The Puffer Forum

Hi,

I have a juvenile porcupine puffer that eats fine, but does not like to go for shelled foods. He will eat mysis, krill, and rods reef, but will not eat clams, cockel, mussel or other shelled foods. I do use vita-chem, vitamin C and selcon since he is a picky eater, but at least he is eating.

Do any of you have tips to get porcupines to eat shelled foods? I have even took the meat out of the shell and held it with my fingers and he will peck at it but not bite off a chunk.

Should I cut them up into smaller pieces and put some vitamins on them and try to hand feed with tweezers?

Should I not feed him for a day or two so he will be hungry and eat other food?

please let me know.

Thanks in advance.

Do you always feed from tongs or something like that? If you have something that always means food it will be easier.

It's safe to fast him for several days to get him to try new foods. You just need to be more stubborn than him Soaking the new food in garlic may also help, many puffers love garlic.

Thanks Flutter!

I don't normally try to hand feed. I have tried it a few times and he is the only fish that will come close enough to grab the food. I usually drop the food in front of the powerheads so that the food gets blown through the water and he likes to hunt it that way. When I did that with the shell off for cockel, he nipped at it but seemed like he didn't care for it. When I had the shell on it would sink. He would peck at it, then ignore it.

I have never tried garlic with him yet. Maybe I shoud start with that for the shelled foods.

Try soaking the food in crushed garlic, to enhance flavor & increase appetite.

Thanks Pufferpunk. He seems to be liking garlic soaked foods. I feed him with feeding tweezers (plastic zoomed brand) and he goes for it.

could you use garlic from the supermarket? and just crush into some tank water then soak a mussel, i only ask as i don't want to do anything i would regret

Yes you can use fresh garlic.