Teeny tiny puffer food??

[Bluefrog]

I have three tiny dwarf puffers (freshwater). They are about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch from lips to tail I have tried feeding Nature's Delica bloodworms (the kind in the gel packet) as well as frozen brine shrimp. I've only seen them nibble either one a few times. I went and bought the smallest pond snails I could find, thinking they would tear them up. The little puffers are VERY interested in them and do end up killing the snails by eating their heads off (eeewww...i know, sorry). But, they leave the bodies in the shells. Do larger puffer species crunch the whole shells up? These puffers are just so tiny.

I was thinking about trying to hatch and grow brine shrimp because the frozen ones aren't interesting them much. I can buy the eggs at Wally's. But how long will they last in a freshwater tank? I know I have to hatch them in a jar or something, but I'm worried that the puffers won't find them before they go belly-up. Also, does anyone know where to find live bloodworms? That is my other option, but I don't think I can get live ones at the [acronym:510e7086ae="Local Fish Store"]lfs[/acronym:510e7086ae]. Any other suggestions???

Thanks for any advice, I really like these tiny puffers, but I want to make sure they are eating!!

This is kinda gross, but that's nature! my dwarf puffers will nip snails to death. You know when snails are moving, their foot is exposed from beneath the shell. the puffers sneak up and WHAM, take a nice bite out of the foot. After this happens a certain number of times the snail dies. I have a lone [acronym:b86ec43512="Siamese Algae Eater"]SAE[/acronym:b86ec43512] in that tank who I am fairly certain has learned to scavenge snail remains. The [acronym:b86ec43512="Siamese Algae Eater"]sae[/acronym:b86ec43512] has never been nipped by the puffers, so far as I can tell.

Hatching BBS is easy, but I still cannot get the puffers to eat anything but snails.

[TankGirl]

I would go ahead and try the BBS, but when mine were teeny tiny like that they did not eat them, almost as if they were too small for them to notice!

The thing that got mine eating was live adult brine shrimp. This is not something you can do yourself easily, and only the more dedicated [acronym:238cb08a72="Local Fish Store"]LFS[/acronym:238cb08a72] even carry them, but mine were not eating anything, snails included, until I gave them live shrimp. If you can't find that or live worms (blackworms would be your best bet, call around to any and every [acronym:238cb08a72="Local Fish Store"]LFS[/acronym:238cb08a72] to find what kind of live fish food they have) then go ahead and do the BBS. Keep on with the snails, as mine rarely actually crunched up the shell, but ate the animal out and discarded the shell. Once mine began eating, they started accepting frozen bloodworms with relish, in addition to the snails.

[Pufferpunk]

If they'll eat something else, I would not recommend a staple diet of brine shrimp. They are mostly water & not very nutricious. Mine love freeze-dried plankton & krill.

[TankGirl]

I don't recommend brine shrimp, either, for any fish, as a staple diet. My puffers were not eating when I got them and it is what I used to get them started. After they started eating, I had no trouble with the typical puffer fare.

[Pufferpunk]

I guess it's gotta be better than nothing!

[TankGirl]

Yep - and man did it get them going! The very next day they were voracious eaters. I think I might have even gotten the tip from the Puffer Forum, in my desperation to find a way to get those wee babies to eat. If I am not mistaken, not eating seems to be a relatively common occurrence for dwarf puffers.

[mgkaelen]

mysis shrimp may work. my dwarf puffers eat everything i give them... i would also try LIVE black worms.. they're really small (skinny wise).. my puffers have a feast when they eat them. they love love love them!