The Puffer Forum

Hello everyone, I am new to this forum!

I had 2 GSP's in a 29gallon tank, they were both about 2.5 inches (Kiwi and Lime). They are in low brackish water. I have had them since May and at first they would peck at each other for food, but they seemed to be getting along. Yesterday i woke up to find that one of my gsps had a good size chunk taken out of his side. i quickly took him out and put him in a 5 gallon bucket to heal in while i was at work. When i came home he had passed away

Ever since my other gsp seems to be sad, he wont greet me and runs and hides when im around.. Has anyone else had this experiece?

Sorry for your loss...
It is not a surprise that one puffer would kill another, even when seemingly getting along for a few months or even years. Concentrate on the remaining puffer & try to give him lots of decor & a couple of caves to explore, to keep him from getting bored.

i had two GSPs together for about a year or so and when i finally separated them my current GSP seemed "depressed" for a few days. wouldnt come greet me etc. but he came around i think he enjoys being the sole puff in that tank now

Are you sure the GSP took out that chunk? It is certainly possible and does happen, but usually these things just end with puffer bite scars, and not chunks taken out.

Is it possible it was some sort of infection? Or are their other tankmates?

I am just worried about the other puffer

Here's the picture I took to show the pet store to see what happened. I thought he was badly scraped, but the manager said that the other one must have just been nipping at him until he had a sizable gash. They were the only fish in the tank. Do you think it was the other gsp?

There skin is soooo tough to get through, I am really amazed at that much damage..

I think IF the puffer did it, the most likely scenario is that the other puffer was already in trouble and down on the ground and the second puffer became aggressive with the sick puffer...

Are the two puffers the same size?

Yea, almost exact same size.

I cannot believe that, WOW...

I cannot even cut through their skin with a knife...how was that puffer able to bite through enough AND do that much damage??????

OK NO TANK MATES FOR THAT FISH!!!!!!!

And I do not know if the surviving puffer is named kiwi or lime....but they need a tougher name!

haha kiwi was the murderer of poor lime. when i took the picture he was still alive, but could not really swim very much. he would kick his tail and move a little bit and then rest on the ground again. i wish i knew if it was kiwi that killed him, or maybe a really bad scrape (although i cant think of anything that he would scratch himself on) if it something else i wanna fix it so kiwi doesnt get hurt too

You can show us a picture of your tank, if you like.

But it takes A LOT to scrape the skin to that level.

I will admit that the picture you just showed, is similar to what a mussels looks like after puffers have eaten it.....CRAZY

Ok Kiwi needs a new name! Unless you want to stay with Killer Kiwi

DO you know your water parameters?

Here's my tank, and i dont know the exact water parameters. I take my water to get it tested once a month for amonia, gravity and ph. last i checked everything was good. Gravity was around .012 or so

The tank looks nice and I do not see anything dangerous..

But you need your own test kit, preferably a liquid API test that contains tests for ammonia, nitrite and nitrates. Please invest in a master kit..you should really check your water at least once a week.

And bear in mind..that what the pet store thinks is good is usually not good enough for puffers. For example with most fish you could get away with nitrates of 40, but for puffers you need under 20.

Some puffers will become more aggressive if there water parameters are not correct.

Did you cycle the tank before the puffers went in?

yea it was fully cycled. it took about 3 or 4 weeks. i also used the liquid cycle stuff when i do water changes

Don't waste your money on liquid cycle stuff.. it is junk

I only know of two products that are successful in cycling a tank and those are Dr. Tims and Seachem's Stability..

Besides you do not need that after water changes..not a lot of bacteria in the water...all of your bacteria is in your filter media, on ornaments and in the substrate..

If you have city water, you do need something to declorinate your water...something like Stress Coat.

What size is that AC filter?

Did you have the water tested when you talked to the mgr?