The Puffer Forum

Well, I wish that my first post here wasn't with a health problem..but alas..

Yesterday after doing a water change, I noticed that my red eye has a large raised lump on his side about the size of a kidney bean. It's dark in color compared to the surrounding skin, and has a noticeable indention on the surrounding edge where it raises up from the rest of the body, like a wound will do when the skin is cut, but the skin isn't torn off and instead heals back up over the wound. Yesterday the lump had a hazy film over it, not really like fungus, but like a thick layer of slime coating. Today, the very center of the lump is torn open slightly and a thicker white slime is covering it. I'm afraid that it will start becoming infected soon, if it isn't already.

I've had Boma in the same tank for close to two years now and this is the first time he's ever had any problems. I'm wondering if he didn't get injured by ramming into a piece of driftwood, as I rearranged his tank yesterday. The lump could have been present before I noticed it the other day though..it's hard for me to get a good look as he hides most of the day and quickly darts back for cover if he notices anyone looking at him while he's swimming.

Usually I do a 10% water change weekly, but I've had a bit of a lazy streak lately, and went close to a month without changing the water before doing the 15% change yesterday. He eats a varied diet of frozen krill, clams, silversides, shrimp and squid, with the occasional live snail or crab. He gets fed every other day, and so far his behavior is still normal.
Tank specs are 20 gallon, filtered with a bio wheel 330, ammonia- 0, nitrite-0, nitrate-10, pH-7.6

Thanks in advance for any advice

What type of puffer is this?

I wish I knew for sure lol

A year or so ago, a 'new' species became available through a lot of wholesale stock lists known generally as 'red eye puffers'. At this time I was working at a lfs and we ordered these red eye puffers a couple of times- every time a similar, but obviously different, species arrived. Boma came from the first shipment.

He's a target puffer..almost 100% sure he's officially a Tetraodon turgidus, but there's a chance he's a T. leiurus or even T. abei

Can you post a photo?

Unfortunately I don't have access to a digital camera..so no.

An update for today, the lump itself has gone down, but the torn bit in the center that had some white slime surrounding it yesterday has enlarged and is now -completely- white. There's also a tiny bit of filament coming out from the center of this, like grey-ish threads. Maybe columnaris disease?

If anyone has any ideas as to what is causing this and treatment options, please share. At the moment I'm guessing some type of bacterial infection has set in; what caused the abcess to begin with, I'm lost. Tomorrow I'm going to pick up some Melafix as well as Marcyn and/or salt to begin treating. I'm hesitant to do much as I'm not 100% sure as to my diagnosis...so additional insight would be great.

Sounds like it could be a parasite infestation, with the "grey-ish threads" being the worms.

Columnaris looks cottony.

okay...so how should I be treating this? I'm getting a little frusterated with not being able to do anything

Quick update on his condition, the whiteness around the tear remains, but is noticeably less than it was yesterday. In the center, the grey 'threads' remain, but are smaller; also, there are now some 'tufts' of white in the center as well. I don't know if they could be described as cottony or not. Overall it looks alot better, so I think that he may be healing on his own. Gobbled down his breakfast like there's no tomorrow..so that's a good sign I guess haha