The Puffer Forum

My puffer died last week. I don't think it was a case of under-feeding because he had a supply of shrimp once daily. I saw him gulp down one of the other fish in my tank. It was weird because I thought puffers don't eat other fish! I saw him gulp the other fish down, spit it out and then gulp it down and that was the end of it. No trace left of the fish which was smaller than my puffer but not by much. After that I saw him sink to the bottom of the tank. He was breathing really fast. After a about an hour and a half he was dead! Was it indigestion? Or was there totally no connection? Help! I want to get a new puffer fish but I want to know more first. I really felt bad when he died.

Sounds like suffocation to me, really sorry to hear that

check this thread out, I have seen it with my Mbu http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/vie ... f=2&t=9289

Eating all that fish could have been a contributing factor especially if he couldnt digest it or pass it through him causing a blockage. No real way to tell without an autopsy, it can only be speculation.

Although fish may not be the main diet of many puffersll a lot will still have a go at fish and generally decimate them. It all depends on the individual puffer whether they will go after other fish.

What kind of puffer? What fish did he eat?

Pretty much any fish will ocassionally eat anything that is small enough to fit in their mouth. Puffers are a bit more aggressive than a lot of species, so they are more likely to try it.

Could have been many reasons for the death, but definately let us know what kind of fish it ate.