The Puffer Forum

Alright guys with my puffs I aim to feed them as much variety as possible. I pretty much have to go get shrimp and worms etc but think about getting smarter with it now. So need some answers on the following:
1. Snails- I have the aquatic variety but have never had much luck breeding except for the time I didn't want any. Are garden snails and young Gals any good as long as pesticide free? I know people keep as pets but if these are good I am considering- also if feeding don't leave in to drown.
2. Worms - I buy small batches off EBay. I have read self sustaining. Can they live in things other than soil? Critter keeper good to go with left overs? What sort of temps are they good with?
3. River shrimp- brackish sort. I know I have no hope of breeding them? Just thinking of keeping batches longer term - any tips?
4. Greater pond snails - can get these but unsure if breed in Aquarians? Know they like pond cold conditions so a unheard tank best.
5. Any other suggestions? Crabs don't breed in Aquarians from what I know? Can't get hold of crayfish and lobster same.
6. Was thinking cherry shrimp but can they be unheated?
P.s. Sorry fir spelling mistakes. On phone until Internet up again!

best and cheapest way to go is with Marbled crayfish

they can be kept in a small tank, temp around 72, and they clone themselves, each one is capable of having 300-400 babies every six to eight months

you can harvest the offspring at any size, and you choose what the crays eat. also good for puffer teeth (tho not as good as snails)

I give my puffers snails for their teeth and the occasional earthworm/nightcrawler but they like the crayfish best

why dont u have much luck in breeding snails?
i breed ramshorn pretty easily, and dont do anything special with them
an alternative to buying worms off ebay is a local bait shop?

live shrimp have been in my fahaka tank for months now
and he still hasnt caught them ;D
i dont see em often, but u do see the moulted skins from the shrimp
so know they are there.

i feed woodlouse, and sometimes a small slug from my garden
abe eats them with great gusto, and has been ok so far
theres no pesticides in my garden
i know bugs can travel, but mostly all concrete and paved areas round me
so i think the bugs in my garden havent strayed far

i see the woodlouse are breeding in my garden as well
anything else i feed is frozen

Unfortunately crayfish are illegal in the UK I have tried before. (should clarify the self producing ones dont seem to be)

EDIT: Didnt see your post lesley!

Ramshorns they just dont want to breed, pond/bladder snails do for a bit but now they have given up (and thought they would do great in the hairy tank as he isnt eating them, they get fed better and better filtrated)
I cant believe Abe eats the neons and not the shrimp Nooki has trouble on the smaller ones but generally they dont know what has hit them!
I generally dont get anything outside as we have a communal garden and the keeper does spray regularly Though woodlice are a great thing!!

I was going to create a little "shelf project" which different things (such as worms, snails, shrimp etc) sad I know but thought worth a go? I may transfer or get some new snail stock in to try back in the original tank that they bred in. I have also recently put some new ramshorns in with the congo in hopes of breeding! Techincally the amount of snails I have brought should give me a good supply just now to prod them to give me babies¬!

you might want to try frozen foods like squid, shrimp, mussels, clams, etc

Hi jtbadco, thanks for the suggestions except for the squid (which I hadnt thought of in fairness) have a good freezer load, just trying to get more variety and interest

Hmmmm need to stock on cockles, wonder if mine would eat squid - super tasty!!

my puffer love squid, i just go to my local fresh fish mongers and usually buy a whole squid for about £4.00 and chop it up and freeze it , lasts ages

Ah here we go, thanks davew. I dont eat seafood myself so that was also a gem of info! I was picturing ringlets (I know I know!) I really am going to have to source a good fishmonger locally and go nuts.

lesleyanndunn wrote:why dont u have much luck in breeding snails?
i breed ramshorn pretty easily, and dont do anything special with them
an alternative to buying worms off ebay is a local bait shop?

I've just started a snail colony myself.. only 4 days in with the pond snails in-situ...

could someone give a brief lowdown on the tank conditions that they found success in breeding
the little blighters?

how long should it be before I see eggs and whatnot??

snail tank for me was a simple as a tank with water and a small filter.

How long it will take to see eggs depends on where they lay them. Probably less then a week and you will have eggs, if you find them is another subject lol. Give it about a month- month in a half to see small glass sliders

Double post..lol i had posted in another thread but i suppose it makes more sense in here...

Ive just actually set up my 60 gallon tank with 3 huge African Land Snails in it to breed for my puffers although the other fish seem to love them too...I actually only set it up yesterday after visiting my local LFS to pick up 3-400 baby snails that have just hatched which i was told a few weeks ago i could have,i went there expecting to pick up 3-400 babies but never expected to bring back 3 huge snails..I actually got them for 4 quid as the girl actually wants one of my missus rabbits thats just been born,i said dont worry about paying me for the bunny as she has sorted me around 3 hundred snails before yesterday,she offered me the snails which i couldnt turn down,also she has someone whos bringing in another 3-4 hundred babies next week,sweet..Im hoping now i can get the bigguns breeding and have a decent supply of snails for my fish...
Having a snail tank will now allow the babies to get bigger which means bigger meals...Im well chuffed


Afirican Land Snails can lay 3-400 eggs a time and what im told is that that can happen quite often throughout the year,having 3 in my tank could mean all 3 could have 3-400 a few times a ..

Cockles are a nice treat,krill is also a good filler for my puffers..They actually have a better diet than me

xrayjeeper83 wrote:How long it will take to see eggs depends on where they lay them.

hay thanks for the post, i've basically got a bare tank. do you recommend some sort of simple decor for them to lay on / in ?