Spotted Congo Puffer Not Eating…Help!
Posted: Tue May 05, 2026 3:03 pm
Hi all. I recently purchased a spotted Congo puffer from a LFS. He was the last one they had in stock and he looked incredibly underfed/emaciated. I asked the staff about him and they showed me he was eating (quite vigorously) and seemed active and happy, so I went ahead to purchase him.
I placed him in a 5 gallon quarantine tank where he has been staying for the last 4-5 days now. On the second day after getting him, he began to refuse to eat anything. I’ve tried blood worms, snails, and crickets but nothing entices him.
Here’s a couple pictures of him, you can see just how skinny he is when I purchased him.
I’m dosing the 5 gallons hospital/quarantine tank with the following all within instructed doses:
Seachem Prime - 1mL
Seachem Stability - 2.5mL
Seachem Stressguard - 2.5mL
Seachem Kanaplex - 1 spoonful
Seachem Paraguard - 2.5mL
API Stress Zyme - 2.5mL
API Stress Coat+ -2.5mL
Aquarium Solutions Ultimate Water Conditioner - 2.5mL
The water parameters for the 5 gallon tank are pictured below:
As you can see there’s 0ppm for heavy metals, nitrites, or nitrates. The water is on the basic side, likely because of the medication being dosed. Additionally Hardness, Alkalinity, and Carbonates are all on the higher side which is typical for tap water in my area.
I perform a 100% water change (swap between 2 tanks) every 12 hours as the hospital tank does not have active filtration. After a water change I redose all water conditioners and medications to ensure consistent treatment.
I’m looking for any help from you for advice on how to nurse this guy back to health. Thank you!
I placed him in a 5 gallon quarantine tank where he has been staying for the last 4-5 days now. On the second day after getting him, he began to refuse to eat anything. I’ve tried blood worms, snails, and crickets but nothing entices him.
Here’s a couple pictures of him, you can see just how skinny he is when I purchased him.
I’m dosing the 5 gallons hospital/quarantine tank with the following all within instructed doses:
Seachem Prime - 1mL
Seachem Stability - 2.5mL
Seachem Stressguard - 2.5mL
Seachem Kanaplex - 1 spoonful
Seachem Paraguard - 2.5mL
API Stress Zyme - 2.5mL
API Stress Coat+ -2.5mL
Aquarium Solutions Ultimate Water Conditioner - 2.5mL
The water parameters for the 5 gallon tank are pictured below:
As you can see there’s 0ppm for heavy metals, nitrites, or nitrates. The water is on the basic side, likely because of the medication being dosed. Additionally Hardness, Alkalinity, and Carbonates are all on the higher side which is typical for tap water in my area.
I perform a 100% water change (swap between 2 tanks) every 12 hours as the hospital tank does not have active filtration. After a water change I redose all water conditioners and medications to ensure consistent treatment.
I’m looking for any help from you for advice on how to nurse this guy back to health. Thank you!