Puffer fish

[FishKeeprWanaBe]

Hi. So does anyone have any freshwater puffer fish. They look like a really fun fish to have but it also looks like they have special needs. Im gonna start a new tank soon i don’t know how big but probably between 30-60 gallons and i wanna know what puffer fish would be a good size and how to keep it. Any advice would be appreciated

 

[TMaier]

I keep one Indian Dwarf Puffer in a 9g Biube.

I had the tank set up for several months with snails to insure it was well established before I added him.

I removed the snails to keep them available to feed a few times a week. He is also fed live grindal worms.

He is messy leaving half eaten snails around so the tank must be vacuumed and PWC weekly.

Professional food beggar!

He has 2 Amanos in here that keep the plants algae free.

 

[FishKeeprWanaBe]

Thank you for the advice!

 

[TMaier]

Be careful what you buy and research the species. I trusted my lfs and asked for a freshwater puff. They sold me one that needed brackish. I didn’t figure it out until after he passed.

 

[Brookster123]

They're pretty easy. Really need a well grown in planted tank to give them a healthy go. Not a beginner fish.

 

[bridralliw132]

I have 12 puffers total 6 green spotted puffers in brackish water that we saved from wal-mart. They are brackish, keeping the salinity costs more money than freshwater. Keeping the water is also a challenge because you cant have any cleaner fish in with them. We have 5 Dragon puffers I breed these guys. Very beautiful fish not very active can keep in a 30 just fine they eat only every other day . They have quite the personality. They are also not a beginner fish but manageable if you really try. Also we have a fahaka puffer he is definitely not for someone just trying out alot of needs to be meet.

 

[ebjornsgard]

I have a single Dwarf Puffer in a 5 gallon. It is my absolute favorite fish I have ever had. He is really not too difficult to take care of. I have a nice pet store where I get pest snails every once in a while, which I'm trying to breed. I feed him dried baby shrimp on a skewer (yes, he's spoiled). He has tons of personality.
You could have quite a few of them in a big tank. Their teeth don't grow nearly as fast as the bigger ones so that's not a big problem.
Dwarf puffers are the only species that I have kept. Other smallish ones I've heard about are Green Spotted (brackish) and South American (friendly, freshwater, fast growing teeth). Hope that helps!

 

[ebjornsgard]

Here is a current picture of my tank. I have a single Dwarf puffer in a 5 gallon tank (rectangle cube). I have a heater and a HOB filter, not sure what brand, pretty standard. He is so small, I was nervous about the holes on the filter, so I put a cover thing around it to keep him from getting sucked in. I have about 8 or so fake plants. The wider leaved plants on the left, red and green) are his favorites; he likes to sleep in the middle of the branches. The fake log is just for interesting decoration, as are the short plants in the front. The hood and light are the greatest, it just came with the tank. It's nice for him though, I've read they don't like super bright tanks. If you'd like any other information, just let me know.

 

[FishKeeprWanaBe]

Here is a current picture of my tank. I have a single Dwarf puffer in a 5 gallon tank (rectangle cube). I have a heater and a HOB filter, not sure what brand, pretty standard. He is so small, I was nervous about the holes on the filter, so I put a cover thing around it to keep him from getting sucked in. I have about 8 or so fake plants. The wider leaved plants on the left, red and green) are his favorites; he likes to sleep in the middle of the branches. The fake log is just for interesting decoration, as are the short plants in the front. The hood and light are the greatest, it just came with the tank. It's nice for him though, I've read they don't like super bright tanks. If you'd like any other information, just let me know.

View attachment 304703

Id like to know what brand and model the hood is. I looks perfect for a 5 gallons. Do you know if the light you have is rated for plants?

 

[ebjornsgard]

The tank and hood were actually part of a set that I got at Walmart. The box was "Aqua Culture", and it came with some Tetra brand accessories. I think you can get the hood by itself, but it was a much better deal for me to get it all in the kit and then switch out what I didn't like. I've never done live plants so I don't know if the light is bright enough, but I would probably guess not. It's not super bright, you can see in the picture the sides of the aquarium get pretty dark, and algae grows pretty fast in the middle.

 

[ADFlove91406]

I have the same filter if you it works really good