puffer cant close mouth...HELP
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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slither9192
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Thu Jan 04, 2007 9:02 pm
- Location: MA
puffer cant close mouth...HELP
I have a porcupine puffer in my 80 gallon saltwater tank and he hasnt been eating and I think it is because he can't close his mouth. I havent seen him close his mouth once. I once saw a puffer that couldnt close its mouth so they had to stick a tube down its throat to feed it. He is breathing pretty hard and fast too. Does anyone know what this is and what I should do?
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Puffer Queen
- Mentor
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- Location: Louisville, KY
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slither9192
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Thu Jan 04, 2007 9:02 pm
- Location: MA
I have had him for almost a year and he is about 4 1/2 inches long. He is in a 80 gallon tank. I just got a new copper banded butterflyfish. I dont quarantine. He doesnt have any signs besides heavy breathing and fast breathing and he wont close his mouth or eat. I'm not sure my parameters. But I have been feeding him freeze dried krill. Could that have anything to do with it because I read that freeze dried contains alot of air and Your supposed to soke for at least 10 mins. I havent been doing this because I didn't know that.
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Puffer Queen
- Mentor
- Posts: 386
- Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 10:35 am
- Location: Louisville, KY
- Contact:
Do not feed him any more krill.
A diet mainly or soley of krill leads to nutritional deficiencies and the inability to chew - open/close mouth. The symptoms take months to "develop" and once the symptoms show - often the damage is irreversible.
Provide different foods and enrich with vitamins.
Since you do not quarantine and you have had a new addition - possibly parasites in the gills. Try a freshwater bath - match pH & temp. - for 15 minutes to see if the breathing improves any - often the first signs of parasite infestation is fast/labored breathing.
Be prepared to move the puffer to a hospital tank to treat.
A diet mainly or soley of krill leads to nutritional deficiencies and the inability to chew - open/close mouth. The symptoms take months to "develop" and once the symptoms show - often the damage is irreversible.
Provide different foods and enrich with vitamins.
Since you do not quarantine and you have had a new addition - possibly parasites in the gills. Try a freshwater bath - match pH & temp. - for 15 minutes to see if the breathing improves any - often the first signs of parasite infestation is fast/labored breathing.
Be prepared to move the puffer to a hospital tank to treat.
Kelly
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Pufferpunk
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