Animal Stories - People Talking About Puffer Fish



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Latest Animal Stories on Puffer Fish (264)

Lele - 2010-05-31
We just bought two puffers Friday and they were fine.. and we even got water from the fish store to put it in our tank. So, we thought it would be fine to let the puffers in while cycling the water. But, I guess it was a bad idea because someone told us after it was. Then, the second or third day.. the baby puffer fish was just sitting at the bottom for a long time and til the next day.. we changed the water and it was fine again. Now, this bigger puffer fish is doing the same thing like the baby.. he looks sick... and he looks like he can't swim and just curling up like a ball and rolling around.. is this a serious problem? Also, we put like 75% salt inside the water and we just took it out because now it looks like there is too much salt. And one more question, can we just use salt + tap water for the tank or we need to purify the tap water each time we change it? Thank you so much for taking the time to help me!

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NZGlider - 2010-06-05
You do need to purify the water each time before adding it to the tank as tap water has chlorine in it, which is like acid to fish. Always purify it through a filter (I use aquasana - great product for own drinking), or a good water ager. The water ager will get rid of the chlorine.
The other thing with new tanks & tank water is that since it's 'new', there is no healthy bacteria in it.
A good healthy tank needs the healthy bacteria as it eats the mess left by the fish. Without sufficient bacteria, the food left overs and the fish bowl movements turn the water toxic. If you cannot wait for a week or so for this bacteria to develop (best to introduce 1-3 small fish, like guppies to build up for the bacteria - they can then serve as food for the puffers, you can use a bottled product from the store like 'cycle' that will add the bacteria right away.
When doing water changes later on, the bacteria left in the gravel should be enough to maintain a healthy level.
pufferlvr - 2010-06-15
I buy purified water and then add the salt to that. I let the salt/water mix settle for 30mins and then put it in the tank with my puffers. Buy a salt reader and test the salt to an exact level. I've found that between 1.012 and 1.015 is fine. Also, if you are going to have two puffers you need at least 20 gallons..you should have 50 and it should be a tank with a filter system to help with cleanliness/oxygen level.
Fish luver - 2010-08-02
I actually have one myself. For saftey reasons, think of buying the same size of pufferfish next time. Your puffers should be fine, them rolling in a ball is perfectly normal, it usually means he is trying to hide from an enemy. Maybe he is seeing something that scare's him,maybe another pet if you have one:-)

joanne - 2010-08-01
Puffers are a great brackish (salt water) fish and fairly easy to keep I have two and they love eating snails but only the size of there eye prawns blood worm and meal worm and the beetles they turn in to but shell food is essential to keep there beak down to prevent over growth puffers dont eat flake food it dose nothing for them there a cleaver fish with lots of personality ,only buy a puffer fish which greets you at the tank and has a slightly round belly or you may buy a fish that wont last long and don't let nipped fins put you off a little melofix will sort that out, puffers change coulors all the time mine go from bright green to dark gray when stressing or at feeding time that's nothing to be worried about xx

chandler1310 - 2010-07-28
I wanted to get one of these gsp's today from walmart, and there were some that looked sort of black. Is that a bad thing? And also how small of a tank can you have that the fish is actually gonna LIVE in? The biggest one they had was 10 gallons but we almost got a 3 gallon one. So far from what I've read on here it needs to be 10g or bigger. But I'm not too sure. Also where do you get the shrimp and stuff from? I'm really glad I came on here and got info...if I hadn't I might have killed a poor puffer! Please help if you know any answers to my questions:) thank you:)

Jake - 2010-06-24
"I'm getting some of these lil' guys to cycle my 40G breeder saltwater tank."

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brandon - 2010-07-22
These fish will never live through a cycling process... They are very susceptible to ammonia poisoning... why don't you just go to home depot and buy the pure ammonia to cycle your tank the fishless cycle way. Its cheaper then buying fish to do it for yah and then causing permanent damage to your fish.

Johnny - 2010-06-13
I just got a gsp and he lives with a betta and many fish he is very gentle and gets along with all of them he loves to eat his ghost shrimp. He's the coolest fish I have ever owned..

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cedric - 2010-06-16
Won't be long they eat guppies, I just fed mine smaller guppies they bite them in half and then consume.
Lizzy - 2010-06-24
Better watch out with that betta in there, he might die from stress put on by the betta.
zach - 2010-06-27
Be careful with keeping him with your betta he might try and eat it. My 2 puffers ate all the fins right off my betta he is ok but I had to move him to a different tank.
Paul - 2010-07-15
Do you give your gsp live or dead ghost shrimp?

AlexX - 2010-07-10
Okay so I have had puffer fish in the past but died because they got sucked up the filter, so I bought a filter cover. Then I got 2 more puffer fish, babies, and they got along fine. SO I got 1 more puffer, a sucker fish, and 2 mollies. The next morning I came back and my sucker fish had died. SO I took it back to walmart and they refunded my money, when I got back from walmart my 2 baby puffer fish and my white molly were dead, and at this point I was really freaking out. So I took them back to walmart, and I told them the story and they said "maybe your water is off". So the next day I come back from school and my orange molly was HALF EATEN! So now I realize my puffer fish was doing this. So now there was no more fish to eat I couldn't separate them because it was too late. So that night I was feeding my puffer fish (even though he didn't need it ) and there was a new born baby molly! What is going on! And how do I keep my puffer from eating it? Please please help!
p.s I have decided to name my puffer fish Jeffrey Dahmer

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Chris - 2010-07-11
Sorry but that molly is as good as dead too, unless you put him in a separate tank asap. Puffers like live food especially snails. Food for thought.

paco - 2010-07-05
Can a spotted green puffer (1) live comfortable in a ten gallon tank?

court - 2010-07-05
I bought 2 of these fish last week, how often should I add salt to the tank? I plan on filtering half of the water out to clean it at least twice a month should I just re-salt it then?

Ariel Mohan - 2010-04-01
I've read a few other comments and now im concerned my fish is going to die. See I got a fish like two hours ago rinsed the bowl gravel and plant off not with soap I did all that I was supposed to with that. I'm concerned that people said he won't live long in freshwater? Does that mean like days or years? Also he's in a one gallon fish bowl. See my reasoning for this is he's a little smaller than my pinker so when he grows I'll have more money to buy a bigger tank I thought this one would do since he is the only one. I was planning on buying something else to put in the fish bowl but I'm concerned about the salt thing and the flake thing. I live in kansas in a very very country area the closest thing is a walmart. Am I not able to take care of this fish? :(

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John Green - 2010-04-05
That is why I recommend doing research first on the fish you want then getting the tank first and food. But as for the salt thing you can slowly change them to brackish water but get a bigger tank first before changing it on him and chances are he's in better hands with you then wal-mart and they need a water temp of 72-82degrees Fahrenheit if you need further help email me at greensta7420@gmail.com
andy - 2010-04-17
Well I've been reading online, researching about these fishes so I could take care of my own two puffers. They say that each puffer fish should have a filter that is capable of filtering 30 gallons of water for one puffer, because they produce a lot of waste. They also need the tank ph level between 7.5 and 8.5 which would help if you got an excellent filter system. I have a 55 gallon tank and have a 70 gallon aqua clear filter and a ren star canister filter for a 70gallon tank. That's a total of 140 gallons it would be cleaning although I only have a 55 gallon tank. The reason is I have 16 cichlids with the two puffers. The extra gallons of filtration really helps for the large amount of fish I have in my tank. Also the best water temperature for the puffers is 78 to 82 degrees, so you'll need a water heater. Make sure your puffers are feed snails and small crabs every now and then to help file their teeth down because they will grow until the fish eventually won't be able to close its mouth to eat. Also the puffers live best in brackish or salt water conditions. I was advised that they won't live too long in fresh water. Only time will tell, but it's a gamble you'll be taking on your little puffers life. My tank set up is brackish right now. Well iIhope this helps you out. :)
meag - 2010-04-24
If you are talking about a gsp (green spotted puffer) turn around get back to that wal-mart and buy the biggest tank they have and some marine salt ( aquarium salt will do in a pinch but don't us any food grade salt) he WILL NOT live more than a short time (weeks at best) in that bowl. They are amazing fish and really fun to watch. Oh and they can grow pretty fast, I have had mine about 2 months and he has doubled in size!
Anna - 2010-06-15
I put mine in freshwater with a little bit of water conditioner and a little bit of aquarium salt and he's doing fine:) I also bought all of this stuff at walmart... hope this helps!
pufferlvr - 2010-06-15
You should not use any type of chemicals in your bowl, while you washed it out the contaminants can still hurt your fish. Also, a one gallon will kill your fish in less than a week. Feed your puffer brine shrimp and make sure you have a 1.012 minimum salt level...you need marine salt. Your puffer will most likely not eat flakes. Finally do whatever you can to get your Walmart to stop selling these puffers if you do not think your two has what they need. These fish are difficult to take care of and need specific attention.
elena - 2010-06-28
Hello,
You can try to find a larger cheap fish tank on craigslist.com. 1 gallon is too small for puffer. My puffer eat flakes and shrimps and blood worms.
enid - 2010-07-01
Hi
I bought my puffer fish in walmart the only place I could find them. I have 2 in a 5 gallon tank. I had them in a fresh water and then I add some marine salt 1/2 of a small packet of salt, I give them frozen shrimps 1 a day, and when I am away for few days I put the white 3 day food. I have them for 3 month approx. and they are fine so far. They come to the surface every time I get close to their tank. I thnk even if the place that we buy the fish we should read about them before we buy them, regardless of the place we buy them and have the tank ready for them, they are adorable. I had some die many years ago then I was told they could be with 5 different fish in a 10 gallon tank. Now I have 2 of them happy in a 5 gallon. I do clean the water 2 times a month.

Busybones - 2009-10-26
These have been bred in captivity. Please visit thepufferforum.com there are many photos of the fry from the Arrowhead puffers. Great posting though! Thanks for the info

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Benny - 2010-06-25
Hey I'm wanting to have some Arrowhead puffers for my tank email me please maybe I can buy some from you give me a good deal ok bro

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Animal Stories - People Talking About Puffer Fish

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