The Puffer Forum

I'm new to this board. I never could have imagined that fish that are $2 a piece could end up being so expensive or so much fun.

I just bought two dwarf puffers this Saturday. It was a bit of a shaky start... Tried to put them in a 5 gallon tank that hasn't had fish in it for a couple years. I found out after I got home I need at least 10 gallons and it needs to be cycled. So back to the pet store - I bought a 20 gallon and some Bio-Spira to cycle the tank.

At the pet store they said they fed these dwarf puffers frozen brine shrimp most of the time and frozen bloodworms once a week as a treat. So I just bought frozen brine shrimp. The problem is right now they won't eat much. On Saturday, the smallest puffer would only eat pieces of food that got stuck in the gravel. Today, the bigger one ate about half a piece of shrimp that got stuck in a fake plant. The other half floated away in the current.

Are new dwarf puffer fish just shy and not hungry when you first get them? Maybe I should get some frozen bloodworms? Is there anything smaller I could get to feed them?

Also, how long do they live?

-Kenny

See if you can lay your hands on live blackworms - they are completely irresistible! Otherwise, frozen bloodworms will do. Brine shrimp are not a suitable staple food because they aren't particularly high in protein.

Lack of appetite is common among newly introduced fish but in my experience Dwarves are the species most commonly afflicted by internal parasites. How do their bellies look - smooth and rounded or concave?

Garlic is credited with being an appetite stimulant; you could try soaking the brine shrimp in some garlic juice while you look for more appetizing foods.

Welcome to the forum!

Good for you for going right back out and getting a bigger tank for your dudes...that's a good start.
Did you pick up a water testing kit as well? More expense, but essential
It sounds like they're having a go at eating, so I wouldn't fret...sems like they've got something going in their stomachs, which is encouraging for new puffers, as, like Bred said, some won't eat at first.
Have a good read of the stickies, and keep us posted.
Pami.

Bred,
Can you get frozen blackworms, or are live much better? I'm thinking of picking up some frozen bloodworms when I get a chance (probably this weekend). I don't think I want anything else alive swimming around in there unless I'm sure the puffers will eat it.

I fed them tonight - the smaller one tries to munch of the brine shrimp, but the pieces seem too big for him! I just scrape a bit off with a spoon and put it in a small glass of water from the aquarium. I don't see how I can get a much small piece unless I were to pick it apart with tweezers or something. Anyway, their bellies seemed to look fairly found when I got them, but I didn't really pay attention. They seem a little flat now, of course they haven't really eaten much since I bought them on Saturday.

Garlic an appetite stimulant? Does that apply to humans too? I love pasta with garlic


Pamela,
Any recommendations for what brand of water tester thing to buy? I assume they are reusable?

Also, it looks like I've got another expense coming up. The biggest aquarium I used the heater on is 10 gallons. If I turn it on high, its keeping the temp at a nice even 78 degrees or so. Of course, its been warm around here, and we keep the house around 76. I'm wanting to buy an aquarium with a thermostat so I don't have to mess around trying to figure out if high, medium or low will keep the tank at 80 - that is the right temp for dwarf puffers, right?

Last but not least, the decorations I had in the 5 gallon look absolutely tiny in this 20! I want to get one of the decorations that is a ruined castle with lots of caves underneath, and a selection of fake plants - I don't feel like messing with real plants, yet.

-Kenny

For a 20g, a 100w heater will do nicely. The Jager heaters come highly recommended, and I've used and like the Rena Top-Light heaters.

I've never seen frozen blackworms, but they may exist. Out of 3 dozen DPs, I've never had a single one refuse a live blackworm, but I have had several refuse frozen bloodworms. It's what someone on this board refers to as the 'wiggle factor' that clinches the deal.

I use Aquarium Pharmaceuticals - they do fresh and saltwater. Obviously you'll need the fresh. It's about 23GBP, so $30 - odd, but it's the most important thing besides the water and the fish!
Are you fully defrosting the brine shrimp before it goes in the tank, or is it all mushed up in a block? They shouldn't have too much hassle eating it...how big are the fish?
Bloodworms'll be great if they are really small, as they're a bit more nutricious and easier to fit in their mouths.
Sounds like you've started on the road to ruin! Bigger tank, more decor, new heater...whatever next?
More decor and plants will be really good for them, but see if you've got some unused terracotta plant pots about, or coloured glass vases..the colour must be IN the glass...not some cheap veneer. Oooh, and not red glass...puffers hate red - blue and green seems best.
Wash the vase really well and rinse till your arms ache. I've used Stress Coat to wash glass in the past - or half a lemon dipped in salt. This is to get rid of any detergent residues or anything else from the vase's previous life.
That should save you a few quid, but dwarves do like plants, so they'll need a few.
Pami.

OK, the box the heater came in is LONG gone, and it doesn't say what wattage it is anywhere. I found out it wasn't turned up all the way. It seems to be able to keep things at 80 if I crank it up all the way and just leave it on. I'm still thinking about getting a more powerful one here in the next week or two when I have some more cash.

Pamela,
The fish store had frozen brine shrimp and frozen bloodworms in two forms: either small cubes or one big flat slab. It sounded like the cubes were made to be tossed in whole, and would be WAY too big for the dwarf puffers. So I got a slab. And scrape off a bit of food and toss it in a cup of water scooped out of the aquarium. I usually let it sit for at least an hour before dumping it in the water.

The road to ruin huh? This is actually cheaper than my other hobby. Computers! Yep. I'm a computer geek. I just spend around $250 on a used computer last month, and used to spend about $100 a month in computer parts. I think if I get a new heater, water testing kit, and enough decorations to make this 20 gallon tank look full, I'll still be under $200. Good thing I went with dwarf puffers and not any bigger ones!

I don't think I have anything terra cotta or any vases my wife would let me put in an aquarium. I'll probably just pick up some more fake plants and other stuff for the puffers to play in this weekend.

-Kenny

Maybe I am on the road to ruin after all. I went to a local fish store (not pet store this time) to pick up some frozen bloodworms. They had some puffers - green puffers I think - sorry I can't remember the name for sure, but they were labelled brackish water (wow, a sign of a fish store that knows what they are doing!) My wife wondered out loud "How hard can brackish water be?"

I convinced her it would be a better idea to either get another dwarf puffer (or two!) If she wants anything bigger than a dwarf puffer, I think we'll need another tank and put the bigger puffer(s) in there by themself/themselves.

Also, there was a HUGE tank there. I can't remember for sure, but it was either 225 or 265 gallons. She thinks it would be fun to get that and fill it up with dwarf puffers. I agree of course. Or put a bigger puffer in there.

Totally unrelated, but are there any good books about puffers? Especially freshwater, or better yet dwarf puffers?

-Kenny

The best Puff book available is Dr. Klaus Ebert's Aqualog: The Puffers of Fresh and Brackish Waters.

The best online price I've seen is at http://www.anchorbayaquarium.com/books.html for $33.99.