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FAQs about Green Spotted Puffer Health/Disease

Related Articles: Green Spotted Puffers, Alone But Not Lonely: The Importance of  Keeping Puffers Individually by Damien Wagaman, Small Puffer Dentistry By Jeni Tyrell (aka Pufferpunk) & FAQs on: Small Puffer Dentistry, The Arrowhead Puffer, Tetraodon suvattii, miraculously malicious, Freshwater/Brackish PuffersTrue Puffers, Puffers in General, Burrfishes/Porcupinefishes, Tobies/Sharpnose Puffers, Boxfishes, Puffy & Mr. NastyPuffer Care and Information

Related FAQs: BR Puffer Disease, GSPs 1, GSPs 2, GSP Identification, GSP Behavior, GSP Compatibility, GSP Selection, GSP Systems, GSP Feeding, GSP Reproduction, BR Puffers 1, BR Puffers 2, BR Puffers 3, BR Puffer Identification, BR Puffer Selection, BR Puffer Compatibility, BR Puffer Systems, BR Puffer Feeding, BR Puffer Disease, BR Puffer Reproduction, Brackish Water Fishes in General, Puffers in General, True Puffers, Freshwater Puffers, Burrfishes/Porcupinefishes, Tobies/Sharpnose Puffers, Boxfishes

Improper environment...number one source of trouble, stress...

Stress...  number two source of trouble, mortality

Improper, inadequate diet... numero tres

New BR Puffer/Ammonia 5/27/08
Hello Crew,
<Hi Micah, Pufferpunk here again. Welcome back to puffer keeping!>
I recently decided to try to make another go at being a puffer parent and a few days ago, I moved the freshwater fish I had out of a long-established (since November) tank into another roomier tank. I added approximately 3/4 cup of Instant Ocean marine salt per gallon of water and let the salt dissolve for 48 hours.
<That’s quite a jump in salinity! Certainly enough to kill off any FW bacteria you had in that tank.>
Before I added the salt, I had what could be conservatively called a common pond snail infestation (a bonus gift that came along with some live plants). I added the salt at night, and the next morning, all of the snails were dead.
<Yes, freshwater snails cannot survive in brackish water.>
I don't mind the snails being dead, really, I'm just a bit concerned about the effect it'll have on the ammonia levels, as I tested them tonight and they were 1.0.
<Possibly a combination of the dead snails & dead nitrifying bacteria killed off by the salt. The tank should be started over with a fishless cycle, before adding any fish to it.>
I immediately did a 60% water change, and brought the ammonia levels down a notch (to .50). I know that that's still not ideal but I hadn't anticipated the effect the snail deaths would have on the water, so I had picked up a juvenile green spotted puffer today, and had him/her waiting in the wings while I performed the water tests. The puffer is currently in a bucket in the water he came home in (the LFS said they kept him in brackish water, but I tested it with my hydrometer when I arrived home and the specific gravity didn't even register on my otherwise reliable instrument, so apparently he's been living in FW).
<Yes, most stores keep their BW fish in FW. What you should have done is transfer the tank’s inhabitants out of that tank & added the puffer. He would have has a fantastic meal of snails, living in a fully cycled FW tank. After a week, you could have slowly raised the SG .002/week, so as to not harm the biological bed. Your puffer’s life is at risk now & I suggest returning it, until you can recycle this tank.>
I set up a drip system to slowly acclimate him to the different water that will be his new home, so that'll be going on for the next few hours (the specific gravity in the tank is around 1.008).
<I don’t like this at all. That is a huge leap in SG for a fish that has been living in FW. I would keep the fish in the bucket of FW, until you can return it in the morning & fill it up with more FW, being sure it id dechlorinated. Hopefully, keeping it in a 5g bucket of fresh water will not cause too much ammonia to develop by morning. I feel adding a puffer into a tank with already known ammonia, may prove to be worse.>
Should I be worried that the residual effects of the dead snails will be harmful to him? Is the best solution to monitor him carefully and perform water changes daily until the levels read at 0 again?
<That is another solution but you are basically cycling the tank with the puffer—not good for the puffer. Another solution would be to bring the tank back to FW (or around 1.002-1.004) & add FW Bio-Spira from a reputable source that can guarantee the product has been kept refrigerated from manufacturing to purchase. Unfortunately, too many suppliers aren’t keeping this product refrigerated, before it reaches the store. I hope you can figure this out & keep this fish happy in a cycled tank. ~PP>
Thanks so much, Micah

Re: New Puffer/Ammonia 5/28/08
Observations on the puffer this morning: I didn't receive your e-mail until I woke this morning and fearing that the combination of the ammonia and my curious cats would be the end of him, I transferred him to the tank before retiring to bed. He appears to be alert and interested in his surroundings (swimming around, not bumping into things, etc.), though when I tried to tempt him with some thawed
frozen Spirulina-enriched brine shrimp, he wasn't interested. I don't know if that's something I should worry about or if he's just a picky eater -- my LFS fed the puffers a diet of feeder fish exclusively, so the transition from terrified goldfish to floating already-dead brine
shrimp might not have been too tempting. I'll try something else later, either thawed frozen bloodworms or plankton or some snails from one of my FW tanks.
<Since your fish has up to now, always eaten live foods (even when in the wild), you may have to trick him into eating dead food.
See: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/feeding/problems-feeding-your-puffer/ There are many feeding articles in that section of that forum’s Library. Read as many of those Library articles as you can.>
In my previous e-mail I wrote 3/4 cup salt per gallon but what I meant is 1/4 cup per gallon. Does this make a difference in your recommendation to return him?
<No matter how much you added, if your SG has been raised from 1.000 (freshwater) to 1.008, you can pretty much guarantee most, if not all of your beneficial bacteria has been killed off--just like those snails.>
There is an alternative, though not the best one. I have a fully cycled 55 gallon FW tank that houses 5 Lake Malawi African cichlids that are easily twice the puffer's size. The cichlids also live with the requisite Pleco and a Synodontis catfish and all seem to live in harmony (the tank is large enough that there are no aggression issues... at least, all fins, even on the Pleco, are intact and I've
never observed any sustained chasing).
<That harmony won’t last long with a nipping puffer in there… With puffers, size doesn’t matter.>
Do you think it would be better to keep the puffer with them while I attempt to deal with my newly uncycled tank?
<That depends on the temperament of the puffer. It may seem ok for a night or two but as soon as the puffer gets comfortable in his surroundings, he will start picking on the fish, no matter how large or aggressive they seem. My best suggestion would be to try that (maybe add a divider?) & get the puffer’s tank back to freshwater, add Bio-Spira to cycle the tank & put the puffer in there immediately after adding the product to your filter. Hopefully, you’ll get a good batch of the stuff. You should also add filter media from your established tank to the new filter or place it in a stocking (unrinsed) on your substrate. For more info & lots of quick answers to your questions, go to www.thepufferforum.com Good luck! ~PP>
Thanks for your patience as always, Micah

Re: New Puffer/Ammonia 5/29/08
Pufferpunk,
<Micah>
Just an update for now!
I followed your suggestion and placed a divider in my cichlid tank, giving the puffer 1/4 for himself (as well as 1/4 of the pots and artificial plants).
<good choice.>
My puffer is still alive (huzzah!) and tonight I fed him a few gut-loaded ghost shrimp and he ate at least one that I
saw. I left two in in case he wanted a midnight snack.
<Glad to hear he has an appetite.>
So far, he still seems alert and whatnot. I do have a question, just to sate my own curiosity...do puffers take naps? Every so often I'll catch him perched on an artificial plant leaf, just sort of chilling and then when he catches me looking at him, he'll start swimming around and exploring. Just wondering if he's napping or if there was
something wrong.
<Yup, napping. Sometimes they'll darken or lighten & curl their tail when they're sleeping. ~PP>
Thanks, Micah

Spotted Puffers in Serious Trouble  5/5/08
Hello! Last night my husband and I were moving our 30 gallon small (about the size of a big toe) spotted puffer tank. We've had them for two years in this same tank and they were round, silky, and lively as usual and excited about dinner. We removed almost all of the existing water (stupid move!) to move the tank and then filled it back up with brackish water, the same that we would use with any normal water change. The water was the only change we made to the tank. It's still sitting in the same place, just a new table.
<In itself this shouldn't cause problems. But if you disconnected the filter for a period of time, it is possible for the bacteria to die. External canister filters are particularly sensitive because without a flow of water, little oxygen can get into the filtration chamber. So when doing this sort of thing, canister filters should always be opened up and the filter media placed in an open basin or bucket, covered with aquarium water, and ideally with an airstone to keep the water agitated.>
This morning I got my heart broken! All three of them had severely sunken eyes and bellies! I thought the two smallest were dead! They didn't eat dinner last night or breakfast this morning, and they love to eat! The skin on the largest one looked like it was molting! Within 9 hours! I've never seen them this way!
<Massive mucous production is typically a reaction to sudden changes in water chemistry or quality. Pufferfish produce quite a lot of mucous anyway (perhaps because of their unusual skin with bristles rather than regular scales). When irritated by their environment, the mucous forms whitish sheets that looks a lot like dead skin. It clears up when things settle down, but is certainly a warning that something is very wrong.>
I ran to the store, they tested the water; No ammonia but the pH was through the roof. They gave me a better water conditioner "NovAqua +", "Cycle" to replace the bacteria, and "Correct pH".
<When you say "gave" you mean "sold"! Always bear this in mind when going to a pet store for help. Before randomly adding products to the aquarium, step back, and try to figure out the problem, so you can make intelligent rather than impulse purchases. Your first product is a water conditioner. Is there any reason the new water wasn't properly conditioned? You *did* add dechlorinator? If you live in an area where chloramine is used, then a product that removes chloramine should be used as well. Copper can be leached into water from the plumbing in your house, and any decent dechlorinator should remove copper as well. If none of these issues is a problem, then the NovAqua wasn't needed. The second product supposedly (I'm dubious) kick starts biological filtration. The only reason you'd need this (assuming it works) is if your biological filter had died. So test for ammonia and/or nitrite. If they're both at normal levels, then Cycle is redundant. The third product is a buffer. Brackish water at an appropriate salinity (SG 1.005-1.015) for Green Spotted Puffers should easily buffer itself without any additional products. Using a carbonate hardness test kit, you should have something like 5-10 degrees KH depending on the brand of marine salt mix you are using. This is why you don't use "tonic salt" or "aquarium salt" in brackish water tanks -- it's a false economy. You need the buffering capacity of proper marine aquarium sea salt mix, and used thus, it's cheaper than adding buffering potions. In any event, if you're recording a sensible carbonate hardness and the pH is steady around 7.5 to 8, then again, adding additional buffering products like Correct pH is redundant.>
I came home and righted the water three hours ago but their appearance is still devastating. What else can I do for them? They're fighting for their lives.
<Yes and no; brackish water fish by their very nature can, will quickly adapt to changes. It sounds to me, despite your initial ammonia reading, that the filter is unhappy. Brackish water fish tolerate water chemistry changes well, but water quality decline is something else entirely. Check the ammonia and/or nitrite levels again. Do large water changes, perhaps 25% per day, avoiding big changes in salinity that would kill the filter bacteria. Do not feed the fish. Provide lots of oxygen. Check the temperature. Deep clean the tank, taking care to siphon out any organic detritus.>
Could something else go wrong that quickly? Thank you for your help. Any response is appreciated greatly. -Diana
<Hope this helps, Neale.>

GSP with White Patch on Skin 4/17/08
Hi all,
<Hi Scott, Pufferpunk here>
This is my second time writing in because the last response I got was so informative.
<I'm glad we were so helpful!>
I have one GSP that appears to be a juvenile, judging by size, in a 30 gallon tank. He seems to have recently developed a white patch on his back just before his dorsal fin. Searching on the site I found similar questions but they always seemed to include lots of other problems along with the white patches on their fish. I know on one question Anthony suggested that the patches might be Brooklynella or Costia. I don't know a lot about parasites or fungus/infections as I have never had a fish come down with anything before and have never had to treat a fish.
<Brooklynella is a marine fish parasite. In my 30 years of fishkeeping, I've never come across Costia, so I am not familiar with it but looking it up, it doesn't sound like what your puffer has.>
I have been feeding live Tubifex worms to a butterfly goby because he will not eat frozen or flake food, so of course the GSP gets some too.
<Are you sure they aren't blackworms? Rarely are Tubifex sold anymore because of the filthy conditions they live in. I feed blackworms several times/week to all my fish. I soak them in vitamins while they sit in the fridge & rinse well daily, giving them fresh water & vitamins.
I think eventually, the goby will become puffer food.>
I wonder if the live food has brought in something to the tank?
<Possible but with all I feed out, I've never had any health problems with any of my fish, even my discus.>
I have not added any new fish in a long time and I have had this GSP in this tank for at least five months or so. I was waiting for a while for the tank and plants to become established before I started raising the SG in the tank and when I finally did, I started to have a major problem with hair algae, which I didn't know a lot about until recently and realized it was unrelated to adding salt, so I thought that I had crashed the tank and stopped adding the salt.
<Common occurrence when changing parameters of the water. Check your phosphate.>
So basically this GSP has been in freshwater for four or five months until just now when I started adding salt again. I know this is bad for their immune system, do you think the GSP is having trouble fighting off whatever problem it is having?
<Possibly>
Will the addition of salt help to get rid of the fungus/infection on its own or should I medicate?
<It certainly won't hurt. Start raising the SG .002/week, until you have reached around 1.010. At that point all your plants will have melted, I'm afraid.>
The fish is eating fine and acting normal and all water parameters are in check. Another quick thing I was wondering is that this fish does not seem to be growing anywhere near as fast as another GSP that I have, unless I am not noticing his growth somehow. I wonder if there is anything wrong with him in that regard?
<What other foods are you feeding him? Vitamins may help.>
And also, this GSP seems to have very informative stress lines around his mouth that he changes often based on how happy/unhappy he his and the other GSP does not at all, and neither of them have ever really noticeably darkened, bellies or otherwise, where I have had one GSP before who told be me exactly what was going with his belly. Thanks a lot.
<I'm confused--how many fish are in the 30g? It is recommended to keep 1 GSP/30g, so if you have more than that, plus other fish & it isn't growing, it could be a little stunted. What is your water change schedule? Exact parameters? Freshwater tends to stunt them too. As far as the white patch--it may be nothing--I'd be more concerned if it was fuzzy or reddish anywhere. A pic would help a lot. Add Melafix to the water & wait to see if it goes away or gets worse. In the meantime, work on making his tank brackish. ~PP>
Scott

Ammonia and nitrite problems, with a GSP 4/16/08
Hello,
<Hi Eric, Pufferpunk here>
I started a 10 gallon tank about six months ago. I bought a spotted puffer and every thing went well. Two and half months ago I decided to buy a 50 gallon tank with a whisper power filter 300 gallons per hour, a submersible 200w heater.
<Good move--adult GSPs need a minimum of 30g. He should be very happy in that large tank.>
I made the mistake of putting my fish in before the tank cycled. Luckily he made it.
<A single, young GSP in a 50g tank shouldn't prove to be too much of a problem, as his wastes will be diluted & will cycle within a month or two. As long as you do proper water changes, the puffer should be fine.>
Three weeks ago I took my water and had it tested.
<Best to have your own test kits: ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH & a hydrometer to check the specific gravity for your brackish puffer.>
My ammonia nitrate and nitrite levels had all dropped. I bought two more fish. What they called leaf fish and a wild card.
<Hmmm... never heard of a fish called, "wild card".>
I was going to get another fish so I had my water tested first. My pH had dropped to 6.2 and my ammonia level was up.
<Good thing you didn't get another fish!>
They suggested I buy pH test, pH up and Amquel. I treated the
tank with the Amquel and the pH up. My pH didn't go up. I went to a different local fish store that had been around for a long time. I brought them some tank water. My ammonia was still up pH was down. They sold me some pH up buffer. My pH has gone back up. I also bought a freshwater test kit.
My ammonia is still up. This was the point when I started doing the thing I should of done first research the web. <Definitely! While Amquel may put a Band-Aid on the problem, it is only a temporary fix & actually will hinder the cycle. pH buffers again, are only temporary & will cause the pH to fluctuate, which is more stressful than a low pH. The best way to solve your problem is with large, frequent water changes.>
I was only changing 5 gallons of water a week. 5 days ago I changed 5 gallons of water. 3 days ago I changed
10 gallons. I'm still not testing good. My pH is 7.5. My ammonia is 1.5ppm.
<Anything over 0 is very toxic to your fish, same with nitrite.>
My nitrate is 15ppm. And now my nitrite is at 0.25ppm. I used a API liquid test kit. I was thinking about changing more water but afraid if I change to much I might mess up the biological filter. What should I do?
<The biological bacteria necessary to establish a balanced system does not live in the water column. It is on surfaces: glass, decor, substrate, filter media. You can change as much water as necessary to keep the levels from being toxic. (I change 90% weekly on my discus tank.) You may want to start with 25%, 2x/day & then do 50% or more daily, until the water parameters are good.>
Upon researching WWM I realized that my puffer should be in a brackish tank.
<Correct>
Had a couple of questions. My tank is a glass tank, will the salt corrode the silicone seals?
Not at all. These are the same tanks used for keeping marine fish.>
I have had my puffer for 6 months he is still doing fine. Do I need to change my tank to brackish soon to save my puffer?
<The answer is yes. 6 months is a very short time for a fish that can live into it's teens. If not kept in brackish water (high-end BW as an adult), it will develop a stressed immune system, causing problems with disease & shortened lifespan.>
I do realize that the other two fish will have to go into another tank.
<You are right. They will not appreciate any salt at all (well, I can't say anything about the "wild card" fish...)> Any other advice would be greatly appreciated.
<In case you didn't see this article on GSPs: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm
Another good site on puffers: www.thepufferforum.com.
Enjoy your puffer! If fed & cared for correctly (eats crustaceans) you should have a darling pet for years to come. ~PP>
WWM site has been helpful.
Thanks Eric

Brackish Puffers... sel., hlth. gen. 4/8/08
Hello, I have a 65 gallon tank, my salinity level is 1.006, 0 ammonia, ph is @ 7.8. I want to know what's wrong with puffers. I have gone through a ton of GSP & Fig. 8's! it seems that I can keep 1 out every 10. When I purchase them in the store they always seem to look good, bring them home and they look like they are starved or have worms. They last for 2 weeks maybe then they die. The fish are cool but I'm tired of spending money on them please help? I also have a fig 8 right now that is breathing very fast for 3 days now. he is eating but not swimming just laying around any info will help thank you Dennis
<Hello Dennis. Pufferfish are *not* easy to keep, and despite their widespread sale, they're not fish to start a new aquarium with. They need a mature, stable aquarium with plenty of filtration (to remove ammonia and nitrite) and regular water changes (to remove the nitrate). I'd recommend a filter offering not less than 6 times the volume of the tank in turnover per hour, and at least 25% water changes per week, and ideally 50% water changes. You need to have zero ammonia and nitrite, which means the tank should be matured for at least six weeks, and I'd recommend longer, before the puffers are brought home. Assuming that water quality is good, pufferfish should be easy to feed, and starvation isn't normally a problem. Indeed, overfeeding is generally a much more common problem with pufferfish. In any case, tell me some more about how old the tank is and how you matured it. Tell me also the turnover rating of the filter (this'll be in gallons per hour or litres per hour on the pump). Then we'll take things further. Cheers, Neale.>

Re: Brackish Puffers? 4/9/08
My tank has been up and running for two years or more.
<Should be fine.>
I have 2 Whisper 60 filters with under gravel filters.
<Whisper 60 filters have a rating of 330 gallons per hour, so should be adequate.>
I do a 25% water change weekly and vacuum every month. I have 2 GSP's that have been alive for 7 months or so one's belly seems to be black more then white but he eats, swims, acts as normal as the day I bought him.
<Though this varies, a dark belly is often taken to be a sign "all is not well" with puffers. There may not be a one-to-one relationship, but most sick or stressed puffers do become darker than normal in colour.>
The other GSP is just fine swims a little erratic at times unknown reasons there. All the GSP's & Fig. 8's I buy last two weeks three tops. Are they hard to buy healthy?
<Not especially.>
It seems LFS's have and always sell sick ones.
<Not particularly likely. These fish are collected from the wild, and in practise tend to be in reasonably good shape, provided they are looked after and properly fed. It isn't the same as with farmed fish where poor husbandry and overcrowding often allows a great deal of cross-infection of worms, viruses, etc.>
Also it always seems like they have i.p.'s or worm's!
<Unlikely. "Internal Parasites" and "Worms" are often catch-all terms used by aquarists who don't have any idea why their fish died. Unless you're a microbiologist or parasitologist, I'd steer clear of jumping to conclusions here. The vast majority of "mystery deaths" come down to water quality, water chemistry, and diet issues.>
How many Puffers would you say would be enough in my 65 gallon?
<Depends on the species. For Green Spotted Puffers, you need to allow about 30 gallons per specimen, because they get large and can be a bit testy. Figure-8 Puffers are smaller and generally ignore one another, so you could easily keep 3-4 specimens in a tank that size. Does rather depend on how many tankmates you have of course; the more fish you already have, the less space for additional fish. The "inch per gallon" rule doesn't hold for medium sized and large fish, and you need to be a bit more cautious, adding new specimens gradually and keeping a close eye on health and water quality.>
The tank has 1 Silver Scat, 1 Red Scat,
<Both potentially big fish, easily 20 cm/8" in captivity, so questionably suitable for this tank.>
1 Angel Fish, 2 Kissing Gourami's, 1 Red Rainbow.
<None of these are brackish water fish.>
2 Mono Argenteus,
<Hyperactive, so needs swimming space, and again, of questionably value here.>
1 Black Tetra, 1 Golden Nugget Pleco, 1 Leopard Pleco,
<Not brackish water.>
2 Clown Loaches,
<Has been said to be brackish water in the wild, but not convinced of this at all.>
4 GSP's, 1 Fig. 8. All of these fish have lived in this tank together for 7 months or more except 2 of the GSP's & the 1 Fig. 8 these 3 have been in there about two weeks ( almost there death time ) . Oh Yeah I change the filters every month two at a time. any info might help thank you for your time!
<Given you have non-brackish water fish that are doing well, I'm curious whether you really are maintaining the salinity at a high enough level. In any case, you can't mix brackish water fish and freshwater fish in the same aquarium, so rather than fussing about which puffers to keep and how many, I'd concentrate on dividing up these fish. In the medium term, the Monos and Scats will certainly need a more saline environment than the Angels or Plecs will tolerate. Cheers, Neale.>

Re: Brackish Puffers?  4/9/08
Neale Why do you guys and gals always tell people they are the ones wrong. you pretty much called me a liar about the maintenance of my tank. If I didn't do something i wouldn't tell you I did there's no problem solving in lying.
<Ah, you misunderstand me. I'm only wondering whether you've been reading the hydrometer right, or perhaps your hydrometer is faulty. This latter problem often happens, and people think their tank is at one salinity, and it turns out to be something else entirely. The reliability of inexpensive hydrometers has been amply criticised on marine fishkeeping forums many, many times. Other folks misunderstand how a floating hydrometer works, and read the salinity above the meniscus rather than at the water level itself, so they think that have salinity X, and it's actually quite a bit lower. Not saying you're a liar at all!>
All my fish except for the puffers have been in this tank for over 1.5 years when I first set the tank up salt wasn't even in there I gradually over 6 months time brought my salt level up. in which case these fish can and do handle the brackish water.
<Doesn't work this way really. While it is true Angelfish and perhaps some of your other freshwater fish might be adjusted to 20% seawater, i.e., around SG 1.003, and perhaps slightly higher, in the long term this just isn't going to work. Monos and scats will need about 50% seawater, SG 1.010, and as sure as God made little green apples that will kill the Angelfish, loaches, etc. I don't need to debate this point, it's simply a statement of fact. Even at SG 1.005, the minimum GSPs and Monos will accept, is too high for most freshwater fish. In any case, maintaining freshwater fish in a saline environment isn't good for them.>
I know which fish aren't brackish and which ones are.
<In which case why combine them?>
So do you have any useful info for my puffers not my other fish or are you just stuck on its the person never fish
<From the information you've given me, there's no obvious reason why you should lose a succession of pufferfish. So if you're after an answer to that question, I don't have one. But the bigger picture is you have a collection of fish that doesn't reveal a clear understanding in what brackish water fish need in terms of salinity, carbonate hardness, and pH. And if a person doesn't fully appreciate what brackish water fish need in those regards, they are indeed going to have problems keeping those fish alive. Hence my concern about your mix of fish. That your freshwater fish are doing well suggests to me that the salinity isn't all that high, and certainly that the pH and carbonate hardness isn't likely very high either. Those factors imply an environment not optimised for brackish water puffers, and perhaps not conducive to their long term survival. What more can I say? Cheers, Neale.>

Green Spotted Puffer.. Too small environment: 3-23-08
Good Day!
<Hello. Yunachin here.>
I have some questions about my green spotted puffer. I should have read your site long ago, but I read other sites first...alas. I bought this little guy about a week ago and I've been keeping him in a small 1.8 gallon hexagonal tank (I know! way too small!).
<You are right. These fish need a 30 gallon minimum. I hope you plan on moving him soon.>
I put in about 1tbs per gallon (I did the math) and thought it would be fine.
<Marine salt I hope.>
I realize now that it's not and yesterday I started to notice what appeared to be molting (?) skin on him/her. They looked like little nubs and they were clear, so he/she may have had it longer than I noticed.
<Possibly burns from ammonia. Puffers put off incredible bio-loads and can suffer in their own waste quite quickly.>
Anyway, this morning, I noticed that he/she was way worse off. It looked like one of his eyes had like a contact lens over it or something.
<Definitely too much wastes. A thorough water change will help aid this.>
So, I researched more and found your site (alas, I hope it’s not too late!) and I brought out a 30 gallon with some good filters.
<Excellent!>
I have some sand that I have put in and I've also gone out and bought some aragonite...is it ok to mix the two?
<Yes that would be just fine.>
When I came back, it looked like it was too late; I thought he/she was dead. But then when I looked back, I noticed that the little guy had moved from one end of the tank to the other (still in the 1.8 gallon!!).
<Probably very uncomfortable. The move to the new tank should be okay.>
I am filling the big tank now and plan to put salt in it (I bought the hydrometer...to measure salinity) and I hope I am not too late.
<Depending on how high you are making the specific gravity, you are going to have to acclimate him into the salinity. Just dropping him in will make him very sick. Check out this link: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/acclimat.htm; >
My brother is bringing me some fish de-stress from his house...is that okay to use?
<Don’t use any other chemicals as it will to make the situation any better and puffers are very sensitive to medications.>
I can only hope I am not too late! What is this sickness that my puffer has and what causes it? How can I fix it? Thanks in advance!
<This is caused by a very small environment, too much food in, not enough water out, etc. Get him into the 30 gallon as soon as possible and make sure to do frequent water changes until he gets himself back to normal. I would do at least 20% every week. Read more on the Green Spotted Puffer in the Brackish Section of the site here. Good Luck. –Yunachin>

Green Spotted Puffer Sickness Re: 3-26-08
Thank you for your reply!
<You’re welcome. Sorry I haven’t replied faster, I have been a tad ill.>
I did a water change the same day I emailed you after reading some more on the site. The puffer is still alive, but I've run into problems with the 30 gallon tank. Today, I am acclimating him to the tank. To answer your question, yes, I used marine salt.
<Good to know.>
I've run brackish tanks before, just never any puffers and not to 100% success. The puffer looks worse today, but still showing interest in food. I will be acclimating the puffer through most of the day, very slowly. I'm not sure what salinity the tank is at now, the hydrometer I bought is telling me there is NO salt in the water, yet I can see the salt "waves" in the water and I can see that some has dried along the top.
<Hmm..I would consider getting a refractometer. They are more accurate than hydrometers, just make sure they are cleaned properly after each use.>
Anyways, this is just to thank you for your help. I hope the little guy pulls through, I am doing my best to ensure that. I don't think the puffer can wait any longer, the tank is still kind of milky looking from the aragonite but I figure that the 30 gallon is better than a 1.8 gallon, so I will slowly acclimate and hope for the best. Thanks again, sorry for the rambling...it is Monday morning.
<I understand. Is this tank a cycled tank? Is there any media in there from the old tank? Filter? Substrate? If the tank has not gone through a cycle then your little puffer will not be strong enough to make it through the spike and everything you do will be in vain. There is an article on fishless cycling at www.thepufferforum.com ; it will help you cycle the tank much faster but you will not be able to keep your puffer in the tank at the same time. I wish you good luck for you and your puffer. Keep me posted if you will. –Yunachin>

Green Spotted Puffer, beh./hlth.  2-12-08
Hi
<Yunachin here.>
I am new to aquariums but on the advice of a local centre bought a green spotted puffer to go in my aquarium.
<What size tank? Tankmates?>
I have ‘salted’ the water
<What kind of salt? How much? Did you use a hydrometer or refractometer to check your specific gravity?>
but have noticed that the white underside of the fish has become discolored ( grayish) especially after feeding.
Is this something I should be concerned about?
<This is a sign of stress indeed. Can you please send me the parameters of your tank (ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, ph, how long the tank has been running, along with the answers to the above questions I asked.>
Blessings
<You’re welcome, --Yunachin>
Steve

GSP hunger strike and stress lines 1/23/08
Hey there, thanks for the great site, it's been wonderful for all my puffer troubleshooting so far. However, I do have a problem that's been worrying me. First, back-story: a week ago my impulsive roommate bought two baby GSPs from Wal-Mart, the LAST two. Needless to say they were rather unhealthy. Both the 'big' one (about an inch long without the tail) and the little one (maybe half an inch? super itty bitty compared to the first) had concave bellies and I suspected IP.
<If my "IP" you mean internal parasites, I'm skeptical. Almost all instances where non-veterinary-trained aquarists declare "internal parasites" as the reason their fish are sick or die, the actual problem is something else, most often poor husbandry of some sort or another. Pufferfish have a relatively short digestive tract, and will appear to be "empty" quite soon after feeding. Assuming that the retailer wasn't caring for this fish properly, e.g., by offering them flake food, then chances are the fish are hungry and will need a few square meals to get back into shape. But beyond that, nothing too taxing.>
My roommate soon figured out she wasn't up to the challenge of GSPs and so gave them to me. I've been doing the best I can for them (upgraded to brackish water with marine mix salt, adding a teaspoon every day or every other day till I get to a SG of 1.010, offered fine gravel and sand for digging, lots of hiding spots, keeping the water parameters IMMACULATE, 10% water changes daily instead of 25% since they're still stressed, constant water temp of 80F, ph of 8.2) unfortunately due to my dorm's strict rules they can't be in a tank larger than 5 gallons (as soon as I move to my apartment this summer that will change big time and each will have his very own much larger tank).
<All sounds good. A few comments though. GSPs are truly euryhaline fish, and the actual salinity isn't all that important. Juveniles are found in brackish water, but adults, oddly enough, in freshwater. Under aquarium conditions, they don't do well in freshwater permanently, in the sense of being more sensitive to disease. But in the short term, there's no rush to change the salinity in your tank. It's actually much more critical you make sure the filter is happy, and rapid changes in salinity can stress the filter bacteria. In my experience, you can switch the filter bacteria from freshwater to anything up to SG 1.005 without problems. But once you go above that, there's some sort of re-jigging going on the filter that means you need to be careful. For the first 6-12 months of a GSPs life, there's ABSOLUTELY no need to raise the SG above 1.005, so I'd stabilise conditions there for now. Apart from causing less stress to the filter, you'll also save money on the salt, which will mean you can do more water changes more often. Nitrate (and old water generally) is FAR more unpleasant for your GSP than salinity. The temperature is far too high: 25 C/77 F is more than adequate. High temperatures mean less oxygen and faster metabolism, two things you don't want to have to deal with in a small aquarium. I agree a 5 gallon tank is inadequate for a GSP, and my gut feeling is that even by summertime this year, that tank is going to look very cramped. Once you have the bigger tank, set it up at, say, SG 1.008 to SG 1.012, as you prefer, mature the filter, and once matured, install the pufferfish from the SG 1.005 5-gallon tank. GSPs can easily adapt to this change in salinity within an hour using the drip method (i.e., put in a third-filled bucket of SG 1.005 water, dribble in high salinity water, and once the bucket is filled, lift the puffer out and put into the new tank.>
Other than the occasional stare-down at feeding time, there's no tank aggression so
far (I guess because they're still so young).
<Likely so. Males are believed to guard the eggs (if not the fry), so it is probable that only sexually mature males become aggressive. Much like cichlids, gouramis, killifish, etc.>
The bigger one pretty much ignores the little one, and the little one sticks to the big one like glue. I know this is a total anthropomorphisation, but the little one seems to enjoy the company?
<Entirely possible. Many fish are more or less social when young, and only become territorial as they mature. Angelfish are classic examples. The "friendliness" of pufferfish does vary with species as well as specimen, so it's difficult to make general statements with this particular group of fish. On the other hand, puffers are smart animals, and likely their default behaviour does get modified by being kept in captivity. My experience is that puffers in busy tanks are less likely to become nippy or aggressive, but others have had entirely different experiences. So who knows for sure!>
Whenever they get separated he'll furiously buzz around the tank till he finds the big one, then settles down and happily follows his friend.
<Heh!>
Anyway, to get to the point, the little guys just don't really have appetites.
<Try live food, and try variation. All my puffers love bloodworms, and they also get chopped seafood of various kinds, including squid, mussels, and prawns. Brine shrimp and daphnia usually work well with small puffers. They also love live woodlice (terrestrial isopods), and these are easy to find in the garden under rotting wood and flowerpots.>
Since they won't eat medicated foods I treated the tank with fizzing IP tablets. I've been offering dried krill, Tubifex worms, bloodworms, daphnia, and brine shrimp, and not much has appealed.
<I find freeze-dried foods a total waste of time. Others have success with them, but not me. Do try "wet frozen" foods as an alternative.>
I've been combing this podunk little town for snails to feed and have only managed to acquire 5 pond snails. The bigger GSP was all over the snails and finally got a little tummy, but the tiny GSP didn't seem to know how to eat them.
<Wild GSPs likely don't eat many snails, so you may be onto a loser here. While I agree snails are a very good food item, wild GSPs are more omnivorous taking crustaceans and insects alongside molluscs. They also eat plant material and, apparently, the fins and scales of larger fish. So broaden the menu, and you're more likely to have success. My puffers don't actually like snails all that much, so I've pretty much given up on this, except in adding some Melanoides spp. snails to the system and letting them eat any baby snails they find.>
To prevent possible bullying by the bigger one at mealtimes, I have a little container that I fill with tank water and put the little guy in with choice bits. I offered all
the dried fare and several snails the size of his eye. He seemed interested in the snails, but couldn't figure out how to eat them. I crushed one for him and he pecked at it, then just started swimming around the QT till I put him back in the main tank.
<Sounds good, but removing fish to feed them is kind of a hassle. Try hand-feeding. I use metal forceps of the sort used for dissections. Cheap and easy to obtain. Most fish, even quite nervous fish, will take food from forceps willingly. Also avoids the problem of you being nipped!>
Last night I got some raw frozen in shell shrimp at the grocery store and chopped one up into teeny pieces and offered it thawed to both fish (little one in the feeding QT as before). The big one absolutely could not get enough and filled up his little tummy (much to my relief) but the little one pecked at the pieces then ignored them.
<A staple food item for my tropical fish. Do remember that prawn contains a lot of Thiaminase, which breaks down Vitamin B1, so don't use it every single day. Unshelled prawns are the best: puffers love the legs, tail fins, and seemingly the eyeballs. I eat the meat in the tails myself! Sometimes they come with prawn eggs, and those are a rich, oily treat loved by most small fish.>
I know puffers are often stressed for a bit after a big move, and I know they can survive a little while without eating, but I'm so worried the little guy is way too small to survive a hunger strike!
<Force-feeding is an option, and I have done this once to reclaim a very sick puffer. But it's a last resort sort of option. Do try varying the diet as indicated above. Once you've done that, get back in touch if you really feel the need to force-feed the fish, i.e., it's condition is obviously declining.>
Other than the concave belly, the little one is acting healthy: white tummy, no stress lines, actively buzzing around the tank, fanned tail, responsive to my approach, etc. The big one, however, has had stress blotches on either side of his mouth and a dotted stress line above his tummy (though his tummy is snow white and he acts otherwise healthy; responsive and inquisitive and etc).
<All sounds fine. The colour of the abdomen is a bit hit and miss frankly, so while useful up to a point, don't put too much store by it. What matters by puffers is their [a] activity and [b]"chubbiness". Sick puffers tend to sit at the bottom and look bony, especially around the face.>
I have tried everything I know to help. I keep the aquarium light off to lower stress, obsessively monitor water parameters, keep the water sparkling and aerated, offer as much of a variety of food that's small enough for babies (ghost shrimp are WAY too big), I'm currently growing some sea monkeys to stimulate an appetite (but they take a week or two to mature), I even got desperate and tried the holistic garlic juice food treatment, which totally did NOT work.
<Didn't work when I tried it, either.>
Neither fish has lockjaw or overgrown teeth, and I've offered pieces of cuttle bone to add to their crunchy diet.
<Not sure they eat cuttlebone. I wouldn't worry too much about the teeth just yet. Some puffers never get bad teeth, and even the ones that do, it's an easy enough fix.>
I am so sorry this is so long, but I wanted to give you as much info as possible. I've spent the majority of my time over this past week researching GSPs and brackish setups, spent over half my budget on treatments and foods and general aquarium stuff, and pretty much done everything I can think of to help. When they grow bigger I can feed them larger and more appropriate fare like ghost shrimp, but right now they are just so little.
<I think you're doing all you can at the moment.>
Please help me, I'm so worried about the big one's stress and the little one's starvation! I feel so awful for not being able to give them a bigger home yet, like I'm totally failing at my responsibility to give these guys a better life, and if they end up dying for no reason other than their 5 measly gallons, I will be crushed.
<Only time will tell.>
On a completely different note, I have a question that my research has failed to answer. The bigger GSP occasionally comes up to the glass, opens his mouth, and makes a sound that can only be described as a cricket chirp.
<All puffers seem to make noises periodically. I think it's their teeth grinding. Seems to be normal, and in fact quite a few fish make noises, we just don't tend to notice them.>
He isn't puffing, and seems to do it without provocation. Is he bored or distressed? What in the world does this mean, and is it normal?
<Yes, don't worry about it.>
Thank you for your time
~Kimberly
<Cheers, Neale.>

3 GSPs in a 10 Gallon Tank? 11/28/07
Hey Bob,
<Hi Chris, Pufferpunk here with you today.>
At the moment I have a 10 gallon saltwater tank with 3 green spotted puffers in it.
<Whoa, way too small for 3 of them! As juveniles (under 2") you could get away with 1 puffer in a 10g for a short time but as they become large adult fish (6" without tail), they require 30g each.>
My oldest one, Humle (he's almost 1.5 years now), one day (about a few weeks ago) woke up with cloudy eyes.
<Common with this species, usually caused by poor water quality. Puffers are sensitive to wastes in their water, which is why they need such a large tank to dilute them.>
The cloudiness cleared by the end of the day but it seemed to have left him blind--if I move anything in the tank he WILL run into it and he doesn't dart from my hand when I put it close to the tank.
<"Blindness" is a sign of nitrites in the water.>
And I noticed he wasn't eating well (or I should say he was having trouble finding his food). His belly used to get all big and fat (so cute!) after he ate but since his eye trouble it just doesn't grow big anymore. So because he's my very first puffer and I'm quite attached to the fella, I've been hand feeding him. Is that bad?
<Anything to get him to eat .>
oh they all eat frozen krill and brine shrimp with occasional blood worms as a treat.
Is there something else I can do for him? I'm worried that he isn't getting enough to eat or maybe I'm not feeding him the right foods? His coloring is fine but occasionally one of his eyes will become cloudy again (it almost looks like a cataract, can fish get those?) and it will stay that way for a few days before returning to normal. The other 2 puffers don't seem to bother him either, haha in fact if they get to close Humle is likely to bite them to test if they are food or not! So they have quickly learned to keep their distance. And do you have any ideas on why he all of a sudden went blind one day? (especially since my other 2 puffers are fine).
<My suggestion is to start looking for a much larger tank for them ASAP. I am afraid this is only the beginning of your puffer troubles. I wouldn't be surprised at all if your puffers are severely stunted (at 2 years old, they should be around 4"). In the meantime, test for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH & SG & get back to me with the exact numbers. After testing, I'd do a 25% water change daily, until you can get them into a suitable sized home. ~PP>
Thanks, Chris

Re: Blind Green Spotted Puffer 11/28/07
Pufferpunk (sorry about that the last time!),
<No problem Chris, Bob couldn't possibly answer ALL the questions sent here, he'd never sleep!>
Oh my gosh I think I'm the worst puffer fish owner in the world! I had no idea they needed so much space! I feel horrible for keeping them in such a small tank!! Don't worry they will be getting a new tank very soon.
<I'm happy for your puffers. :oD>
and I tested my water (which isn't making me feel too much better either I might add) ok so the specifics are:
temp= 79 F
sg=1.027
pH=8.4
alk=3.6
NO3=150 ppm
NO2=0.2 ppm
NH3/NH4+=0.25 ppm [and since the temp is 79 and the pH was 8.4, 14% of the ammonia is toxic to my babies]
<Not surprising. Save yourself some money on salt & slowly lower their SG to 1.020. It is not necessary to keep it so high.>
Ok, so do you still recommend me doing a 25% water change? That NO3 level is scaring me and I'm sure the puffers aren't liking it very much either. should I change 50% or 75% of the water?
<If you aren't already doing 50% weekly water changes, it will be too much of a shock to your fish to do more than 25% at one time. You can do 25% water changes 2-3 times the first day & then up that percentage to 50%, then 75%, until your ammonia/nitrite are 0. It will be impossible to keep up with the bioload you have in that tank right now, so you will have to continue doing these water changes, until you upgrade to a larger tank.>
and if you are wondering, I have been testing my water every time I clean the tank (which is usually once a month)
<I'm not sure what you mean by "clean" the tank but I recommend 50% weekly water changes, while cleaning the substrate, in a normally-stocked tank.>
but I was using the strips and I ran out so I got the actual test kits (this is the first time I've used it) and oh my gosh, I never had levels like that with the strips! [I'm now seeing why people don't like the strip tests very much--they lie!!]
<No kidding!>
I'm so happy that I told you what was going on because I thought everything was fine and it's not and you mentioned that the blindness is a sign of nitrites in the water, will my Humle get his sight back once they are gone or have I permanently damaged his vision??
<After you get the water parameters to non-toxic levels, the fish should be acting normally.>
And when I put them in a bigger tank will they start growing again or will they be tiny for the rest of their lives?
<They will grow larger but may not reach their 6" potential.>
Currently Humle (1.5yo) is about 2" with his tail, Caine is 1 year old and he is about 1.5" with his tail, and Squirt who is maybe 6 months old is about 1" with his tail.
<Yes, much smaller than they should be at those ages.>
How long do puffers usually live?
<with the proper food & housing, your GSPs should live into their teens.
See: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm
and www.thepufferforum.com When setting up their new tank (might as well go for the tank they'll eventually need as adults--90g), use aragonite sand as substrate, live rock & a good skimmer & you won't have to worry about water changes as much. That's the whole reason for moving GSPs into marine conditions as adults, so you can upgrade their filtration to a better system. ~PP>
Thanks, Chris

Re: Blind Green Spotted Puffer... now, what is a skimmer 11/29/07
Thank you so much for your help!
<No problem, that's what I'm here for.>
One more thing though, what exactly is a protein skimmer? I hear about them but what exactly do they do?
<Their purpose is to remove small organic particles and dissolved proteins in the water. The proteins are the result of decomposition or digestion of food and dead organisms. These proteins have an "end" that's attracted to the air-water interface. So the particles are drawn into the chamber where a stream of fine bubbles is injected. The particles adhere to the surface of the bubbles and are pushed upward (by the bubbles beneath) into the collection cup, where they can later be removed. This prevents the organics from decomposing further where they can add to the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate in the tank (and thereby reducing the nutrients available for algae growth).
More info: http://www.simplifiedreefkeeping.com/faq/16.htm >
What would you consider a good one?
<Here is a critique of many models available: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/cav1i1/protein_skimmer_impressions.htm Unless you plan on plumbing your tank into a sump, your choices are narrowed to hang on back (HOB) styles. I had good success with the Coralife Super Skimmer (once you get it dialed in properly) & you would want the larger 220 model for a 90-100g tank. I know that tank size probably seems huge compared to what you have now but this is what I recommend you get for your 3 GSPs--they will grow into it quickly. They also love a lot of decoration to investigate, so the tank won't look so empty and eventually, you could add a few colorful SW fish as tank mates. Here is a picture of my 55g with my 3 poor puffers crowded into it: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/Pufferpunk/Pufferpics/55gGSPTank.jpg
I eventually had to rehome them, as I didn't feel it was fair keeping them in that small of a tank.>
I'll let you know how we are doing in a couple of weeks. Oh, and just to clarify, I should be partially changing the water 2-3 times a day or 2-3 times a week until the ammonia/nitrate levels are down to 0??
<2-3x/day, until your ammonia & nitrite are 0.>
That won't mess up the bacteria stuff the tank needs or anything? (sorry if that sounds stupid).
<No, it won't--the bacteria that you need is mostly on surfaces of the tank--substrate, decor & filter material. I suggest looking into a local reef club for a good deal on live rock, sand, tank system, protein skimmer, etc.
Try: http://reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=80 Check the many forums at that site for a ton of info on keeping a SW aquarium. Best to purchase totally cured live rock from local reefers, than chance uncured rock from a shop. Otherwise, it will be quite some time before your puffers get into their new home, as you will have to wait for the rock to cure (lots of die-off on uncured rock). Good luck, this will be an exciting adventure for you & your puffers! ~PP>
Thanks, Chris.

GSP Not Well (improper feeding, no heater)... Sys., hlth., fdg....  11/26/07
Hi,
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
I have had my leopard skin puffer for about a year and a half now and just recently he is not doing so well. It started out as him not eating frozen brine shrimp after a year of eating them.
<Very poor choice of food, especially if using as a staple. Adult brine shrimp are not nutritious, being made up of mostly water. Puffers need crunchy, meaty foods.
See: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/feeding/feeding-your-puffers/ >
So I switched to feeding him snails for most of the time and he loved them.
<Much better choice.>
Because I was leaving for the holidays I decided to leave a couple of feeder fish in his tank to see if he would eat them. The next day I found he ate three of them! I bought more and left for the holidays, after returning I found that he had eaten only one and was laying on the bottom of the tank.
<Ooooh, even worse choice than before. Feeders are not only an unnatural food source for a puffer but they are a fatty food that lives in poor conditions, passing all kinds of pathogens onto your puffer.
See: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/feeding/feeders/ >
I also found that I mistakenly left the window open that was right next to his tank so I figured that is why he was not doing so well. I filled his tank with warmer water and he seemed to be doing much better but the next day I found him laying on the tank bottom again. I rushed out and bought a heater and put it in the tank but after two hours his state has not changed. Is there anything more that I can do?!
<All tropical fish need heaters to keep their tank temp steady, around 78. You don't mention the tank's water parameters--a must to list, whenever asking a query about a fish that is not well.
You should always be aware of the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate pH & specific gravity levels of your tank.
How much salt is in there? Are you using marine salt?
What is your water change schedule (how often/how much)?
What size tank is it?
Tank mates?
Knowing all of these factors can keep your puffer healthy & long-lived. My first suggestion to you would be to do a 25% water change right away & do another 25% later in the day, after removing the dead carcasses of the goldfish. Dechlorinate with Prime. Never feed them to your puffer again! Follow the suggestions in the feeding article linked above, after your puffer seems to be feeling better (an ill fish will not eat).
Please write back when you have answers to my questions & I can help your puffer further. ~PP>

Re: leopard skin puffer
Stunting a Puffer/Cleaning Tank 11/27/07

Thank you so much for your help.
<I'm trying...>
Ever since I bought him I have been feeding him the wrong thing and have never known it.
<I hope you have read the article on feeding your puffer & will improve his diet.>
I took out the fish immediately and he seems to be doing a lot better. He is swimming on his own now. When I do clean out his tank I put aquarium salt (about 1 tbsp for 5 gallons) along with dechlorinator.
<That is not nearly enough salt for a year-old puffer & you must use marine salt to make brackish water. Have you read the GSP article I wrote? http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm >
He is in a 5 gallon hexagon tank and seems to have plenty of room since he is by himself.
<How large is he? If he has been living in a 5g all this time, I'm afraid he may be stunted. I don't like starting even a juvie in a tank smaller than 10g & eventually a 6" adult will require a minimum of 30g.>
I clean out his tank about every two weeks, since it is by the window & seems to develop lots of algae. When I do clean out his tank I take out all the water (I know your not suppose to but I've been doing it ever since I have gotten him and it hasn't affected him) and replace it. Everything else in his tank seems to be correct (nitrate, nitrite levels, pH etc.)
<"Correct" means nothing to me. I did inquire as to what those levels are & hoped for exact numbers. This manner if cleaning is extremely stressful for your fish. I recommend either moving your tank away from the window, covering the sides exposed to the window & doing your cleaning weekly, by doing a 50% water change, rather than the 100% bi-weekly you are doing now. Good luck with your puffer & his very soon upgrade to a larger, brackish water tank. ~PP>

Green-spotted puffer problem?  11/6/07
My husband and I recently began keeping green-spotted puffers. We bought four originally and almost immediately lost one of them. We discovered we had a definite ammonia problem, but quickly got it under control. We slowly introduced salt to achieve a brackish setting for them.
<OK. Now, a number of things. Firstly, Green Spotted Puffers (Tetraodon nigroviridis) are not "hardy" in the sense of being good fish to add to a new aquarium. Ammonia will quickly kill them. Neither are they sociable animals. Under aquarium conditions their behaviour in groups tends to vary between indifference and outright hostility. While some people have kept groups of them and even bred them, there's no real advantage to keeping this species in a group and in general it is safest kept on its own.>
The three we had were doing great. They are less than 1" , so we've been feeding them freeze-dried krill daily. (We figured out that we were originally giving them too much to eat, which caused the high ammonia level.)
<Quite possibly. Puffers need only enough to gently fill out their belly to a slightly convex curve. Puffers are very good at "begging" for food. Learn to resist!>
They were in a small tank (5 gallon!), but they were very small, and they seemed to have plenty of room to begin with.
<Ah, but they grow very fast!>
We had cycled a 55-gallon tank for our fresh water fish, moved them, did some housekeeping, and moved the puffers to the newly vacated 20-gallon tank, which has been running since July, with no fish losses. (The 20-gallon housed four African Leaf fish, one algae eater, and two black ghost knives [believe it or not the BGKs got along well], though they love their new extra space. The knives were quite small at first, so we kept them in the smaller tank until we had the 55-gallon cycled and ready for them.])
<Ok.>
All of this to say that our puffers have been in the 20-gallon for about 10 days, and we just lost one! We are really upset, and have tried to figure out what went wrong. All the puffers seemed to be doing great, until today. Our ammonia was slightly elevated, but very little.
<An ammonia reading of anything other than zero is bad; "very little" can still be deadly.>
Our pH is good, and all our puffers, including the diseased one, have nice round white bellies and good appetites.
<Define a "good" pH? GSPs need something above 7.5 and ideally around 8.0.>
So we were very surprised that we lost one. We've had them for a total of about three months now.
<What you're describing doesn't really surprise me. That you have an ammonia reading at all implies either over-feeding or over-stocking or under-filtration. Or all three. Puffers just don't tolerate this sort of thing.>
One thing that always stood out to me about the puffer that died, was his spots and green coloring, especially on his back, were really dull compared to the other puffers.
<Classic sign of stress.>
Was this simply his natural coloring, or does it mean something more significant?
<Stress.>
I noticed when I took him out of the tank he had some somewhat stringy feces, which were still attached to him. Could it be parasites?
<No.>
If so, wouldn't we have noticed the stringy feces and sick behavior before now?
<The stringy faeces are usually connected with bacterial or protozoan infections that opportunistically set in when fish are kept in sub-optimal conditions.>
Could it just be the stress of changing tanks?
<Unlikely.>
We had checked the water quality, and temperature before introducing them. (We had to turn up the heat a tad, since the puffers like their water a little warmer than the others.) We "floated" them for 30 minutes, then I introduced about a cup full of the new aquarium water, and let them float another 20 minutes or so.
<All very nice but largely redundant with brackish water fish that -- by definition -- evolved to tackled whopping great water chemistry changes almost instantly.>
We would really appreciate it if you could shed some light on what may have happened, so we can keep it from happening to our two remaining puffers. We did buy the puffers from Wal-Mart, which is well-known for not taking good care of their fish. (We actually bought all they had, and figured we were "saving" them from ignorant fish buyers [Puffers look so cute and harmless], while saving the algae eater, which was being nipped to death in the tank with them.)
<I sympathise, but to Wal Mart a "sale is a sale" and you better believe the store manager will simply order some more GSPs. The only way to stop the bad side of the fishkeeping trade is not no patronise any such vendors. Only when they lose money will they get out the market.>
So, could it be he was unhealthy to begin with?
<Possibly, but unlikely the cause of death.>
I just think that if he was sick before we got him, it would've shown up by now.
<Agreed.>
I'm sorry for being so long winded, but I thought the more details, the better diagnosis.
Sincerely,
Kim and Robert
<I hope this helps, Neale>

Topaz puffers not eating – 11/06/2007
Hi,
<Hello.>
I bought 2 Topaz Puffers 4 days ago and they will not eat anything. I have tried feeding them live bloodworm, frozen daphnia and flakes but they don't seem interested. The shop sold them to me as FW fish as they have been bred in FW
<I hesitate to believe that. There is not one report on the breeding of Tetraodon fluviatilis aka Ceylon puffer aka Topaz puffer. This is a brackish water species sometimes venturing into fresh water rivers, where it is caught and shipped. For aquarium care you will inevitably need brackish (or marine) water.>
and they are 3-4 inches long. The shop fed them live bloodworm on the day I bought them. Their bellies are black the majority of the time and they tend to swim around the same area. Do you think that they are still adjusting to the tank or do you think they may be ill? Thanks.
<Puffers need some time to settle in. In addition it is important to provide a good water quality and a tank of sufficient size. See
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/cav1i1/green_spotted_puppies.htm. Care for your puffers is the same, although they'll get slightly larger than their green spotted cousins. Cheers, Marco.>

GSP with Dark Belly 10/21/07
Hello, my name is Emily.
<Hi Emily, Pufferpunk here>
I have purchased 3 green spotted puffers and have them in a 65 gallon tank.
<Although this tank is OK for them now (they're small juveniles, right?), they will require 30 gallons each, as 6" adults, making your upgrade a 90g tank (minimum).>
I went and brought my water sample to my LPS, whom I trust 100% and my water levels were great in every aspect (I am very cautious when it comes to my fish).
<That's wonderful but when you are posting a question to someone about a problem with your fish, "great" means absolutely nothing to us. We need exact results for: ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH & SG. Water change schedule, length of time the tank has been set up, tanks mates, etc. would also be very helpful.>
I bought two bright green ones and one that looked like it had a dark dirty-like belly and weirdly shaped black spots (not round like the others). She also has bright blue eyes.
<Possible a Tetraodon sabahensis?
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Brackish/T_Sabahensis/ >
I read that dark bellies meant that they were sick, however my fish are very energetic and love to eat. I was curious to know if this puff of mine is alright, stressed or maybe a different species? The owner of the LPS said as long as it's eating and swimming great, it should be fine but apparently I can't always count on what they say. Sometimes she brightens up, but her belly always stays "dirty". What is your opinion?
<Your LPS is correct, if it is swimming & eating normally, it could just be a moody puffer. I wouldn't worry. Knowing answers to my above questions would help though. For more info on your puffers, see: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm
& www.thepufferforum.com ~PP>
Thanks, Em

Green Spotted Puffer--Internal Parasites  10/20/07
<Hi Christina, Pufferpunk here>
I have had two small Green Spotted Puffers for a couple months now. I normally feed them bloodworms but give them flakes and live food (crickets, roaches, etc.) occasionally.
<Puffers are mostly crustacean eaters. Although the foods you have been feeding them is acceptable, they must also eat more "crunchy" foods that are natural to them, like snails, shrimp, mussels, clams, etc.
See: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/feeding/feeding-your-puffers/ >
Lately the larger fish's spots appeared to be fading. He had something sticking out of his side, which I removed a couple days ago. It appears to be a cricket leg (which I'm guessing poked out of him after he ate it).
<Ouch! You might want to discontinue the crickets for a while. Are you sure the leg wasn't just stuck on the outside? Puffer's "hides" are very thick.>
His coloring looks better now, though still not as bright as it was and he has (as he always did) a healthy appetite. However, after several feedings he still appears really thin -- his stomach doesn't get lumpy after he eats like it used to (and the other ones does) and his back appears to be caving in and hollow. Could he still be suffering from an injury? And if so, what can I do to treat him?
<It sounds like internal parasites. GSPs are wild-caught fish & many come to us with them. It can take several weeks/months for the puffer to succumb to them.
See here for treatment: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/hospital/internal-parasites-prevention-and-treatment/ >
Thank you for your time and help.
- Christina
P.S. -- I would have posted this to the forums but the account creation page didn't have an option for me to put in a user name, and thus wouldn't work.
<Sorry you're having problems with that but glad you got to me here! Check out the GSP article in that library too. ~PP>

Re: Green Spotted Puffer With Closed Gill 10/22/07
Thanks for the reply. I can't explain the question marks. Sorry.
<Hmmm... that's odd. I'm leaving them in this time so you & the person posting this on our FAQs can see what the problem is. I have seen this before in other emails here.>
Finally, through fecal matter, I found much of the problem seemed to point to internal parasites.?
<How's that Did you see worms in the feces?>
I set up a hospital tank (with water from larger tank, which by the way: ammonia is 0, nitrates 40, nitrites 0, pH 7.8, SG 1.008) and treated it with Metro-Pro and Prazi-Pro per my knowledgeable puffer contact person (questionable at this point) and the little guy didn't make it through the night.
<Sorry to hear that. High nitrates are to be expected in an overstocked tank--the nitrates are more than double of what is acceptable/healthy for a puffer.>
I followed directions exactly.
<Did you soak his food in the med? Internal parasites need to be treated internally.>
Upon expiration, his gill was open. I will watch my 2 healthy little ones. I have a ton of filtration (enough for a 70 gallon tank and a heck of a power head).
<Great filtration does not replace proper housing.>
Should I go ahead and treat my tank for internal parasites to be on the safe side? If so, with what?
<I'd just keep an eye on them. Yo can soak their food in either of those meds & feed 2x/day for 1 week, if necessary.>
The sick fish was in the tank for less than a week. My little ones are doing great right now - no changes in behavior or appearance. Thanks for your input. I really look up to your advice.
<Thanks & good luck with their upgrade. ~PP>

GSP Problems/Nitrite Poisoning 10/9/07
Hey WWM Crew,
<Hi Melissa, Pufferpunk here>
I have a 125 gallon tank with about 100 gallons brackish (1.012) water. A mudskipper, mollies like crazy, 3 - 6inch violet gobies and a 2 1/2 inch GSP.
<I'm surprised the puffer isn't nipping your other fish.>
The tank was doing great until "something" happened and the nitrite spiked (it had cycled with Bio-Spira several months ago). Of course, my quarantine tank had crashed a week earlier and I have to start over cycling with that one, so the fish were stuck.
<You need to find the cause for the spike. Generally, uneaten food, a dead body somewhere... >
I redosed the big tank with Bio-Spira and the nitrite was back down in a few days.
<Did you do a large water change first, cleaning around & under all the decor?>
Everyone else seems to have recovered, except of course, the puffer. He stopped eating for about a week. I tried all his favorites: beef heart, bloodworms, mysis shrimp--nothing.
<Beef heart is not a natural food for a puffer or any other fish. Puffers are crustacean eaters & need crunchy foods to keep their teeth trimmed.
See: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/category/feeding/ >
I started dosing the tank with Pimafix
<Does he have a bacteria/fungal problem?>
and he ate a little beef heart last Friday. He ate some bloodworms Saturday and beef heart Sunday. He decided not to eat yesterday. Now, I come in to work Tuesday morning and he's floating at the top, not moving, except for his eyes (creepy!). His cheeks (?) looked swollen, so I burped him and 2 sets of air bubbles came out. He swam for a little while, now he's back at the top of the water, with his mouth almost completely out of the water and his cheeks are puffed again. Ammonia and nitrites = 0, nitrates below 20.
<There could be some permanent damage done due to the nitrite poisoning. They have no scales or gill covers. Did you find the cause of the spike? How high was it? How do his teeth look? What is the water change schedule--how much, how often? It is difficult to say exactly what the problem is but it doesn't look good. =o{ ~PP>
Help!
-Melissa

GSP Sick? Parasite maybe? – 09/25/07
I've had freshwater fish before and I've done my share of research when it comes to saltwater fish. I am a bit new to the brackish center of the spectrum, I admit.
<Ah, brackish water combines bits of both sides of the hobby, as you'd expect. In terms of water quality and disease, it's a lot like freshwater, but some aspects of the hardware (like skimmers) and of course the need for salty water places it closer to the marine side of things.>
However, before I decided to buy my puffers, I got up to speed on what their care would entail. I could've purchased them somewhere else, but when I saw the pathetic setup they had these poor little guys in at Wal-Mart I felt compelled to save a couple from there.
<I hear you... it's often difficult not to "rescue" unhappy fish. The problem is that the store doesn't register your act of charity as anything other than a sale, and will doubtless order a bunch more fish that will be similarly mistreated.>
My little guys are in a 10g right now, since the 30g we have is dedicated to a variety of freshwater cichlids.
<A bit small in the long term, but for a couple of little "pups", it might be okay. Don't underestimate their growth rate though: this species grows quickly.>
I used the Instant Cycle I purchased from my LPS and threw in enough Instant Ocean to start them off slightly higher than what they were accustomed to at Wal-Mart... which I really had to guess on since the person they had caring for them had just thrown a tub (literally a tub) of aquarium salt in with the poor little guys and punched a hole at the top of it so that it slowly dissolved into their water.
<Yuk! Actually, the salinity doesn't matter all that much. GSPs are fairly tolerant animals, and can live for long periods -- years -- in freshwater aquaria. In the wild, they are primarily freshwater fish, and only sometimes swim into brackish water. In the aquarium, brackish water IS essential to long-term health, but that's more about aquarium conditions being different to "the wild" than their actual ecological niche.>
I know taking on fish from such a place is always a bit risky... but I couldn't help it.
I've followed everything I've read almost by the book. The water temp is at 80, the pH is alkaline, I have plenty of hiding and (fake) native plant life and a sand , I feed them everything from ghost shrimp to blood worm to fiddler crabs.
<These fish are omnivores in the wild, like most pufferfish in fact. While they certainly specialise in shelled prey other fish of similar size can't tackle, they also eat a certain amount of plant material as well. So a mixed diet of mussels, prawn, squid, and the occasional algae wafer generally works well. There's no particular need to give them live food. On the other hand, food with the shells still on, like unshelled shrimps and small snails, help to wear down their teeth.>
I guess I spoiled them so they won't even touch flake unless it's the Cadillac of all flake... and even then they'll sometimes just suck it in and then spit it out.
<A lot of puffers ignore flake. Algae wafers often work better, because of their crunch perhaps? One of my puffers happens to enjoy frozen peas! Peas are excellent as a source of fibre and as a vitamin top-up.>
For the past month that I've had them I've done weekly water changes, I even added an extra submersible filter to add a little current and pick up what my other one doesn't. For the most part, they appear active and happy as can be. Strangely, there are two of them and they get along just fine... I've even seen them touching noses and just hanging out together.
<They may well remain tolerant. GSPs are a bit variable, with the odd specimen being belligerent or a fin-nipper, but many are quite amicable creatures. Since we can't sex these fish, it is entirely possible that many of the horror stories are based on people keeping two mature male puffers in a relatively small aquarium.>
My problem is that I don't know enough to be able to say with any certainty that the smaller of the two (Gizmo) is sick. It doesn't matter how much he eats or what I feed him, once he's digested the food, he appears emaciated and never seems as vibrant.
<Possibly parasites, such as worms. Are you sure it's emaciated? Contrary to myth, puffers don't need to be so fat they look like swimming blimps! A healthy puffer will have a slightly convex belly. If the fish consistently has a concave belly, that's less good, and I'd definitely be trying a course of anti-helminth medication (such as Prazi Pro). In the meantime, just keep varying the diet, trying as many different foods as possible. Mussels are generally considered the IDEAL pufferfish food. They are very cheap and easy to obtain, and their guts contain lots of yummy algae that helps the puffer get the nutrients they need.>
The bigger guy appears to have grown slightly, yet Gizmo looks tinier than ever. Everything else appears normal! Even his waste looks fine... it's not stringy at all! After looking at all the different postings and Googling the heck out of it... I'm really stumped. He's constantly changing color, which I've heard is normal.
<Colour changes are normal in this species. Sick puffers tend to have weak or unusually dark colours, but this is by no means universal.>
The only thing that I've noticed, which both of them do, is they appear as though they are coughing every now and then.
<No idea what that is!>
I know I've been a little long-winded... but I want to make sure are happy healthy creatures. And since I've never had brackish fish before... like I said... I'm stumped.
Any help?
Thanks,
Ashley
<I hope this helps, Neale>

Re: GSP Sick? Parasite maybe? – 09/25/07
Just one extra question, Neale...
<Yes...?>
When you say mussels, are you speaking of mussels that I can buy at the grocery store? Shell and all? I'll buy whatever they need.
<Yes, the regular mussels. Mytilus edulis here in England, but I dare-say something else in other countries. Large, blue-green, clam-like creatures. For small puffers you will need to open up the shells, and let them eat the meat directly. When the puffers are adults, they can crack open small mussels all by themselves! Mainstream grocery stores often sell mussels with their shells on as a luxury food item for Moules Mariniere and so on. You can use these if you want. But if you go to an Asian food market, you should be able to buy shelled frozen mussels in bags for very little money. These are what I use. You could also use the bags of mixed frozen seafood. I buy these from the grocery store, and the puffers I look after appreciate the variety. Usually these bags contain squid, mussels, and prawns. Puffers aren't wild about fish-sticks though, so you'll have to eat those yourself!>
Thank you again, that is a big help!
Ashley
<Happy to help, Neale>

Puffer Trouble... GSP   9/23/07
<Hi Jennifer, Pufferpunk here. (I'm a Jeni too!)>
I have two Green Spotted Puffers. One is almost 2 inches long and I've had him for a few months and the other is a little over 1 inch and I got him last week. My little guy was fine, eating great & even had a big dinner of ghost shrimp last week too!
<Be sure to gut-load the shrimp with healthy foods, otherwise they are basically non-nutritious.>
Yesterday morning I noticed that he had a rectum prolapse--from what I've already read about this on your website. I was going to wait it out and see if it went back in. I don't have an isolation tank, so last night at feeding time the other fish tried to nip at him (they were barbs) and he went to hide inside my castle. That is my mistake, so I have been keeping an eye on him--he does a pretty good job of hiding from the others. Anyway, I was considering trying to put it back in myself. Any suggestions?
<This can be seen with intestinal parasites/intestinal blockage. If the puffer is in with other fish, it really needs to be moved to a separate tank as these fish will bite/nip at the prolapse causing further damage/swelling. Have you noticed it eliminating at all? What does it look like? Is it white or stringy? That is a sure sign of internal parasites. If no elimination, it could be constipated, which can be treated with 1 tbsp Epsom salt/10g & then add the same the next day, which will bring it up to 1tbsp/5g. This can also help to reduce swelling. Before treating though, do a substantial (50%) water change, as water quality can add to the problem. You should be doing these water changes weekly.>
I've read that you can sedate them with clove oil and revive them by putting them back in regular water. I would try this when he's conscious but I'm afraid that he'll puff up, and plus that would be pretty painful.
<I read about somebody doing that on my pufferforum (www.thepufferforum.com) but I cant seem to find the thread. I wouldn't mess with it right now though, especially since it has been getting picked on & is probably raw.>
Although I don't just want to watch him die, because it seems like it's not going back in. Is there anything else you would suggest as far as like a vitamin? I read that it could be bacteria.
<Yes, possible internal bacterial infection. The fact that you are keeping your brackish water puffers in freshwater, can cause compromised immune systems & poor general health.>
If it is that's not good because if it isn't dead because of our salt water concentration it must be hard to get rid of. Any help would be appreciated!
<I don't understand what you are saying. What is the concentration of your salt? Are you using marine salt? I would imagine if you had the proper concentration of salt in there, your barbs would be quite uncomfortable or even dead.>
Another question about my bigger puffer: He's got two cute little buck teeth and I was wondering how big is too big in terms of teeth?
<If they look overgrown, then they probably are.
See: www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/smpufferdentistry.htm >
I try to keep small snails in the tank but I have to break them for him before he eats them and he doesn't always eat the shells. Should I try something else like crab legs? They would be much easier to get from my grocery store rather than those tiny snails. Thanks again!!
Here is lots of info on feeding your puffers:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/category/feeding/
and more info on GSPs:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm
I suggest separating your puffers into a tank for themselves. 30g each is recommended, as they will grow quickly into 6" football-shaped eating machines & need the extra water volume for swimming & diluting their large amount of waste. I am not recommending any medications right now other than the Epsom salt, since it is difficult to diagnose the reason for your puffer's problem. Let's see if that helps first. ~PP>


Re: Puffer Trouble 9/26/07
<Jennifer>
Well, it never did go back in so we decided to take matters into our own hands. It wasn't stringy... it was like a round ball that was white and red colored. We caught him in the net and just held him in it while we pushed it back in with the flat head of a pin.
<Ouch! I might have used something with a softer edge.>
It took about a minute and a half and he didn't even puff or squirm very much. That was the other night and he seems to be alright.
<Good>
I added Epsom salt too, like you said. Right now I am only using aquarium salt (I know, I know) but I am waiting on a refractometer that I ordered off of the internet so I can start using my Instant Ocean. I have a hydrometer but the markings started at 1.012 and I wanted it lower. Then I will also get rid of my barbs and go full on brackish.
<Great! Remember, don't raise the SG higher than .002/week.>
After reading the article on clove oil you gave me, I am much less intimidated by having to clip my other puffer's teeth. That was very helpful, thank you!
<That's why I wrote it!>
Looks like I'll have to start a snail tank too... great!
<I'm so glad you're going to have happy puffers. :oD ~PP>

Green Spotted Pufferfish Dentistry 8/10/07
Hi,
<Hi Samantha, Pufferpunk here>
I have a dwarf green spotted puffer his teeth are grown together, it has gotten to the point he can no longer eat!
<What do you mean by "dwarf"? GSPs aren't a dwarf species. They actually grow quite large--6" not including their tail.>
I feed snails, oysters, blood worms, crab, shell on shrimp and lobster sometimes.
<All good, crunchy foods.>
I am to the point of catching him and filing his teeth down but I am afraid the shock would kill him. is there anything I can do ??
<See: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/smpufferdentistry.htm
Also: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm
and: www.thepufferforum.com Good luck! ~PP>
Thanks, Samantha

Desperately Sick Green Spotted Puffer 8/1/07
Hi there,
<Hi Lori, Pufferpunk here>
I have often come to you site for info on my babies and always found it helpful :-)
<Thanks, we try!>
I came home from work today to find my GSP 'Barry' jammed behind one of the tank's filters, upside down. I thought he was a goner but when I released him he swam around ok. However, he is unusually brown and lacking in energy - he isn't moving his fins at all except when he has to, his anus is distended and I can see pink flesh (his insides??).
<This could have been caused by damage from the filter or a prolapsed anus, where his insides stick out of his rear.>
He isn't interested in the mussel I offered and he seems to be producing some kind of mucus (although it could be some algae from behind the filter). He also tends to be lopsided, and I've seen him twist as though he has cramps.
<Very possible--not very comfortable.>
I have added Melafix to the 70 litre tank
<18 gallons>
and the SG is 0.012.
<1.012?>
I have had some heater issues lately but have stabalised the temp at 27 degrees Celsius
<80 degrees Fahrenheit>
and his tank mate 'Normal' seems no more cranky than usual.
Please tell me what to do here, I'm so worried I'm going to lose him and after 4 years I'm rather attached!
<At 4 years old, they should be at their adult size of 6" each. Your tank isn't large enough for even 1 adult. It is recommended to give each puffer at LEAST 30g (~115L) each. I'd be curious as to your water change schedule (how much, how often). I recommend 50% weekly, at least until the puffers are raised up to marine conditions (best for adult GSPs), where better filtration (protein skimmer & live rock) can be utilized. Of course, in an overstocked tank you may have to do as much as 50% daily, to keep the bioload down to livable conditions. I also need to know your water parameters--ammonia & nitrite (both should be 0 at all times), nitrate (should be below 20) & pH (steady, around 8). For now, you can try adding Epsom salt, 1 tablespoon/5g (19L) of water. Whether he makes it or not, your remaining puffer should be in a tank about 2x the size he's in now. ~PP>
Kind Regards, Lori
PS: Sorry all my measurements are metric - I'm a Kiwi :-)
<I added US measurements, so anyone who uses them & will be reading this can also understand.>

Re: Desperately Sick Green Spotted Puffer – 08/01/07
Hi, wow, I feel like a bad parent!
<At least you are finding out now, the proper care for your friends.>
SG - yes 1.012 sorry, ammonia 0, I cannot test nitrates etc as my kit has run out of the tabs but I'll get more today. PH is 8.2. I run 3 filters to help maintain water quality, but I had no idea my tank was too small - the fish are only about 6cm (2.3 inches?) long... but the tank might be why
they're small, yes?
<Yes, stunted.>
And to think I got a bigger tank than recommended at the store! I do weekly water changes, 50% and daily food waste removal. Last night I moved Barry into a hospital tank. He's in an odd head down, bum up position but alive and moving at least. I will immediately attend to both the tank size and the Epsom salts - thank you for your assistance.
<Glad to be of help--I hope he makes it.
More info here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm
& here: www.thepufferforum.com ~PP>
Lori

Re: Desperately Sick GSP  8/6/07
Hi!
<Hi again>
I just wanted to let you know Barry is now almost completely recovered from his ordeal.
<Fantastic!>
The swelling around his anus is gone (it's just a bit discoloured still) and he is back to his usual cheeky self.
I have attached a photo of him in his new tank - it's a bit blurry, but you can see the graze and bruising on his side from the filter.
<Ouch!>
I am still treating him with Melafix and aloe vera stress coat and his tank is a couple of degrees warmer than usual, but I have discontinued the Epsom salts since he is out of his hospital tank. He did perk up almost immediately when I added the salts though, so thank you for your invaluable
advice.
<Glad to help. ~PP>
Kind Regards, Lori

Sick Green Spotted Puffer  5/17/07
Hi,
<Hello!>
I read through all of your puffer literature before purchasing a "leopard puffer" (Green Spotted Puffer) from Petco several months ago, which helped me to have a very happy, healthy puffer...until I went on vacation.
<Oh dear.>
Unfortunately, the designated caretaker grossly overfed the tank (we have a Tropheus Duboisi, the Green Spotted Puffer in question, a Bamboo Shrimp, and a common Plecostomus in a 36 gallon freshwater tank).
<Right, your problems here are multiple. Firstly, pufferfish eat shrimps. So the bamboo shrimp is doomed. Also, the pufferfish you are describing is either Tetraodon nigroviridis or Tetraodon fluviatilis. Either way, this is a BRACKISH WATER species totally unsuited to an aquarium with freshwater fish. Juvenile GSPs (as these two species are known colloquially) do fine at a low specific gravity, around SG 1.005 or 25% seawater, but adults need SG 1.010 or 50% seawater, and can be kept in marine aquaria as well. See here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/cav1i1/green_spotted_puppies.htm >
The fish have all gotten along very well; the puffer chases the shrimp around when he sees him, but "'Da Shrimp" is pretty well camouflaged and only comes out of his artificial log at night, while "Puffy" is sleeping.
<Sooner or later, Mr Shrimp will be puffer-food. This species of puffer isn't a 100% reliable community fish either, and while some specimens work fine in BIG community tanks, some are confirmed fin nippers and a few downright territorial and aggressive. Best kept in its own aquarium.>
Moving on to the problem, when I came home from my 1-week vacation, the tank was overgrown with algae (I'm assuming this is largely because the caretaker probably left the light on 24/7), there was uneaten food everywhere, and the water temperature had dropped to 72F (we keep it around 78-80F).
<This doesn't sound ideal, I'll admit. I do leave the lights on planted tanks where a timer cannot be installed. It shouldn't cause problems in the short term. Water temperature issues are more serious, but 72F shouldn't be harmful to your tropical fish in the space of a week. For reference, most fish can last a week without food with zero problems. Better to ignore the tank than have someone mess it up.>
The puffer eats a mix of brine shrimp, blood worms, snails, goldfish flakes, tetra crisps, and the occasional krill and shrimp pellets...so most of these foods were floating around the tank, or sitting on the bottom.
<Obviously the "caretaker" was giving too much food. My trick here is to put portions of food in paper or plastic cups in the freezer and then hide the rest of the food. Ask the caretaker simply to tip in one cup per visit.>
I immediately cleaned the food out of the tank, cleaned the filter, scrubbed the algae off the glass, and did a 20% water change.
<Sounds like a 50% water change on the first day, and another 50% the next day would have been preferable. In a crisis, the bigger the water change, the better.>
When I checked on them in the morning, the puffer was sitting up on the heater with a grayish/black belly (he does this when he's stressed, usually)...I coaxed him into moving but quickly realized he was struggling to stay alive.
<Sounds grim. Obviously the water quality had plummeted.>
I moved him to a QT tank (no signs of infection, velvet, etc.) and tested the water in the main tank - high nitrites (.25~), safe ammonia, safe nitrates, safe pH.
<Right, so what had happened is the bacteria had finally worked off the excess ammonia, but the nitrites were still in the system. Should recover normal water parameters in a day or two, but still, puffers have very low tolerance for such things.>
I did a 40% water change and have been letting it cycle - all of his tank mates have done fine, but he is still struggling.
<Indeed. Please do a 50-75% water change immediately, and then another tomorrow.>
He is always dances for food, but has not eaten...is it possible he just overate while we were gone and is feeling sick because of it?
<ABSOLUTELY do not feed the fish anything, zip, nada, until water quality has recovered.>
What should I do with him while he's in the QT tank...should I treat the water with anything special?
<Give him brackish water conditions ASAP. Have a read of this: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/bracsystems.htm >
He looks about the same size as he did when we left (probably a bit overweight), and has bright coloration on top...but still the grayish/black belly most of the time while in the QT tank.  He seems happier in the QT tank, but after several hours I tried to return him to the main tank and it wasn't long before he was "floating" again (barely moving his fins, body angled up as
though gasping for air).
<Until water conditions in the main tank are optimal, don't even consider moving him back. Frankly, his health in a freshwater tank will never be very good, and I beseech you to either return him to the pet store or else adapt the main aquarium to a brackish water one where he will actually be HAPPY.>
As of now he's back in the QT tank, sitting around the bottom and swimming a little bit from time to time.  I'm looking for any advice before it's too late...thanks!
<It's not too late. Please read up on GSPs and adapt your aquarium appropriately.>
Best regards,
Sheldon
<Good luck, Neale>

Re: Sick Green Spotted Puffer  5/17/07
Hi Neale,
<hello Sheldon,>
Thank you for the prompt reply; it's no fun being worried about your pets!
<Indeed not.>
Regarding the SG level: so, the puffer should no longer be considered a juvenile?  He's about 2" now.
<Basically he's ready for low-end brackish water, around SG 1.005. When he's twice this size, he'll be ready for a tank around SG 1.010. The exact SG doesn't matter all that much, but you do want to make sure the pH is around 7.5 and the hardness nice and high. As adults these are quite hardy animals and easy to keep, but they are sensitive to high nitrates, so ideally keep the nitrates below 50 mg/l.>
I had planned on moving him to his own tank when he was ready to go brackish, but didn't think it was time yet.
<Always the risk when buying brackish water fish.>
Unfortunately, the tank we had planned for him was given to a friend in an emergency (Oscars got too big, too fast!).
<Oops.>
I assume the higher SG levels would be harmful to the other tankmates (Tropheus duboisi, plecostomus, and
bamboo shrimp)...is this correct?
<Essentially yes. Certain species of Plec can thrive at SG 1.003-1.005 (and have, for example, become established in the brackish water canals in Florida). But you need to identify the Plec to species level first to be sure. The shrimp might tolerate SG 1.003-1.005 but I don't know. Some shrimps do, some don't. As for the cichlid, almost certainly not. For some odd reason, the Rift Valley cichlids are often sensitive to salt, despite being otherwise well adapted to mineral-rich water. Something called "Malawi Bloat" has been attributed to salt in the water. There are lots of salt-tolerant cichlids out there, but your Tropheus isn't one of them.>
The bamboo shrimp can join our Bloodfin Tetra tank no problem, but the other guys might not have a new home yet.
<Yep, the shrimp'll be fine there.>
The puffer is doing very well in the QT tank and seems to be almost back to his normal self; I'll wait until this evening to test the main tank again... just waiting for ammonia to go down and nitrates to go up.
<Sounds about right, and you're doing all the correct things. Should work out well. You do have some latitude with the GSP, so you don't have to rush out this weekend and buy a new brackish water tank. But such a purchase should be on the radar for something in the next few weeks or months rather than years. In the meantime, because the GSP is "roughing it" in freshwater, make sure the water quality is as good as possible.>
Thanks again for all of your help!
<No probs.>
Regards,
Sheldon
<Cheers, Neale>

Tetraodon nigroviridis, Sudden Death   3/29/07
Hello,
<Hi Phil, Pufferpunk here>
I had a green spotted puffer in a ten gallon tank all to himself.  The temperature was kept around 80 degrees.  The water was filtered and ten percent changes were conducted weekly.  
<Suggested water changes for puffers is 50% weekly, due to their huge bioload.>
The salinity was bumped up over a four or five week period from 1.000 to 1.005, which most Web resources recommended.  The diet consisted of black worms (what the store fed their stock exclusively), the occasional pond snail (though this was a rare occurrence) and freeze dried krill.  Substrate was just over one inch blue gravel, with non-metallic rocks and live java fern.  Lighting was a simply fluorescent on an estimated twelve hour cycle with deviations here and there.
<Was the tank cycled before the puffer was introduced?  Although as a juvie (I'm assuming it was), it's not as important but crushed coral or aragonite is the best substrate, to keep the pH around a steady 8.>
There where times when the puffer wouldn't eat but he always came around and took in ungodly amounts of food after a few days.  This time, he stopped eating and his sides started to turn black.  This had happened before but never lasted more than three days before his pearly white belly reappeared.  
<Was that after a water change?>
At two points in the past several days, he was stuck to the filter intake but still very much alive.  
<Very bad sign.  A healthy fish should be stronger than that.>
I chased him away from it, thinking maybe he just got too close. I performed a usual water change yesterday.  Last night he appeared to be having swim bladder trouble and was swimming around as though he were drunk.  
<Puffers don't have swim bladders.  Swimming "drunk" is a sign of nitrite poisoning.>
He came to rest next to a rock before I went to bed.  When I got up this morning, he was face down in the gravel next to the rock.  The body was swollen and discolored and the usually vibrant eyes had a rusty brown tint to them.  He appeared to be a perfectly healthy fish for all eight weeks I had him.  So can someone please tell me what may have caused this sudden death?  Where did I go wrong?
<Without knowing the water parameters, it would be difficult to tell.  My guess would be the puffer's bioload caught up with him.  
See: