Stressed out Puffer fish (Tetraodon nigroviridis)

[ace1uno_00]

One of my leopard Puffer Looks stressed out his belly is all grey and he's just laying there looking like he just swam 5 miles. He wont eat either.
But my other leopard puffer (Tetraodon nigroviridis) and Figure eight puffer (Tetraodon biocellatus) Look just fine.
All my water parameters are perfect. I know they are brackish and i add salt as recommended.
What could it be? I dont want it to die.

 

[amitnarain]

old days?

is 'he' a male. if not could it be pregnant?

 

[ace1uno_00]

old days?

What?


Pregnant? I thought they laid eggs?

 

[amitnarain]

i meant is it old?

could it be near to lay eggs (thats what i meant by pregnant.lol.)

 

[LittlePuff]

What salt are you using and what is your salinity?

Kim

 

[ace1uno_00]

OH! lol It seems pretty old. It's the biggest in the tank. about 3.5 inches.
The salt i am using is Aquarium Pharmeceuticals "Doc Wellfish's Aquarium salt" it's directions say use One TableSpoon for every 5 gallons.
I'm using a Instant Ocean Hydrometer, My Salinity is at 6 and my Specific Gravity is at 1.004.
Am i doing something wrong? where should my levels be at?

 

[penpitt]

Aquarium salt is not the salt used for brackish fish. You need to be using a marine salt mix. At 3.5" your puffer should be in a high end brackish level with a Sg of at least1.014. What other fish do you have in there and what size is the tank? What are your other water parameters : ph,nitrate, nitrite and ammonia?

 

[greenmaji]

take it really slow when changing the salitnity.. and a good marine salt is what you need..

 

[ace1uno_00]

Ok.
Its a 12 gallon eclipse tank with only 3 fish. two are leopard puffers and one Figure eight.
How much marine salt should i add at a time to get my SG up to 1.014?
My ph, Nitrite,Nitrate, and amonia are all perfect.

 

[Hrafnkel]

They could probably use a bigger tank... Just my guess. Puffers seem to need a lot of space.

 

[LittlePuff]

They need 30gal each. You could put 2 in a 55gal, 1 in a 29 etc.. It won't be long until you'll need to have full marine tanks for them too. As they get older, they will not tolerate tankmates as well. Please go to www.thepufferforum.org/

Kim

 

[ace1uno_00]

i do have a 125 that they will be going into as soon as it cycles.
So how much salt should i add at a time? i know i dont want to add to much so i wont shock them.

 

[penpitt]

Raise the SG no more then .002/week. In addition to needing a larger tank for your puffers, the figure 8 is lowend brackish and really should not be kept higher then 1.008. The leopard puffers need a SG of 1.014 or higher(to full marine conditions). To get a SG of 1.014 you will need approximately 1/3 cup/gallon of water. Just make sure to measure it with the hydrometer. Ideally you should mix your water 24-48 hours in advance and aerate it to give it time to thoroughly mix.
If youhave had your puffer itr could be stress from the overcrowding. Your leopard puffers really should have at least 30 gallons/fish. The F8 needs at least 15 gallons

 

[Hrafnkel]

Also, you need to get a hydrometer (I think that's the name). There's not a set measurement of salt to add, you need a way to measure until you get to the point you're going for.

 

[ace1uno_00]

i have a hydrometer.
so i shouldnt raise the SG no more than .002 a week, got it.
Is this ok to do with the puffers still in the tank?
Is there anything else i should do?

Wheres PufferPunk? lol

 

[Hrafnkel]

The puffers need to be in the tank during the increases to help acclimate them. At least, I would assume as much.

 

[ace1uno_00]

what brand of salt should i get?

 

[penpitt]

Personally I use Oceanic salt. It dissolves very easily without clumping and Its carried by many pet shops around here so its not hard to find. I've heard of problems with Instant Ocean not dissolving as well but have no personal experience with it. In the end I think they both would be good enough. I would buy one that is in your budget and stick with that brand so there aren't any changes in the water composition, at least as far as salt is concerned.

 

[ace1uno_00]

ok, great. I'll try that.
What about My pleco? I have another tank he can go into that is full fresh water. i dont think he will do to well in high end brakish waters right?

 

[ace1uno_00]

Is there a Pleco that can handle brackish waters?