Fattening up my Puffers

sarcare · 07-09-2007, 08:48 AM

I just returned from a month long absence to find my dwarf puffers much skinner then they were when I left. My fish keeper fed them a cube of blood worms every three day, which I know is not optimum, but I couldn't get her to come in every day. The poor puffs were plump and happy when I left, I'd been feeding them on live blood worms until my supply ran out. I don't know where I can buy more live lo feed them locally, and I'm worried about how skinny they've become. I've added some snails to the tank, but they don't seem to be going after them, though they examine them, they don't appear to be eating them.

Could I try feeding ghost shrimp? I know I can get them live locally. What else might work?

OrionGirl · 07-09-2007, 08:56 AM

You can try--you'll want to get the smallest ones you can find. My dwarfs would harras them to death. Small snails are good too--if they're too big, they can't tip them over to get the meat.

DaisyTattoo · 07-09-2007, 09:14 AM

You can also squish the snails in your fingers and drop them in...easier to eat that way.

PufferMom · 07-09-2007, 09:21 AM

I would just continue with the frozen bloodworms, mysis shrimp, etc., and not do anything live. Soak them in some vitamins such as Kent Zoe first (make sure you get the FW variety). All of my frozen foods get soaked in vitamins before feeding.

In addition, you might want to consider treating them for IPs. Puffers can sometimes have IPs for months without showing any signs until they start to wither away. A cube of bloodworms every 3 days should have been sufficient, they should not have gotten very skinny on that.

OrionGirl · 07-09-2007, 09:29 AM

These are the new ones you got just a few weeks before your trip, right? Juveniles tend to lose weight more readily if not fed daily than adults, IME.

07-09-2007, 08:48 AM	#1 (permalink)
sarcare Lost and Confused Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 1,908	Fattening up my Puffers I just returned from a month long absence to find my dwarf puffers much skinner then they were when I left. My fish keeper fed them a cube of blood worms every three day, which I know is not optimum, but I couldn't get her to come in every day. The poor puffs were plump and happy when I left, I'd been feeding them on live blood worms until my supply ran out. I don't know where I can buy more live lo feed them locally, and I'm worried about how skinny they've become. I've added some snails to the tank, but they don't seem to be going after them, though they examine them, they don't appear to be eating them. Could I try feeding ghost shrimp? I know I can get them live locally. What else might work? __________________ Reality--go 'way!

07-09-2007, 08:56 AM	#2 (permalink)
OrionGirl Miss you, Old Man Join Date: May 2006 Location: California coastline Posts: 6,715	You can try--you'll want to get the smallest ones you can find. My dwarfs would harras them to death. Small snails are good too--if they're too big, they can't tip them over to get the meat. __________________ ~Sheila tempus edax rerum Ideas do not have to be correct in order to be good; its only necessary that, if they do fail, they do so in an interesting way. ~Robert Rosen

07-09-2007, 09:14 AM	#3 (permalink)
DaisyTattoo It's a girl Join Date: May 2006 Location: Peoria, Illinois Posts: 3,056	You can also squish the snails in your fingers and drop them in...easier to eat that way. __________________ It's not easy being a mother. If it were, fathers would do it.

07-09-2007, 09:21 AM	#4 (permalink)
PufferMom Puffer Keeper Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Southeast Wisconsin Posts: 249	I would just continue with the frozen bloodworms, mysis shrimp, etc., and not do anything live. Soak them in some vitamins such as Kent Zoe first (make sure you get the FW variety). All of my frozen foods get soaked in vitamins before feeding. In addition, you might want to consider treating them for IPs. Puffers can sometimes have IPs for months without showing any signs until they start to wither away. A cube of bloodworms every 3 days should have been sufficient, they should not have gotten very skinny on that. __________________ Puffers: Auriglobus silus x2, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1

07-09-2007, 09:29 AM	#5 (permalink)
OrionGirl Miss you, Old Man Join Date: May 2006 Location: California coastline Posts: 6,715	These are the new ones you got just a few weeks before your trip, right? Juveniles tend to lose weight more readily if not fed daily than adults, IME. __________________ ~Sheila tempus edax rerum Ideas do not have to be correct in order to be good; its only necessary that, if they do fail, they do so in an interesting way. ~Robert Rosen

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