porcupine puffer

[dwint]

ive had my puffer for six months and was a good eater and now he barely eats.ive been feeding him shrimp from the store and krill.i have been trying to get him to eat shelled food so his teeth wear down.im worried this is preventing him from eating.

 

[Sniperhank]

Can you tell us the parameters in the tank, tank size, and other tank mates? Stress also stops fish from eating.
If it is the teeth, I have heard of people being able to file them down but am unsure how that works or effectiveness.
These fish need to be fed shelled foods or this can become the outcome and there be no turning back once things fuse together. That and there is little to no nutritional value in krill and cocktail shrimp.

 

[dwint]

I tested everything and its perfect.there is two clowns and a h-tusk.its a 75 gallon and the fish is 4-41/2 inches long so its young still.

 

[Jasonrusso]

Get some live saltwater ghost shrimp. My porky loves them. I've had him for 3 years, and there have only been 4-5 days when he didn't want to eat.

Feed the shrimp pellet or flake food before feeding the puffer. The shrimp themselves have no nutritional value but when their bellies are full of pellets they are quite nutritious.

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[Jasonrusso]

Also, a 75 gallon is way too small for a porcupine puffer. I had mine in a 75 and I had to upgrade after 7 months because he outgrew it. He may be feeling stressed. A fish's internals keep growing when their externals stop due to size constraints. This usually ends up in a fatal situation.

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[Jasonrusso]

One more thing. If you are worried about his teeth getting too big, go to the LFS and buy some small snails and hermits. Mine crunches them up at will. The only inverts I can keep are huge turbo snails that don't fit in his mouth and for some reason bumble bee snails. He won't eat the bumble bees.

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[dwint]

I plan on a 125 gal tank soon and ill try ghost and snailos and see if that helps.when I put food in the tank it looks like he wants to eat but just lets the food go past him

 

[Nils]

Is there something lodged in his throat? Sometimes fish can get hard things in their mouths or throats that they can't swallow and it won't come out again. Maybe the hard shell of a shrimp? Look and see if you can find anything in his mouth or any odd protrusions from the outside.

 

[PB_Smith]

That and there is little to no nutritional value in krill and cocktail shrimp.

krill is actually one of the best foods you can feed your fish.

 

[PB_Smith]

A fish's internals keep growing when their externals stop due to size constraints. This usually ends up in a fatal situation.

any documentation about that?

 

[Jasonrusso]

any documentation about that?

I've read articles on "stunting" which say it is a true phenomena and some that say it isn't. I'm in the camp that thinks it is true. If they don't stop growing, I feel that they don't develop properly.

Regardless, it usually ends up being fatal to the animal in the end. A porcupine puffer in a 75 gallon is too small.

That and there is little to no nutritional value in krill and cocktail shrimp.

If you say shrimp and krill are not nutritious, what foods do you feel are good?