The Puffer Forum

Hello everyone. I'm Jason and I've been in the hobby for 22 years. I run an aquarium maintenance business here in Columbia SC that I created and have ran for the past 17 years.

On to the question....

I recently set up a saltwater predator tank for one of my clients. I put a porcupine puffer in there and he was doing great until I overfed him one day. He started acting very lethargic and would not eat, then developed Crypto from whatever stress he was under. I took him out and quarantined him as normal. After a long treatment period he eventually passed as did some other tank mates who he spread the Crypto to before removal.

After about a month I got 2 more porkies which are now in 2 separate quarantine tanks with a bunch of live rock. The real problem now is that these new ones act very lethargic as well right out of the gate. They look healthy enough but have a much more pale base color than the first one. Maybe just a color variation. Only one will eat with any regularity. The other one might eat 25% of what the other one eats. They both lay around almost totally motionless all day long until I come to feed. Then they lazily seem half interested in what I'm doing and will eat something if they feel like it.

What could be causing this extreme lethargy in these guys? Of course water quality is immaculate (As I said I've been doing it for 22 years).

Any ideas?

Can you post a pic of the "pale" base color? There is a horrible flesh-eating disease called, Vibro, that I've been seeing a lot lately in pokies. Are you familiar with it?

Can these guys open their mouths? I have to wonder if being the easiest to toss into a tank to feed, they may have been mostly fed krill, which is a huge cause of lockjaw in these fish.

They can open their mouths and they do eat, but its never with gusto or excitement. They are always just BLAH acting.

I'm not sure that's what he's got. Let's hope not!
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=33656&p=349615&hilit=vibro#p349615

What foods are you offering? Soaking in any vitamins/Selcon?

That's the weirdest looking porc I've ever seen

Cant tell from the picture but I have also seen the Brookanella be a huge issue at a bunch of stores in the Dallas area.

I have ran into this disease on two different occasions
Thank God for QT tanks

I assume these fish are both from the same supplier? Although I only saw a photo of one of them & it doesn't look thin to me, maybe they have some sort of IP that is sucking their energy. Try treating for that, since they are at least still eating. I'd be sure to soak all their foods in a good vitamin & Selcon, too.