new Ceylon Puffer setup help ~adding salts to established FW

supershaji · Post by **supershaji** » Thu Mar 16, 2006 1:06 am

Hi forum!

I'm new here and also really desperate.

i got myself 3 'Ceylon Puffers'.. i browsed through the forum galleries and found the "Tetraodon fluviatilis" pics to be the exact match to mine... along with a lot more info and enlightenment!!

anyway, that makes mine a brackish puffer.

i need to know what to do??? it doesn't eat.. I've been trying to feed it everything, from ramhorn snails to fish food to some greens... nothing yet.

the NO2 is nil, as this tank has been cycled for longer than a cpl of months.
Its a FW ( i know i have to keep it brackish. need advice on that too)
--btw, i havent added any salts yet... will do today. its in a FW cycled specimen tank... can i add the salts (red sea) to it? will i hafta re-cycle a new tank?

of the 3 i bought, 2 died... one comitted suicide (jumped out of the tank) and the other probably out of hunger.

what do i do?

thanks in advance

Shaji

Post by **Pufferpunk** » Thu Mar 16, 2006 1:32 am

How big is the tank? It will eventually need at least a 40g, if not a 55g. Read the GSP article in The Library. Identical care & feeding (just a bigger tank).

Phaedrus · Post by **Phaedrus** » Thu Mar 16, 2006 1:41 am

Lots of questions... Here goes...

First, you should spend some time in the library. There is a lot of information there that will help you.

Now a few more questions for you to answer for us:

1. How big is the remaining puffer?
2. How big is the tank?
3. What kind of filtration do you have?
4. Are there any other fish in the tank? If not, how long has it been empty? It won't stay cycled if there are no fish in it for a while. The bacteria must be fed.

Now your questions:

It may take a little while for it to feel comfortable enough to eat. To help entice it you can get a product called garlic guard to dip the food in. If you can't find it, you can even use raw ground up garlic smeared onto the food.

I would start raising the salinity ASAP, but you have to do it slowly! There is information in the library about acclimating puffers and increasing salinity.

You will need marine mix salt. Aquarium salt is not adequate. I don't know what red sea salt is, but unless it is a marine mix type product, it probably isn't what you need.

You will need a hydrometer or refractometer to be able to measure the salinity. You want to raise the salinity very slowly, no more than 0.002 SG per week or so. Do not rush this, because it will stress the puffer and kill off the bacteria.

Technically you will be re-cycling the tank as you increase the salinity because as you increase the salinity the FW bacteria will die off and allow the SW bacteria to take over.

Puffers are avid jumpers and often jump out. Make sure you have the tank completely covered.

Also, be aware that puffers are almost never in very good condition when you first get them. Die off can be high. If you do lose them all, take it as a learning experience. Do more research and give it another try if you're still interested. Puffers are great fish, but they do require a lot of care.

supershaji · Post by **supershaji** » Sat Mar 18, 2006 7:46 am

ahem!

supershaji · Post by **supershaji** » Sat Mar 18, 2006 7:47 am

cant believe i was booted after typing my long reply... sheesh

ok, once again,

Thanx PufferPunk & x0rtrunks for your replies!

I already got a hydrometer, a NO2 test kit & a PH test kit for the marine tank that i am setting up. the salt is also a prime brand used for marine aquariums.

now the answers to the questions u asked:

Quote:
1. How big is the remaining puffer?

it's 2.6" long (head to tail)

Quote:
2. How big is the tank?

its exactly 18" x 9.6" x 9" (length * width * height)
and holds approx 30 liters of water

Quote:
3. What kind of filtration do you have?

well, its a submersible filter with a sponge media and a powerhead who's outlet comes from a pipe going outside the tank, like a shower. I also have a air bubble run sponge filter which i could use.

Quote:
4. Are there any other fish in the tank? If not, how long has it been empty? It won't stay cycled if there are no fish in it for a while. The bacteria must be fed

yes, there's a single rosy barb which was kept to cycle the tank and has been there ever since along with a few ram-horn snails

im going to try the garlic paste method, would the ceylon puffer eat plain garlic chunks too?

waiting for ur further advice.

Shaji

PS: i have read the articles on the site and they're very informative... doing more research along side with awaiting for ur experienced suggestions and advices.

Phaedrus · Post by **Phaedrus** » Sat Mar 18, 2006 2:25 pm

30 liters is about 8 gallons.. And the measurements are smaller than my 10 gallon tank. That's really too small for a ceylon puffer.

A 30 gallon would be the minimum. Remember, he will grow to ~7-8 inches. A 55 gallon tank would be ideal though. Lots of water volume to keep things stable, and lots of swiming room.

I wouldn't keep him in the current tank for any longer than you had to, otherwise you risk stunting the puffer. That means their bodies stop growing, but their internal organs continue to get bigger. This can lead to all sorts of problems, including very premature death.

As for getting your puffer to eat in the meantime, you'll just have to find a food he likes. Frozen bloodworms or black worms if you can get them are pretty tempting to puffers. Snails (about the size of the puffers eye) usually don't last long either. Ghost shrimp can be stimulating too. They may eat the garlic, but it won't have much nutricious value for a carnivore.

supershaji · Post by **supershaji** » Sun Mar 19, 2006 12:32 pm

thanx for the advice man,

he seems a li'l active now... he's swimming up and down the side of the tank..

i thot we could keep puffers in small specimen tanks.... so i guess i'l hafta arrange him a bigger tank...

i'l keep him here for a few months and then shift him once he's comfortable and healthy.

how old do u think he'd be considering his size?

Phaedrus · Post by **Phaedrus** » Sun Mar 19, 2006 2:31 pm

Puffer age is hard to say, especially for me. Someone with more experience might be able to give a ballpark. There are many things factors that can affect their growth rate. Like how long they were in the wild before they were caught, how well fed they were in the wild, their own genetic predisposition, etc.

Puffers are a fast growing fish in general though. I'd guess he's probably getting close to a year old, but again, just a guess. He's still a baby considering he can grow to be 8 inches and live for 10+ years.

Don't wait too long to get a bigger tank. It really is tiny for such a large fish. Puffers are very easily stunted, so the longer you wait, the greater the risk. Plus, tank maintenance will be far more difficult in such a small tank and will require much more frequent water changes. 50% twice a week at least to keep things under control.

supershaji · Post by **supershaji** » Mon Mar 20, 2006 6:32 am

did a 50% water change today...

nitrites @ 0.5/ltr
salinity = 1.009 (just a bit below)

also made a new li'l home for the guy to hide and added a plastic plant...

he's been swimming up and down the tank, what do i give him for his entertainment... food for one

, but i guess he'seaten a ramhorn snail 4 times the size of his eye, minus the shell... is that how they eat snails? leave the shell and just eat up the invert inside?

im just worried abt his not eating... hard to find blood worms here.

still looking...

Post by **Pufferpunk** » Mon Mar 20, 2006 11:44 am

As long as there are nitrites, he probably will be too uncomfortable to eat.

Phaedrus · Post by **Phaedrus** » Mon Mar 20, 2006 12:38 pm

how quickly are you raising the SG?

supershaji · Post by **supershaji** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 2:39 am

not too quickly... i think i reached from FW to 1.007 in 9 days,with a gap of 3 days between both the times i added mixed salt water.

Phaedrus · Post by **Phaedrus** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 2:48 am

That's REALLY too fast!

By raising it too fast you shock your fish, and kill any bacteria that have established. Slow and steady wins the race. You must go slowly, no more than 0.002 SG per week!

Post by **Pufferpunk** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 2:50 am

Hence the nitrites. I'd lower the SG for a while, before your whole system crashes, if it hasn't already.

supershaji · Post by **supershaji** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 5:57 am

ok... im lowering it now... by another water change.. i'l just keep this water stored for later...

looks like i misunderstood something here in all that stress...

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new Ceylon Puffer setup help ~adding salts to established FW

new Ceylon Puffer setup help ~adding salts to established FW