Help my puffer!!

[gruntle]

Hello,

I am new here, and I have 2 green spotted puffers...two days ago, one of them looked a bit bloated when I came home from work, and in the next two days he has grown. He is not floating upside down so it is probably not air. I dont think he got spooked and puffed up because he is in a tank that is secluded and no-one was here...unless his tankmate scared him.

He now looks like a very large puffer! Almost gumball like (but not completely round).

Anyone have any ideas? He is still swimming around, but doesnt seem like he can eat.

Thanks!

 

[f8fan]

Tank size? Is he in brackish water? If so, what the salinity? Is he showing any interest in food? What are you feeding them? How long has he been in the tank (how long have you had them?)

 

[gruntle]

Tank size 10 gallon...each of the two is about 1 1/2 inches long. They are in brackish water...the salinity is .018...I have had him for two months at least...his mouth is open all the time because he is so swollen looking...he is still moving his "inner mouth" (that is the best way I can describe it...you can see inside his mouth moving open and close, but it looks like his mouth is open all the time from the outside)...I am feeding them frozen bloodworms, frozen brine shrimp and occasionally live ghost shrimp.

 

[gruntle]

Oh yes...I did a partial water change over the weekend (Sunday) and noticed this on Tuesday...dont know if that is important...my other puffer is fine...great actually...and they dont really interact much...not much aggression at all.

 

[gruntle]

And...you asked if he was eating...I dont know...I dont think so, but he is still swimming around lots...but with this wierd open mouth thing, I dont really see him eating.

Thanks for any help anyone can give me.

 

[Limi310]

Have you noticed any of the following: rapid breathing, going to the surface alot, swimming crooked? What does his belly look like? It is white or dark? Dark spots or rings can be a sign of infection.

What is your Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate? What is your tank temperature?
Just to be clear - When you say 018 are you referring to salinity or SG? If salinity, that would mean your SG is about 1.013-ish?

If you can see his inner mouth moving, it's unlikely that he puffed with water and they have a muscle in there that clamps their mouth shut to prevent the water from getting out.

Finally, I must point out that a 10 gallon is much to small for 2 Green Spotted Puffers. I realize they are small now, but they can grow to 6 inches. Also as they grow their aggression will come out more and likely they will not tolerate each other...especially in close quarters. Puffers are also messy eaters and in a small tank, water parameters can get out of hand quickly. That's all I'm going to say because I don't want to lecture...

Feeding live ghost shrimp is good.....brine doesn't have much nutritional value. Have you considered trying snails? I feed mine Krill and frozen mysis shrimp. Sounds like you might need more 'crunchies' in their diet.

Also you didn't answer - is he showing interest in food.....like swimming up to it then just not able to eat it or is he not interested at all? Puffers are piggies and not showing interest in food is a bad sign.

Did you do anything different on Sunday when you changed the water? Use Dechlor, could any contamanents have gotten in the water? Did you match the temp?

Also - Welcome to MFT

 

[gruntle]

Ok...thanks for the post! Lots of questions to answer...and I am afraid that he died today...poor llittle guy. I will still answer the questions so if there is a problem it wont affect my other one.

No to all the questions in the first paragraph...and his belly was pure white.

Next paragraph...all levels were perfect...the tank temp was 80, and the SG was 1.009 - 1.010 (sorry for the confusion there).

His inner mouth was moving...he could clamp his beak open and closed.

I know that a 10 gallon is too small...I am in the process of getting a 40 gallon up and ready for puffers...but thank you for the concern...pet shops will tell you that a 5 gallon is enough for a dwarf puffer...that is crazy, huh?

He was showing interest in food, but wasnt eating it. My other puffer Hammy is a real piggie...and I LOVE him!!! (I loved Big Boy too, poor little guy!)

On Sunday I used bottled water for the change...I NEVER use tap water for my changes here in Texas...too much limestone in the water! And all kinds of other junk.

Thanks so much for everything...I did dissect Big Boy after he died just to make sure there werent any internal parasites, so if there were I could treat Hammy before something happened to him too, but there was nothing wrond with his insides as far as I could tell. (Please dont think I am morbid...I just wat to protect my living puffer.)

gruntle

 

[Limi310]

I'm really sorry to hear that. Puffers are so easy to get attached to.
I'd keep a close eye on the other one and keep up with your water changes.
It's possible for puffers to get Dropsy, which makes them looked 'puffed' but since they lack scales they don't get the telltale pinecone appearance. However, usually they swim kind of erractic and his organs might have appeared enflamed. So it might have been that, might not.
Keep us updated

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

just pointing out that a 5 gallon tank is perfectly acceptable for a dwarf puffer. or even 2.

 

[gruntle]

whoops..I meant green spotted puffer...