New Dwarf Puffer

[Emg]

This is my first puffer purchase....I know very little about these tiny fish, except that they need to be in a species only tank, but can get along with other puffers if the tank is large enough and well planted. I also know that they are a fw fish and are difficult or impossible to train to eat anything but live food.

I have had a small 2.5 gallon tank growing out a bunch of snails for some time now....so that I would be ready with plenty of food. I've also had another small 2.5 gallon tank with some endlers in it to keep it cycled. There's a small nano HOB running on it along with one of those walmart mini heaters....(one of the BETTER ones that is set at 78F)

I was at the lfs today and they had a nice group of dwarf puffers for about 4$ each. I don't know if that's a good price or not....but They all looked fat and healthy and I ended up bringing one home.


Man, trying to get a decent pic of this little guy is an exercise in frustration ! Lol.....I did manage to get a couple that are decent enough that you can actually SEE him.....haha...







This is the little 2.5 that I'm keeping him/her in......plenty of live plants and a fake log thing to hide in and around......sand mixed with echo complete substrate.....



This little guy hasn't stopped moving since I put him in this tank. Reminds me of a cory that isn't happy...swimming up and down the sides of the tank ALL the time. Is this normal behavior for a dp ?

Any suggestions or comments from the experienced puffer crowd would be greatly appreciated.

...

[PufferMom]

Cute little guy. IMO, 2.5g is too small for a DP. We usually recommend an absolute minimum of 3g each (trust me, the extra half gallon really is important) but 5g is much better.

They aren't hard to train to eat non-live food at all. Just takes patience.

I'm not sure what you meant by they can get along with other puffers if the tank is big enough. That's usually not true when mixing puffer species. While DPs can often be kept with other DPs, they often can't. Depends on their personalities.

Swimming up and down the glass is indicative of a puffer that is bored. Double the amount of plants and it should get better.

I take it the tank was fully cycled first, yes?

[Emg]

LOL.....yeah, that tank has been setup for about a year, with one fish in it or another. I've had endlers in there for a few months just to keep it cycled. Before that I had a pair of killies in it.

I had asked a number of folks if a 2.5 was big enough for one puffer.....before I even considered getting one for this tank. I was told "no prob"

As far as them getting along with other puffers....yeah, I meant getting along with others of their own species of puffer. I've read more than a few posts here and there about folks who have been able to keep 3 or so dwarf puffers in a 10 gallon tank...that's highly planted. That's what I meant when I said something about being able to "get along".

Lol....I don't think I can add anymore plants to that tank...it's pretty stuffed as it is. I could toss in a clump of floating hygro....

I'm afraid he's going to have to make do in the 2.5.......unless something drastic happens and I loose the bumblebees that I have in the 5. I did ask others who own puffers before I decided to get one for this tank....oh well.....

Thanks for the comments and suggestions PuffMom....guess I should have sought you out ahead of time...... oO(DOH!)

[PufferMom]

Yeah, a lot of people keep snakes, too, but don't really know much about the proper care. I still run into "long time" puffer keepers who believe all puffers are brackish. Its hard figuring out who to believe. Best bet when in doubt is ask at thepufferforum.com People there have been keeping puffers for decades. Or there's RTR, a very knowledgeable person in his own right.

Yes, you can often have 2-3 in a 10g tank. If having multiples, I recommend going with the 5g each guideline. For best results, they should be added to the tank at the same time, as puffers are extremely territorial and aggressive about it.

I would recommend getting several more bushy type plants for the tank. Trust me, you can't pack in too many plants (well I suppose you eventually could). DPs like to tootle around in between all the decor and need a lot of broken lines of sight.

[RTR]

Just chiming in late to agree w/PufferMom's good advice. I do agree that a 2.5 is a bit small for a DP. The standard for some time was 3 gallons each, but that was for tanks housing multiples, heavily planted, carefully fed, and at least 50% weekly partials. I agree that a 5 is better minimum for a singleton.

Compatability is a separate issue. Some individuals are not sociable (common in puffers which do not school as adults), other DPs are far easier-going than is standard for the family. Agression in puffers has nothing to do with adult size and frequently has a lot to do with maturity - many of them are okay as juveniles, most FW puffers appear to be solitary as adults, and protect their feeding territory. Many DPs are more sociable, but certainly not all.

My personal best housing to date has been in a 29 with 5, or in a ten for singletons (for me they are more active in a 10 than in a 5).

HTH

[Emg]

Thanks PuffMom and Rtr......I'll see about adding some more plants in there for him. As far as keeping the tank clean, no worries about that...I'm anal about water changes...lol.

This little one seems to be settling down. This morning he was just tooling around the tank checking things out. He'll be fed on black worms (with added liquid vitamins) and ramshorn snails.

He'll be my only puffer and will have to put up with the 2.5. It'll be kept clean and tidy so I don't imagine he'll have too bad a time in there. Most issues with smaller tanks is the fact that they dont' get cleaned out often enough...not a problem here. I wouldn't have gotten him if I had checked further and knew that a 2.5 isn't recommended by those in the know.......you think I've been at this long enough that I would know better

Lol....truth is, I wasn't aware we had a forum devoted especially to puffers ! I usually just go to the "Today's Posts" link and seldom check down the line of threads anymore. I would have posted the tank size question here had I known...oO(DOIY!)......

[RTR]

A board without the New Posts feature is one I do not visit - life is too short to click in and out of multiple forums.

[Emg]

Yep, my feelings exactly....I only found the puffer forum here when I went looking for some place to post these pics ....haha....(and don't tell anyone that I'm a Mod here.....shhhh)

[RTR]

I confess that is the only time I look through the forum lists myself.

[Emg]

Well, puff seems to have settled in nicely and is no longer swimming up and down the sides of the tank. I actually managed to get a few better pics. What a fat little piggie !

I rearranged the plants in the tank...grouped the hygro all in one area so there's at least one place in the tank that's more thickly planted....also tossed in some floaters to sit over the more sparsely planted area.

He/she chows down the black worms I offer but doesn't show a whole lot of interest in the snails. I keep popping them in anyway.





It doesn't look a whole lot different, but Puff seems to like it ok...

[RTR]

Looks good!

[FreddytheFish]

Great pics!