The Puffer Forum

Well, I used to have a Fig. 8 in this tank, but he passed, and now i have a GSP, (obviously i cleaned the tank and what not...) he's been in there for 2-3 months now, he's on a diet of muscles, blood worms, and brine shrimp.

i tried feeding him small snails before, but it didn't work too well, I don't know how.

but he used to sit and hover under his cave, now he sits on the bottom in the gravel a lot. I was just reading around a little, and i always thought fig.8's and gsp's were pretty much the same, but the tank is only 10gallons, and i know it was close for a fig. 8, but is it really that small for a GSP? could this be causing his "depression"?

also i try to keep the SG at 1.008, i've read many things and that seems like an ok number?

anyways, just wondering what you thought, thanks!

F8's need a min of 15 gallons
GSP's need a min of 30 gallons

Yes, its quite possible he's bored & stressed out due to the limited enviornment. With an F8, you MAY have been able to keep him, shortened life and bored, but GSP, no way... And the SG depends on age really. At adults, they need to be in full marine. (SG 1.024 - 1.020) My recommendation to you, RETURN the GSP and order some DP's if you can't find em locally. DP's are fresh water and you could probably get away with putting about 2 in the tank.

http://www.dwarfpuffers.com <---More information on them.

Good luck to ya!

Or... he could just buy a 30 gallon tank for the GSP...



Like Skeptikal said, GSPs will need to go full marine as adults, so if you're not ready to go there then I'd stick with either FW puffs or F8s. The only puffs that would thrive in your 10g would be a red eye puffer, or a few DPs. They're FW too, so no messing with salt & much cheaper to maintain!

If you do decide to keep the GSP and want to buy him a new tank, great! I would be keeping one right now if it weren't for that SW thing. They're wonderful puffs and very interactive!

Oh, and yes, I think your puff is spending most of his/her time on the substrate because of the cramped tank. Put that little guy in 30 gallon and he'll be a whole 'nother puff!

I'm so done with puffer's... They are too far out of my budget. The only reason I have the 10 gallon, it was free, and over the past like 4 years, i've added some stuff to it, like a new light, and then a new pump, but arg, 10 gallon is soo worthless. i kept 2 fig 8's in it, both for a year or so.

I would love to buy a 30 gallon to suit his needs, but that is soooo far out of budget it's not even funny.

and my 55 gallon FW is so boring, only becasue there are a bunch of lame fish in it, but i cant get rid of them, becasue one i've had forever, and the 6 corys, are a family that i've rasied from when they were fry.... uggg... i'm a little tired of this whole hobby. fish are too needy.

oh well, thank you all so much for the advise, i'd have to say that is another frustrating thing, is that most of the advise on websites, and what i searched for said 10g's would be ok, and then one post, and ok, no it's not. oh wel, thanks again.

sorry to hear about your frustrations. Perhaps you can find a local aquarium society or craigslist or something to sell off your setups. If you're not enjoying it, maybe it's time to get out of the hobby for a while.

fish are too needy.

LOL, for some reason I find that so funny... compared to my dog begging for attention all the time, my fish seem easy.

Sorry for your frustration & misinformation. If you do want some interesting puffers, dwarves are the best suited for your tank.

actually this morning I may have found a reason for his behavior. i was pulling some water out to thaw his food, and noticed the water was extremely warm. thinking it was from just being directly under the light, i felt the side of the tank.... burning up, looked at the thermom, and it was off the 86 degree chart!! so i saw my heater seemed to be stuck on, immediately unplugged, and then looked at the setting, I must have bumped it during the last cleaning, since i have to clean it due to algae growth, but it's the whisper under water kind, and they have a nice big lever on them, so the algae scrubber must have caught that.

so it's cooling off today, i'll see if he's any happier this afternoon. also, i talked with my GF who is extremely attached to "Kermit" and we are going to look for used 29/30 gallon tank equipment. i think the pump and light are the most expensive things... my heater is rated at 10-30 i think, but usually the tank itself is relatively cheap arn't they? i think i've seen them at pet stores for like $30 for the glass? then a used light fixture, and a new aqua clear filter i should be set...

so anyone got some used equipment? LOL.... but i am defiantly taking that route, thank you!!!

craigslist.com and freecycle.org are lifesavers if you have them in your area.

Where abouts do you live?

sacramento, ca

hmm, would 25 gallons work?

or would 29?

or does it have to be 30 gallons?

Thank You!

Well, 30g is minimum, mine woulda been happy in a 55g all by himself.

10-4....

From Office Space:
"What do you think of someone who just does the minimum?"... LOL