The Puffer Forum

Hi,
I am in desperate need of advice my fahaka puffer seems to not be able to maintain boyunce he is constantly laying belly up and just floats up to the top! I have tried burping him as I feel he had ingested some air due to finding him floating at the top (belly up) mouth out of the water when I got in from work this has not seemed to work and I don't know what else to do. I have put him in a breathable container and weighed it down to prevent him for breaching the water. Has anyone else had this problem and knows of some things I can try to help him. I also know he isn't constipated as he when for a poo yesterday when I was burping him.. prior to this he had eaten for about 10 days which I don't know might be a factor. Any help would be much appreciated!

Many thanks,
Shannan.

You're going to have to continue burping him. Have you tried pressing his belly?
library/hospital/help-my-puffer-is-air-filled/

Thanks for the advice I will persevere with the burping. I haven't really pressed it so much I just have been massaging it but no air bubbles seem to come out no matter how long I do it for. I was wondering if he may have a swim bladder infection?

Puffers don't have swim bladders. Are you pushing the tummy from the tail upwards, towards the mouth? Have you tried the "shaking" method of holding upwards by the tail (mouth under water) & shaking hard?