The Puffer Forum

Brief history: Wasabi is the sole fish in my 50g tank, he's about 3+ inches I'd guess... he was living at 1.018 for months and I finally made the leap and increased his salinity to 1.022 over the past two weeks and bought a protein skimmer (aquac remora), he was doing just great... I purchased some LR 2 days ago and added that (maybe 15lbs), he was fine... bought more yesterday (say 30lbs) and reaquascaped his whole tank when I added it (this was fully cured rock out of someones tank locally, was kept in water from the time it left their tank until it went into mine). The new rock has some corals on it (star polyps, mushrooms, xenia, lots of feather dusters) and came with some hitch-hikers in the form of hermit crabs, few snails, lots of bristle worms. He seemed pretty excited last night swimming all around checking everything out but today he's acting very strange. Instead of being out swimming around he's holed up in the LR at the bottom... darkened down like he does at night (not black and not whole belly but the back 1/2 is dark) and just isn't being himself at all. His breatheing seems normal, I tossed in a couple ramshorn and he came out to eat them but then went back to laying around.

I tested the water and everything is perfect, salinity at 1.022 temp at 79, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrities, nitrates at 1 (my kit goes from 0 to 50, the pink wasjust above 1 which is very normal for me since I still use tap water for this tank).

My only thought is that he ate something "weird" such as a hermit crab, marine snail, or bristle worm.... I'm praying he just has a full belly of something unusual to him and thats why he's laying around but I'm FREAKING OUT to say the least... we adore him and I'll never forgive myself if something from the LR hurts him.

Any advice? Do you think he just ate something? Is sulking because I changed around his whole tank (it had been the same for MONTHS)?

Thanks
Candi

Hard to tell. I think eating a bristle worm would be like having a mouth full of cactus. Keep an eye on the parameters.

He came out and swam around (normal colorationg) for a bit, picking at the rock again... but then went back to sitting/laying down in the rocks... his belly does look pretty full so I'm praying it's just that he's been munching away on new LR critters.

I'll keep a very close on on the water quality/readings... going to do a 10g water change tomorrow I think and if anything seems at all off I'll go buy some saltwater biospira to boost the bacteria.

Still really worried about him though

Maybe he just ate too much then. I hope he'll be his normal spry self in the morning.

Ugh... I just don't know.

This morning I felt better as he was out a bit crusing around, normal coloration, picking at things on the LR, harassing the hermits (I haven't seen him eat one yet) etc... but then he found a hole in the LR and went in and has just been hanging out in there all day long.

What is normal behavoir for a marine GSP with LR? Maybe before he was out swimming around so much because he was bored and/or didn't have any good spots he really liked to just hang out in? His tank was heavily decorated with fake rock structures, one of those jumbo fake roots, and lots and lots of fake plants but he was usually out and about swimming around, playing in his bubbles from the air stone etc. Just not sure if maybe this is normal behavoir?

Water tests same as yesterday so I really don't know what else to do. Still think I'll go ahead with the 10g water change and possibly add some biospira just incase there is even a slight issue with the LR that I'm not picking up with my test kits.... other then that if he isn't acting better by tomorrow should I pull the LR out?

Thanks!
Candi

Hope I'm not jumping the gun but... HE'S BACK!!! I think it was something as simple as the temperature... he was hot and crabby... now that it's a bit lower he's actting like his normal self

WOOHOO!!!!

jus wondering what temp is it that he likes? I have mine at 82 and they seem fine.

Wonderful!