Dwarf Puffer feeding behavior

[Zebedee99]

Soon I shall be buying some dwarf puffer fish and am wanting to know is it more natural behaviour to leave Snails in my Puffer tank to bred etc so that instead of adding when necessary to feed the Puffer,that he or she can help and hunt the snails for themselves?.
I am wanting the Puffers to act like they would in the wild and not artificially just adding a snail at food time.
What do you guys and gals think?

Cheers

[nirbhao]

Pea puffers are little piggies. Mine have a few snails that they don't catch right away, but generally they eat them as soon as they find them. Right now we have ramshorns in our 29 gallon, but we have ordered a three gallon just for them.

[SherLar]

I agree with nirbhao. I don't see snails surviving long enough to breed with puffers in the tank.

[Zebedee99]

What I don't want happening is just because the snails are there the Puffers gorge themselves or will they just eat what they need and will leave the rest of the snails alone? I am trying to make the Puffers act as natural as they would not in an artificial environment. Cos surely in the wild for example the Puffers wouldn't eat EVERY snail they see,stuffing themselves and making themselves ill? What's everyone's experience? Do you just put snails in at feeding time or leave in the tank all the time? But lol I can well believe your Puffer are [emoji200] piggies maybe there was a spelling mistake when stumbled upon?!......Dwarf Puffers are ACTUALLY called "Piggie Puffers" not "Pygmy Puffers" n someone shudda gone spec savers? [emoji848]

[nirbhao]

No, in the wild they will eat every snail they find, because snails are much harder to find in the wild.

[Zebedee99]

So am I best leaving the Puffers tank Snail free apart from feeding time?

[Zebedee99]

I have ATM got snails that have bred in the puffer tank but it sounds like that when I add the Puffers ADIOS every [emoji222]!! I shall in that case keep the snails in a separate tank and just add when feeding. [emoji846][emoji106]

[nirbhao]

I drop the snails in the heavily planted part so the puffers get to forage but don't glut themselves.

[Zebedee99]

Thanks for the tip [emoji846]