie" will "accomodate" happily!