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FAQs about Burrfishes, Porcupinefishes Disease 2
Related Articles: Burrfishes/Porcupinefishes, Puffers in General,
Puffer
Care and Information,
Pufferfish
Dentistry By Kelly Jedlicki and Anthony Calfo,
True Puffers,
Freshwater
Puffers, Tobies/Sharpnose
Puffers, Boxfishes, Puffer
Care and Information
by John (Magnus) Champlin,
Things That My Puffers Have Told Me by Justin Petrey,
Related FAQs: Burrfish Disease 1, Diodontids 1, Diodontids
2, Diodontids
3, Burrfish Identification,
Burrfish Behavior,
Burrfish Compatibility,
Burrfish Selection,
Burrfish Systems,
Burrfish Feeding,
Burrfish Reproduction,
Puffers in General, Puffer
Selection, Puffer Behavior, Puffer Systems, Puffer
Feeding, Puffer Disease,
Puffer Dentistry,
Puffer
Reproduction, True Puffers,
Freshwater to Brackish Puffers, Tobies/Sharpnose Puffers, Boxfishes,
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Sick porcupine puffer – 07/14/08
Hey guys,
<Hi.>
we set up a saltwater tank 2 months ago.
<Size?>
Our first fish was a porcupine puffer.
<Size?>
The fish was doing well, we fed her crayfish, crabs and sometimes feeder
minnows.
<The latter is a very unhealthy food item absolutely inappropriate for your
porcupine fish.
See here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fwsubwebindex/fdgfdrartneale.htm.>
We figured she was doing so well we decided to add a dragon wrasse.
<Was the wrasse quarantined to avoid the introduction of diseases?>
She was ok for the first few days now she is all over the tank bumping into
rocks, breathing heavy and her colour is just not right.
<Might be Amyloodinium (can you see most tiny white spots and a whitish change
of coloration?) or a bacterial infection due to a weak immune system (growing
discolorations on the body?). >
The day before we gave her feeder minnows and noticed that in the tank where we
were holding the minnows they had all died.
<…>
We don’t know if its the feeder minnows, the dragon wrasse or a combination of
the two.
<All possible, especially the last. I recommend never to feed minnows to a
porcupine puffer again.>
Our ph is 8.2, we have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 20 nitrate.
<Sounds okay.>
We don’t know what to do and we don’t want to lose our puffer! Thanks.
<Clarify which of the two is most likely and start a treatment in a hospital
tank. Amyloodinium can kill very fast. Treatment options are found on WWM. See
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/puffers.htm and the linked FAQs on diseases and
also the corresponding articles on marine velvet or bacterial infections. Good
luck. Marco.>
Blind Porcupine Puffer 6/23/08
Two nights ago the bubblers in my salt-water tank stopped working, and when
I got up the next morning, one of my fish was dead, and all the
others at the bottom of the tank gasping.
<Yikes>
I put in an emergency bubbler, and turned on my supplementary bubblers, and did
a water change. (I was scheduled to do a water change over the weekend, anyway.)
Well, aside from the one fish being dead already, everybody seemed to recover,
except now I think my porcupine puffer is blind. So now I'm
worried he'll starve to death because he can't see his food.
<Mmm, not likely just from this... and likely the apparent blindness is
reversible>
Is there anything I can do to help him? I don't want to watch him starve to
death. He's my favorite fish, and I'm totally sick that this
happened.
Thanks.
Rabin'
<Try training this Puffer to come to the surface... in a corner... wiggling a
meaty, intact food item... like a shrimp, krill in the water. It will learn
quickly what you're up to. Bob Fenner>
Urgent Help please. With Spiny Boxfish. – 6/17/08
Yesterday ( Sunday ) my children brought me a Spiny Boxfish for Fathers day
which I wanted.
<Yikes, oh good>
However I noticed that one eye is clouded over and the other eye has little
specks of cloudiness on it. I have read about this and realise that Spiny
boxfish can suffer from eye infections.
<Yes... quite common... Mostly due to (prior) physical damage>
Can you advise me on what to do , Is this an easy problem to correct or does it
normally end in blindness?
<Normally self-heals given good water quality, care...>
My tank is a Trigon 350 and I have a Volitans Lionfish a Yellow Tang , Lipstick
tang , Blue Damsel , Foxface , Grouper , 2 Maroon Clownfish with Anemone and a
Green Brittle starfish all doing very well with no problems. I have just brought
a Ro-man to supply my self with Ro water.
<Good>
Basically I would to keep the Boxfish and help him recover but if from your
experiences this isn't an easy problem to solve then it might be better to take
him back to the Shop where it was purchased from. I am more than willing to
purchase medicine and administer it in my tank however I do have some corals and
Live rock which could well be disturbed.
Thank you very much for your time.
Phil.
<I urge patience here; keeping this fish in your likely much better cared for
circumstances. Perhaps the soaking of favored foods (you may have to teach all
to feed on one side of the tank, the puffer on t'other...) in Selcon or such...
to aid healing/boost the immune system. Bob Fenner>
I need help! Diodontid hlth.,
no data or reading 4/18/08
I have a new Burr fish puffer. He has only been here for 48 hours and
suddenly he has a bald belly he looked a little skinny before but I thought with
a little tlc I could turn him around. What do I do? I don't think he has or had
ick. I do not have a QT, and I have alot
<... no such word>
of other fish. HELP!
Thanks Jen
<Read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/diodontpuffers.htm
the linked files above... on Systems, Feeding... Bob Fenner>
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Porcupine Puffer... sys.
trouble – 4/12/08
Hi WWM Crew,
<Robbie>
I've been reading the site for the better part of the day and decided to write
you in case I missed something. I've had a porcupine puffer (Puffy)
for about 5 years. He was moved into a 240 gal tank about 6 months ago.
All fish tank includes 3 triggers (Bursa, Picasso, Niger),
<Mmmm>
Foxface, 8 damsels, flame hawk. Last weekend Puffy started hiding in the cave
and stopped coming out for food around Monday or Tuesday this week. Last Sunday
I lost a mono. This past Monday I lost the other 2 monos. I had the water
checked by a Santa Monica Aquarium shop and my "fish guy". Both found the tank
elements to be perfect - except salt was a bit low.
<What brand? How low?>
Odd that the Monos - a brackwater fish died from low salt though.
<Not likely>
The salt was brought back to normal but Puffy did not improve. Today he came out
of his cave and was found floating at the top of one side of the tank. I've
tried feeding him peas (frozen, boiled, then skin removed) but he won't take
them.
<Not surprising>
He had air in him earlier but my fish guy gently held and rubbed the belly and
we did see air come out, about 4 hours ago. About 1 hour ago a ton of white
stuff came shooting out of his mouth. Where he was swimming erratically earlier
he is now "bobbing" in the upper 1/4 of the tank and barely breathing. He
occasionally puffs in some water and eventually lets it out it appears. But he
just "bobs" or sinks a bit and then floats back up. There is no sign of ick or
other external disease.
<Not pathogenic at least...>
However, within the last few hours the edges of his fins have become a milky
white.
<Very bad... stress signs>
On another note, my Foxface is having issues -- although I am more concerned
about Puffy. The Foxface is swimming/bobbing in the same area of the tank. He
usually is down at the bottom picking for poop. Now his mouth is just moving
rapidly as he floats around in the 1/4 top section of the tank. Puffy to me is
the equivalent of a dog to someone else. Its killing me to see him in pain and
unable to do anything. Any idea what is going on?
Thanks
Robbie
<Some form of overt chronic poisoning is my best guess... The usual S.O.P of
massive water change/s, spiffing up your skimmer/ing, the use of chemical
filtrant/s, possibly a look into the use of ozone... Something/s amiss here...
could be electrical, dissolved gas, an endogenous microbial (crash) syndrome...
But changing out water/dilution, better aeration/filtration will definitely
help. The puffer though... is likely not going to make it. Bob Fenner>
As an update to this. Hour and a half later Puff
is now at the bottom of the tank and looks fatter in the back than normal. He is
not using any of
his fins, his mouth is just open, he is darker in color, and he is breathing
slowly.
<We'll see... BobF>
Re: Porcupine Puffer.
- 04/14/08
Hey Bob,
Thanks for the response. He didn't make it :,(
Robbie
<I do hope you are executing against a plan to save the rest of your
livestock. BobF>
Re: Porcupine Puffer.
- 04/14/08
Working on it. The problem is finding the problem. The puffer is the
only one that showed signs of stress. The monos just "dropped dead". I
literally watched one start acting odd and die in an hour. All are
eating, all look and appear healthy. I'm no pro like you, but have had
fish for
about 10 years. Never experienced anything like this. I'm used to seeing
the disease on the fish or see the chemical imbalance when I test. I am
stumped.
<Me too... thus the very general input our first correspondence... I
would at least "complex" your system by adding a DSB, macroalgal
culture, perhaps an ozonizer... B>
Re: Porcupine Puffer. - 04/14/08
Bob,
<Rob>
One thing we (me and fish maintenance guy) noticed fairly recently is
this film on top of the water.
<Bad... need to "wick" off, and provide for removal... from... food/s?>
I have a center column with flow valves on either side. Only the left
side has this "film" on top of the water. Its not dust but its this
light brown color. No idea where its coming from or what is causing it.
Maybe this has something to do with my fish dying?
Robbie
<Very likely so... can prevent oxygen from getting into solution...
would explain much here in terms of who is dying first. Bob Fenner>
Re: Porcupine Puffer
dis., and Mono sel. – 4/15/08
Hi Bob,
<Neale>
Re: the guy with the sick Diodon; if I'm reading the question right
and the "monos" that died are Monodactylus spp., then your observation
of oxygen and the scum on the surface of the tank could be right on the
money. While Monodactylus are basically bullet proof in terms of water
chemistry issues, they are unbelievably sensitive to low oxygen
tensions. Perhaps what you'd expect from a fish that lives in the surf
zone and shallow coastal seas.
<Yes... my inference as well> >
If the fish are feeding fine one moment, then stressed/dead the next,
I'd be wary that the food I was adding was too oily, and those oils
collecting on the surface of the water as a film. Usually only a problem
if there's insufficient agitation of the water. A skimmer would
obviously help, and is even recommended at SG 1.010 when keeping
Monodactylus, let alone in a marine setting. But certain frozen foods as
well as oil-rich dried foods can cause a similar scum to form.
<Agreed all the way around>
Incidentally, this oxygen issue with Monodactylus is one reason I
recommend against buying mature specimens. They don't "travel" well.
Cheers, Neale
<Interesting and noteworthy. Will post to both categories. Cheers, BobF>
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Blind porcupine puffer...
env., nutr.? 03/19/2008
Tank history and test results.....
My tank is 120 or 125 gallons still trying to figure it out.
Here are my test results: amm. 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 5-10 (colors so close I
can't tell the difference) PH 8.4, Temp 79-80 KH 200-400ppm, phosphates 1,
<High>
salinity 1.021.
<Mmm, I'd raise this>
The tank is an upgrade has been running for about 4 months. All decor and
filters were transferred to the tank with the upgrade. Before the upgrade the
tank was running for 3 months. It went from freshwater and was slowly raised to
saltwater. I took my time in raising the salinity over a period of 4 months. I
started with 2-GSP's, after raising the tank to saltwater I added a Porcupine
Puffer, another 2 weeks went by and I added a stars & stripes puffer. I don't
have any corals in the tank, just live rock. The GSP's are both about 3.5", the
Porcupine Puffer is about 3-4" and the Stars & Stripes is about 5-6". Currently
on the tank I have 2 powerheads, 1 HOB filter, a heater, a protein skimmer, new
wet/dry. On Sunday I switched two canister filters out for the wet/dry. I had 2
HOB filters on the tank but moved one to a qt this morning for my porcupine
puffer.
The Story:
On Friday March 14th, I fed my puffers they all ate well, very well. My
porcupine (the one in question) did what she normally does and went to her spot
and took a nap.
March 15th- My porcupine puffer was still in the same spot that morning which
did not worry me yet. That afternoon when I got home she still had not moved.
Now getting a little worried.
March 16th-Porcupine puffer still in the same spot, only moving her fins and
laying on the sandbed. I noticed that her eyes were not as glossy as they should
be. Starting to get more worried at this point. Had planned to remove the two
canister filters that were on the tank and replace it with the wet/dry. Did a
25% water change and switched the two canisters for the wet/dry. The initial
blast from the wet/dry caused about a million bubbles to go into the tank but
after about 30 seconds the bubbles were gone. The water was clear again. The
porcupine never moved from her spot the whole time. I did not transfer media
from the canisters to the wet/dry because I had the two established hob filters
with sponges still on the tank.
March 17th- Checked my water that morning, no signs of a mini cycle. Porcupine
still has not moved. Came home that evening she swam around very little and not
very far. Checked my water again that evening still no signs of a mini cycle.
March 18th- The porcupine puffer was swimming around this morning, but instead
of searching for food, she was bumping into everything, even the other puffers.
Her eyes look hazed over more today than the last few days. After moving her
into a qt, so that she would not hurt herself, I noticed this lump on her side
that I haven't seen before. It's about the size of a peanut and causing her
spines to stick up. Just about two weeks ago she had these odd spots on her fin
and so did the Stars & Stripes. She has had them before and they seem to just go
away without meds. Well again they went away without any meds. I don't know if
these two things are related or not but thought I should mention it.
<Good to mention>
Well that pretty much brings us up to date. Sorry for the book I just wrote but
I wanted to give all the details so that maybe, just maybe I can figure out what
is wrong with her.
Here are a few pictures that I took this morning:
Picture of the lump
http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee127/edmlfc1/?action=view¤t=DSCF1926.jpg
Another picture of the lump
http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee127/edmlfc1/?action=view¤t=DSCF1925.jpg
Picture of her hazy eyes
http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee127/edmlfc1/?action=view¤t=DSCF1907.jpg
<Mmm, me neither... from the data presented. Such blindness and lumpiness
episodes are too-common amongst spiny puffers though... some environmental and
nutritional inputs... Please read here re:
http://wetwebmedia.com/burrfishdisfaqs.htm
and the linked files above. Bob Fenner>
Possible HLLE in Pork Puffer,
fins also involved 3/18/08
Hello Bob and Crew!
<Hello>
My VHO lighting crashed about 2 weeks ago.
Since then I've been substituting with two smaller strip-lights and 2 lamps.
I ordered a new ballast after replacing the bulbs and giving up on tinkering.
Anyways, my porcupine puffer has developed what looks like HLLE-The pale
forehead, a few pits.
He hasn't eaten in 3 days, and he's been swimming away from me and staying
towards the bottom, breathing heavily
<Not good.>
Very unusual for him. Also, He also has some bits on his fins and tail
where it's opaque, with a streak of brown.
I am setting up a QT tank, but I can't get a picture that's any help.
Can this be from the lack of light? Should I treat with an antibiotic?
<Not from lack of light directly, but probably due to lower water quality. What
are your water parameters? HLLE is usually environmental and dietary in nature.
I would not treat with antibiotics unless you diagnose a bacterial infection.
See here for more http://www.wetwebmedia.com/hllefaqs.htm >
<Chris>
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Pufferfish Fading 3-18-08
Hi,
We have had a porcupine puffer fish (3 in.) for a month. This is our
first brackish system and there are no other fish in our 30 gallon tank.
<I am hoping that this is a Green Spotted Pufferfish and not a Porcupine
Puffer. Does he have little black spots all over his body?>
Our filter system does 250-300 gallons/hour, it can go up to 480 gal/hr.
We were told to do a 20% water change once/month.
<I would up this to about twice a week if you are doing 20% or do 50%
once a month.>
My husband did one last night but up until know he has been adding water
because of evaporation & checking the salinity. Puffy seems to losing
its color, he was a yellow color and now seems to be a pale
yellow/white-ish color.
<Did your husband bring the temperature up to match that of the tank
when changing the water?>
I read about ich but I can't tell if he has it.
<Doubtful, you would see white specks all over his body. It is easy to
notice.>
He is also not interested in eating krill, we feed once/day.
<I would feed him once every 2-3 days seeing as he is fairly large. Also
instead of krill which when fed alone doesn’t present much nutritional
value to a puffer, I suggest getting some mussels, clams, snails and
other crunchy foods that puffers enjoy. This food also helps wear down
the teeth naturally so they do not become overgrown, making it difficult
for the puffer to eat or forcing you to do dentistry on him. Frozen
shellfish are fine as long as they are defrosted completely in the water
from the tank before feeding.>
I can't tell if his breathing is labored. Finally, he has a light
red/pink colored spot on top approximately half inch in diameter on top
three-quarters down from the head & a small red dot. It looks like he
might be rubbing himself & its irritated.
<This is possibly a wound from a scratch or a bite mark that is healing.
I would get some Melafix to help treat that.>
We've seen him squeeze behind the filter. He has happy, comes to see us
for feeding. He still seems kind of happy but is not eating. I read that
they can be sensitive to ammonia & nitrates so I'm going to pick up an
ammonia test kit tomorrow.
<Get a test kit that includes Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrites tests as these
are your most critical when it comes to puffers. Most likely he was a
little aggravated from the water change and if he still seems happy I
doubt there is anything to worry about. Puffers can change colors
depending on moods. If you do notice that he is lethargic or has a very
black belly then something is wrong. I wouldn’t worry about him not
eating, he doesn’t have to feed everyday.>
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
<If you can, get back to me on your water parameters and a positive ID
on Puffy. A picture would be great if you can take one.>
Thanks
<No problem! –Yunachin>
Kim
Re: Pufferfish Fading
3-18-08
Hi,
Thank you for all your advice! He's definitely a porcupine puffer fish.
He looks like the images on Google. So what I've found out after
visiting 3 pet stores yesterday is that I needed to get the tank cycling
to ensure proper nitrite levels.
<Not just nitrites but everything in between.>
We didn't know this when we started. So when we started the tank, we got
the salinity stable (2 weeks) then got the puffer fish (additional 3-4
weeks). Feel free to correct me if I misunderstand anything, like I said
before this is our first brackish system ?
<You don’t want to use the term “brackish” as that is a lower level than
marine, usually at a salinity of 1.004-1.016, IMO.>
Right now our tank is in the nitrate phase & as expected our nitrates
are high, pH low 7.5, ammonia OK.
<Use of a product called Prime will help ease this.>
I believe the loss of color in our puffer is because he's stressed
because they are very sensitive to pH changes & not the best fish to use
to start a salt water tank :(
<All fish are going to be sensitive to fluctuations in Ph, I would worry
about the Nitrite levels first as these will affect him the most
negatively.>
He is the only fish in the tank and the spot is not a spot it's actually
a brick red colored stuff growing on him, the guy at the pet store said
that it sounds like a bacteria, not surprising to him because our pH was
low.
<Once again, low Ph is not your problem. 7.4 is not bad at all and can
be tolerated by the puffer. The growth could be bacterial and treating
it with erythromycin is the way to go.>
I have started penicillin treatment & added Cycle (good bacteria to help
break down the ammonia & nitrates). I removed the carbon filter so the
carbon will not absorb the medication.
<Good. When this is all said and done, make sure to do some hefty water
changes. Cycle though; I am not a fan of. If it is not stored properly
it loses all of its beneficial properties. This could all occur even
before it comes into your hands so I always say do a fishless cycle,
it’s safer and efficient. There is an article about it on
www.thepufferforum.com>
I was also told to slowly raise the pH of the tank. So I bought a buffer
and added 1 treatment to the tank. The instructions said it can take 2
days for the pH to stabilize so I will check it tonight (that makes it
24 hr). I'm not sure what slowly means, hours? Days? The buffer
instructions said I should add supplements Calcium & trace minerals?
Suggestions?
<Instead of adding buffers and chemicals and everything else, you can
add crushed coral, aragonite or even sea shells and it will naturally
regulate your tank without any side effects. I would go this route.>
I'm under the impression that I should not do any water changes until
after antibiotic treatment which will take 4 days. Should I do one after
that or wait until the tank's ammonia & nitrate levels are 0 & some
nitrites? If I should do a water change, how much? Any advice on water
changes would be appreciated.
<I would do a water change after the antibiotic treatment is through. I
would do 50% on day one, 20% on day two then wait a day and do another
20% on day 4. I would then do 30-40% every two weeks.>
Also, my husband was concerned about getting the water up to
temperature, so he ended up not doing the water change but we are aware
of that.
<Adding a heater to the bucket of water for about 20-30 minutes will
warm it right up.>
Is 2-3 inches large for a porcupine pufferfish? I was told that they can
get even bigger & the tank we have is not an ideal tank. Recommended
tank size is 75 gallon minimum.
<These puffers have been known to grow to 18 inches in the wild and I
have had the pleasure of seeing large ones similar to this is person.
They will get large though and a 100 gallon is recommended. Though at 3
inches right now your tank would be fine. You will have to work on a
larger tank in the future though.>
I was told this could also be stressing the puffer out. How often should
I feed him?
<Every other day would be sufficient.>
How many days can he go without eating? It's been 3 days right now. What
foods are more appealing to a sick puffy? You can try a piece of krill
soaked in garlic if you do not have any fresh shrimp or mussel on hand.
Garlic is an appetite enhancer and will tempt him to eat, but don’t fret
if he doesn’t yet as he is under treatment.>
If all goes well I will start getting him some mussels, snails, clams.
Should I buy this from a pet store or supermarket? How often should I
give him these?
<Market or pet store will be fine. I often find purchasing them frozen
then I can pull them out and defrost them as needed. Every other day
will be fine with these as well, even every three days will be perfect.>
When should I expect to see the bacteria clear up and if get the tank
conditions under control how fast should I see the puffer recover?
<It all depends on how positively he responds to the medicine. He should
start to look up in the next 4 days or so. Do not add any more additives
or chemicals to your tank though. Let these medicines run their course,
get some aragonite/crushed coral, and do your water changes when it is
all said and done. In the meanwhile check out this link and work your
way through the information on porcupine puffers:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/diodontpuffers.htm; It will help with any
other questions you may have. >
Thanks
Your website is priceless.
<You’re welcome. Good Luck. Keep me posted on Puffy’s condition.^_^>
Kim |
|
Puffer Problems and
Overstocking 3-4-08
I have been looking on your website for two days and I got some information,
but I was hoping if I tell you the story you might have a more clear answer. I
have a 125 gallon saltwater tank with about 120 pounds of live rock.
I have
2 maroon clownfish
1 Sweetlips
1 lawn mower blenny
2 sharp nose puffers
3 green spotted puffers
1 yellow tang
1 anemone
1 Foxface
1 dogface puffer
and lasting
1 porcupine puffer.
<First things first…This tanks is incredibly overstocked!! Half of this list
would be more applicable. Second, you never ever want to combine anemones with
puffers due to their curiosity and tendency to nip at things that spark their
attention. One nip to an anemone can be the end of a puffer. >
I just moved the tank last month and have had some trouble with the nitrate
level since, as of today my levels were, ammonia .25, nitrite 0, ph 7.8 and
nitrate 80. Off the charts almost.
<Due to overstocking.>
That being said, two days ago I introduced a new porcupine puffer into my tank.
<Was he quarantined first?>
It was smaller by about half. I noticed the new one was chasing my OG around the
tank and I said I would give it overnight and if they were not getting along by
then I would take it back.
<Combining multiple species of puffers will most often lead to aggression. You
have 4 different kinds here, so there are always going to be problems unless you
remove some.>
The next morning (yesterday) I found my OG puffer breathing very heavy at the
bottom of the tank, he was not responsive to my touch or net. I removed him from
the tank and put him in a bucket with a pump to get him more oxygen. This seemed
to work as he perked up and started swimming and got his color back after about
three hours I put him back into the main tank. That is when I noticed he was
running into things, first he went to the top of the water line and gulping air,
then calmed down but still is
running into stuff, his eyes are moving around but he can't see. I put him in an
iso net as I don't have a hospital tank right now. I am using ich-attack and
MelaFix right now and I have done a 30 gallon water change tonight.
<Ich isn’t his problem and medicating unnecessary will do more harm than good
seeing as puffers was very sensitive to medications. I cannot stress enough
about quarantining new fish before adding them into your main tank. New fish,
especially porcupines carry parasites and other diseases that can harm or kill
your other fish. You need to see about getting him into a quarantine tank
a.s.a.p. Do 50% water changes in your main tank every other day for at least a
week. I would see if a local LFS can take some of the fish out of your tank. I
know it will be hard to part with your friends but if you do not lower the
bio-load then they will surely perish. Your high nitrates are due to too much
feeding and not enough water changes. The reason why the puffer responded
positively when you removed him from that main tank is because it was like a
breath of fresh air for him. Placing him back into the bad water caused him to
go bad to feeling bad again. I think once you remedy this water and overstocking
situation, things in your tank will be much better.>
Please let me know how to help him he is my favorite fish.
Thanks so much for your time.
<You’re welcome and good luck. ---Yunachin>
Holly
Re: Puffer Problems and
Overstocking Re: 3-9-08
I just wanted to give you an update. I continued to have nitrate problems so
I took a water sample to my LFS. They checked it and everything was normal so my
test kit was wrong. (I bought a new one) I also bought a nano tank where I
placed my blind puffer.
<Sounds great so far.>
I started to treat him with copper; I removed him today and put him back into
the main where I am treating them with Rally ich med and Rally bacterial med.
<<These are shams. RMF>>
<He needs more than 4 days in a quarantine tank, probably a couple of weeks.
Also why are you treating him/them with all of these multiple medications?
Puffers are especially sensitive to copper and it can do more damage than help.
Also medicating fish just because is never a good idea either. Again puffers are
highly sensitive to medications and because these are “scale-less” creatures
most medications are not recommended for use on them in the first place. I would
cease all of the medicating on the main tank immediately and do some large water
changes. Check out this link for treatment on QT safely:
http://wetwebmedia.com/quinmedfaqs.htm;>
My levels are all normal. Do you have any suggestions on how I can get him to
eat? I use garlic and he was not interested but I think it was because of the
copper. It's been a week since he's had food.
<He is definitely going to be affected from the copper. I would read through the
site starting here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/diodontidfaqs.htm; and work your
way through the sections, feeding, disease, etc. There is lots of information
there to help answer your questions.>
Gizmo is still blind but I am hopeful. I don't want to have to put him down as
he's totally fine other than his blindness. Please help. BTW all my fish in my
tank are very small Gizmo is my largest fish at about 5 inches, also all my
puffers have been getting along since day 1, I guess I was lucky. The new one I
introduced was a problem so I took him back the day after I got him.
<Here is the problem; there are too many fish in this tank. It doesn’t matter
what size they are now, they are going to grow, and most likely be stunted due
to being forced to live in a cramped environment. Also there is going to be
aggression, period. They may get along that you can see now but that will not be
the case in the future. Again there are several species of puffer in this tank
increasing the bio-load immensely. You are going to have problems with the
health of these fish in the future and if kept in their current conditions, will
dramatically shorten their life spans. Please reconsider taking some back to
your LFS, or possibly getting another tank to split these fish up. >
Thank you.
<Good Luck---Yunachin>
|
|
Porcupine Puffer Problems.
2-4-08
Hi there.
<Hey, Mike here - I'm free! FREE! from lab...>
My name is Stephanie, and I've had my Porcupine Puffer for about a year.
<I've had one before as well, I love puffers>
He's been happy and active until about 2 weeks ago. I know that puffers
naturally have a sort of humpback look, but he's developed an actual lump on his
back, more on the left side than the right. He hasn't eaten (or pooed) for about
a week and a half. I've tried isolating him in freshwater for a while every
other day because I've heard it's good for getting rid of parasites if that's
the case, but he's doing the same. He'll only swim around every once in a while,
and he practically goes into convulsions. It looks like he's coughing, sneezing,
spasming whenever he swims around. His "breathing" has sped up too. He still
gets the little happy glimmer in his eye when I go near the tank, but he won't
swim towards me or flap his fins like he used to.
<Could be worse>
He acts like he doesn't want to move. I'm stuck. Please help.
<I would stop the dips unless your puffer shows signs of external parasites, or
behaves as though it's being externally irritated ('flashes' against rocks,
scratches himself against rocks or substrate, etc). I'm going to need more
information to really help you here though...what are your water params (pH,
ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, salinity)? What size aquarium and fish? Have you been
feeding him a diet consisting mostly/strictly dry foods?>
Thanks for your time.
<Sure thing - wish I could be of more help. Get back to me on this. - M. Maddox>
Re: Porcupine Puffer
Problems part II 4-05-08
I have two damsels and a clownfish along with my puffer (they all
get along great and have since I introduced my puffer to them a year
ago) in a 30 gal tank.
<Whoa! This is *WAY* too small! You're going to need a 125+ gallon tank
for this guy as he approaches adult size, and only very small specimens
should be kept in an aquarium as small as yours, and not for very long
without undue stress/stunting, which I'm sure he's now undergoing as
you've had in him such a tiny tank for so long>
All levels are PERFECT (just tested them two days ago...ideal
conditions) ammonia, PH, nitrates, and salinity.
<Ideal as in zero, 8.0-4, under 20ppm, and 1.018-1.026 sg? Numbers are
more useful than statements>
I just did a 25% water change when I cleaned the tank last week, but
there's no change in his behavior. :( The lump on his back is getting
more prominent too. Could he have a worm in there or something?
Hopefully this helps more.
<You didn't answer all of my questions, such as his diet and size.
However, the best thing you could do at the moment is get a bigger tank
and get him into it (75+ gallons preferably, 125+ ideally). Puffers can
go on hunger strikes for days/weeks due to stress or illness, and
usually survive if conditions improve. Set up a larger aquarium and move
your puffer in asap, as well as offer raw meaty seafoods (shrimp,
scallops or oysters, from your grocery store) or live foods (especially
useful for temping him out of his possible hunger strike). Please see
the following links for further information:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/puffcareinfo.htm, and
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/pufferfdgfaqs.htm, and related FAQs.
In the future, please do your research and do not place fish in
environments unsuitable for their wellbeing. M. Maddox>
Porcupine Puffer
Problems III 2-06-08
A hunger strike? All of the sudden after a year of the same living
conditions, when he's the same size as he's been for a while? That just
doesn't seem logical to me.
And what about the lump on his back (more on the left side)? That's the
main issue I need addressed, if you will. Thank you again for your time.
<It isn't logical to you because you obviously haven't done your
research regarding the proper care of this animal. Does it seem logical
to keep a fish who's maximum size is well over 18 inches in a 30 gallon
aquarium? Does it seem logical that your animal "has stayed the same
size for a while"? Healthy animals grow - animals kept in a veritable
'jail cell' are stunted and do not, and this will manifest itself in
physiologically and psychologically, which is the most likely
explanation of his lack of eating and morphological problem. As I stated
previously, move your fish into larger quarters asap, and offer him a
varied diet. M. Maddox> <<Whoa! Harsh, but the facts. RMF>>
Porcupine Puffer Problems
Part IV 2-06-08
Oooooh, struck a note with the 'logical' comment didn't I? So defensive, so
defensive.
<Simply illustrating a point>
I should have said "similar size" as he has grown, and every once in a while
I'll feed him silversides... and I have done my research...every fish store I've
gone to has told me the size for how little (in size and amount) fish I have, my
tank is fine...as well as other suuuuurely credible website 'experts' like
yourselves.
<Other fish species have nothing to do with the eventual size of your puffer>
But hey...thanks anyways!
<Sure thing>
I don't have tons of money like you to buy a 400 gallon $2000 tank for one fish,
with your obvious 'professionalism' displayed by trying to cut down a woman
asking about a fish, surely the business must be lucrative.
<Actually, this is a strictly volunteer website. Wasn't trying to "cut you down"
- merely answering a question that you asked me. I can't help it if you dislike
the answer, and choose to ignore sound advice. Maybe you shouldn't purchase and
animal you don't have the financial ability to support. M. Maddox>
|
Lactoria loss residual
effects... stressed puffers 12/19/07
We have just recently lost our longhorn cowfish in the middle of the night.
The worst affected fish were our web burr fish and porcupine puffer. We
immediately removed the puffs to our hospital tank. In our panic we did not
realize that copper in high levels are very bad to puffers. Well we have been
treating a hippo tang for ich with copper. Then we did a 50% water change,
changed and increased our charcoal media in the filter. Then I came to this site
to get anymore info I could about getting rid of the toxin and saving
everything. I then read that copper can be very bad for puffers if it is too
strong. So then I gave them both a fresh water bath and put them in the newly
cleaned tank. Now my burr is swimming with his tail in the air, so then I read
that I could "burp" him to get any ingested air out of his stomach.
<A note here for you and browsers... A good idea to NOT lift puffers into the
air... to prevent their gulping it in>
Got a huge bubble out and he did better but now is doing it again, so I tried
again but no air this time. My porcupine just sits on the bottom and barely
moves. Also both fish have a huge white area the showed up soon after the copper
treatment. Is there any hope for these fish or should I end their suffering?
Please help, I feel so terrible.
Cic
<Mmm, just time going by... I would place all the removed animals back in the
main system if the copper has been removed, there is no longer Crypt to contend
with... Bob Fenner>
Ill/Malnourished Porcupine
Puffer - 12/13/07
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
I have had a Porcupine puffer for almost a year now. Just recently he has just
been sitting on the bottom of the tank only moving around when I come near the
tank. I have feed him mysis shrimp, krill, squid and brine shrimp but now the
only thing he will touch is the krill and even then he will chew it up and spit
it out wasting more than he eats.
<How are his teeth? Puffer's natural diet consists of crustaceans that are
crunchy. I would bet his main staple is the easiest to feed: krill. Even the
other foods you are feeding him should be soaked in a good quality vitamin like
Selcon. Here is a good list of puffer foods:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/feeding/feeding-your-puffers/ >
He is housed in a 180 gallon aquarium. pH 7.8, ammonia .25, nitrite 0, nitrate
10. The lionfish he is housed with seems to be doing fine. Should I try feeding
some live food, maybe ghost shrimp or live brine?
<Neither have much nutrition, as they are mostly water unless gut-loaded with
some kind of food. ANY ammonia at all is a problem & extremely toxic to your
fish. You need to find the cause of ammonia. There should be none in an
established tank. Whether it be uneaten food or an expired, smaller fish, you
need to do a thorough cleaning under & around all decor with several water
changes, to remedy the problem.>
Also, what kind of snails would he eat? He is paler than normal and also is
breathing a little harder than normal.
<This could be because of the malnutrition from his present diet. My other
concern would be if he got stung by your lionfish.>
Would it be beneficial to move him to a quarantine tank? I have a 100 gallon
that is cycled with nothing in it.
<It might be a good idea to separate him from the lion & the ammonia.>
Also, I have treated the tank with garlic, this seemed ineffective.
<Try soaking the other kinds of foods listed in the link above in the garlic
(and vitamins) to entice his eagerness to try something new.>
Please help, I would be devastated if I were to loose him. I am going to get
some salt and do a water change to try and bring down the ammonia and nitrate
and bring up the pH. Could this be the problem? If it was, wouldn't the lionfish
be affected too?
<Maybe, I would think they would be as sensitive to ammonia problems as a
puffer, which is why I have a concern for the puffer possibly having gotten
stung. I hope he comes out of this a healthy, long-lived puffer! ~PP>
Thanks
Re: Ill/Malnourished Porcupine Puffer 11/13/07
<Hi there, I was hoping you might have noticed my corrections of your first
letter. As written in a page on how to contact the WWM Crew: "PLEASE take the
time to go over your messages to us...Common courtesy, a desire to serve as
proper examples... should compel you to capitalize the beginnings of sentences,
proper nouns, run your spell-checker... re-read your posts for clarity,
completeness. Of the hours per day spent responding to, "moving around" "FAQs"
this activity takes up the most time and is most onerous. Do help us help you
here by reviewing, correcting your input as all content is answered, then posted
on this website and read over MANY times by others." You sound like a nice
person but his is the last one I will correct. The first letter took me almost
10 minutes.>
Should I be feeding him every other day still or should I try feeding him every
day to get the vitamins in him faster?
<I suggest daily, until you see improvement.>
I did 2 25% water changes over the last 2 days and seemed to help with the
ammonia and nitrate.
<That's great! Keep them up & do larger water changes if necessary, to keep the
ammonia & nitrite at 0 & nitrate below 20 (below 10 is even better).>
I have been doing 50% monthly water changes would I be better off doing smaller
weekly water changes or even daily water changes?
<Without a sump & refugium to keep your parameters steadier & lower, you need to
do whatever water changes necessary to keep them from becoming toxic. I did 50%
weeklies on my tank, until I added these extras to my system.>
I tried to feed him some ghost shrimp that were soaked in vitamins but he
totally ignored it but ate the krill. Also he is somewhat eating clams and
squid.
<Wonderful!>
He seems to be getting skinny. How long will he be able to survive with these
eating habits? He's been like this for about 5 days now.
<Puffers can go quite some time without eating but it sounds like it's been a
long time since this puffer has gotten proper nutrition. Keep trying to get him
to eat healthy & soak his food in garlic in addition to the vitamin, to boost
his appetite.>
Also, his teeth look good to me but I really don't know what to look for but
they seem fairly short. I appreciate any help.
<Generally, the Diodon holacanthus species rarely have dentistry problems but I
was concerned because of his previous diet. It doesn't seem to be a concern
though. So keep up with the water changes & better diet & I think he'll pull
through. ~PP>
Sick Porcupine Puffer??
12/9/07
I have had my Porcupine Puffer for about 8 months now and has been doing
great up until 3 days ago he has become very inactive and seems to be breathing
harder than normal and pale in color. He is still eating Krill and Mysis shrimp.
<If this is all he is eating, it may well be the source of his apparent problem.
Feeding a puffer only Krill and Mysis for a long time will assuredly result in
deficiency diseases… imagine exclusively eating rice crackers for half a year.
Puffers should be fed a varied diet of mussels, clams, snails, shrimps, crabs
etc. (…and squid from time to time). Also add vitamins to provide some nutrients
that might have been lost during freezing/thawing. Anyway, it is a good sign he
is still eating. >
I have him housed in a 180 gallon tank with a 90 gallon sump.
<Good system size for Diodon holocanthus.>
Also, he is housed with a 8 inch lionfish and a 18 inch moray eel both of which
seem to be fine. Should I be worried or is he just going threw <through?> a
stage?
<The elevated breathing and colour change would make me worried. Possibly his
immune system is down and infections may gain a foothold now.>
Water quality checks out to be good.
<Numbers? Check the nitrates. If they are 20 or higher bring them down with
adequate water changes.>
I know my lionfish will sometimes go a week every now and then with out eating
when he is "shedding"
<… to remove any hitchhikers… sometimes triggered by a decline in water quality
or by parasites… check both if the “shedding” occurs often.>
Do puffers go through a stage when they are inactive like this?
<No, this sounds more like a nutritional problem as described above.>
There is about 75 pounds of rock in the tank. Any help would be appreciated.
<Change the diet, add vitamins, check the nitrates and maybe your puffer will
get well again. I wish you luck! Marco.>
We eat the rude...
Mis-stocked burrfish, poor English, no searching ahead of writing.... Grrrr
12/07/2007
hi,
I am writing because I have a dilemma with my porcupine puffer. it has puffed up
for no reason. it has puffed up a few times today. he shares a 100 gallon tank
with a tomato clown, tang, dogface puffer, coral beauty and a pink tail trigger.
right now he is puffed up floating at the top of the tank. how do I deflate him?
<... Please, fix your English before writing us... and search what is posted on
WWM already, as instructed... You have a situation that has caused, will cause
the Diodontid to puff-up... the Trigger... read re the Compatibility... Systems
of the fishes you list. BobF> Puffer with lump – 11/18/2007
Hey guys,
<Hi Jason>
I recently purchased a porcupine puffer last week, and have been getting some
great info off of your website. After I acclimated my little 2" guy into a 55
gallon tank (soon to be a 120g), he seemed perfectly fine. The second and third
day he had lost his appetite and started breathing fairly heavy. The staff at my
local fish store suggested dropping the salinity, which I did over the next few
days (from 1.025 to 1.012).
<No need for hyposalinity here as long as no clear Whitespot infection occurs.
Keep monitoring the water parameters and assure surface movement and skimming
are sufficient to provide enough oxygen.>
The salinity drop didn't help his breathing, but it did bring back his appetite
in full force.
<He needs to settle in. This can take a week.>
After I woke up this morning, I noticed that he had a lump in his tail, just to
the right of
his back fin (approximately 1/2" in diameter and a few millimetres tall). It
also appeared that his back fin was immobile, and he was floating tail-up/face
down.
<Some gas in his intestines.>
I immediately though that he may have swallowed air during the night, so I
attempted to burp him. After I submerged my hand in the tank, the bump went
away,
<…this confirms it’s a gas bubble and no bacterial lump or tumor.>
and he started swimming normally. After I removed my hand from the tank, the
lump came back, and he started swimming tail up/face down again. Is he a little
trickster or is that common?
<This bubble is not common, but porcupine puffers with problems while settling
in are more than common.>
What else can I try to regulate his breathing?
<Salinity should be 1.025 again. Provide enough oxygen by surface movement and
skimming. Monitor pH, nitrites, ammonia, nitrates and act accordingly if
endangering changes occur. If still necessary try to massage the gas bubble out
of his rear end. Look for tiny white spots (marine velvet), salt like spots
(marine white spot), cloudy eyes (secondary bacterial infection) and see WWM
re.>
(Here is my tank info: 55 Gallons, pH 8.2, Water Temp 78-80 degrees, Salinity
1.015, Ammonia/Nitrates/Nitrites 0, Diet: krill, brine shrimp, snails,
<Should also add mussel flesh, clams and avoid to feed too much krill and brine
shrimp. Add vitamins from time to time.>
Tankmates: 1 striped damsel, 1 small red crab (both are really good about hiding
from the puffer when he looks hungry!). Any suggestions?
<See above and if you have not it read yet:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/diodontpuffers.htm and the linked files above.>
Jason
<Good luck. Marco.>
Puffer with suspected Ich
11/16/07
Hi guys
<Debs>
I hope you can help me. I have researched your site and found many partial
answers to my problem but would really appreciate some definitive advice. I
purchased a porcupine puffer 12 days ago, about 5 inches long and placed him in
QT tank of 25g with external filter, protein skimmer, large UV skimmer and air
stones. I know the tank is too small for him but I was prepared to do daily
water changes while he was in there to control the ammonia/nitrates. My other
tank is 7ft long, approx 150g with yellow tang, Sailfin tang, 2 Anthias, tomato
clown, clarki clown and a humbug, all quite large fish, and a sump with trickle
flow over bio filters, 2 large UVs, protein skimmer, carbon and potassium
filters and a calcium reactor. There are a few corals and snails and a sea
urchin but no shrimps.
<The Puffer may chomp on the invertebrates listed...>
In the QT I have been doing daily water changes 25% , as there was an ammonia
spike when I originally put him in. I bought some "bactinettes" from LFS and now
ammonia is at zero, nitrite at 0.25 and nitrates (just before water change) are
about 80.
<Yikes! Too high>
In The LFS he was in 28 degrees temp, but I have gradually lowered him to 26
degrees in preparation for going in main tank.
<S/b fine>
Anyhow, the puffer was fine until 2 days ago when I noticed a couple of
whitespots on his tail and above his eye. I have read that they are susceptible
to Ich so I decided to try and nip it in the bud and gave him a freshwater dip.
<Mmmm>
I caught him in a plastic container and it all went fine, he didn't seem
stressed at all. Only problem was, I had to put him back in the QT. The next
morning, he looked fine. But the following morning, he was covered in little
white spots !!
<Now, this IS likely Crypt>
I did another freshwater bath (temp and PH adjusted) and decided to leave him in
longer this time, got him to 8 min.s when he blew himself up, so removed him and
put him back in the QT. This time I have decided to do a 100% water change,
using 75% water from main tank and 25% new water. I couldn't do this yesterday
because it takes a while to make the RO water. Now I'm ready to do this, I want
to remove him to another tank with medication while I do the complete water
change.
The question is, what medication do I use ? I know from your website not to use
copper. Can I use formalin, if so, how long can he stay in it?
<I would use an emersion bath...>
Or can I use Methylene blue, again how long?
<Just the formalin>
Or should I just do another freshwater dip?
<No, I would add the formalin>
This time he is going to return to a cleaned tank. My other question is what do
I need to remove from this tank to make sure I remove all the Ich?
<? I would perform one last pH adjusted Freshwater and formalin dip enroute to
moving the puffer to the main display, dump, air-dry the treatment tank>
At the moment, it has some liverock and some sand. I know I should remove the
sand but should I also remove the liverock?
<Oh! I would just let the material run "fallow", sans fish hosts for a couple
months>
Should I also clean out all equipment that has come into contact with this
water, ie filters, tubing, etc with tap water?
<No... the absence of fish hosts...>
All this time, he has behaved normally and eats well. So last question, is there
anything that could be confused with Ich ? ( they definitely aren't water
bubbles !)
<All sorts of Protozoans, some worms and crustacean parasites... and spurious
"dots" from stress...>
Did I react too quickly to those first few spots and make matters worse by
stressing him ?
<Maybe... but the Crypt is good to catch at this stage...>
I would really appreciate some straightforward answers , even better, direct
instructions on how to proceed with this?
<I would also treat with quinine, and vacuum the bottom of the treatment tank
during the dip/bath procedures (to remove cysts)...>
Apologies for sounding like an ignoramus but different LFS's give out different
advice (often dud) and I never know who to believe, except you guys of course !
Many thanks
Debs
<Is this all clear? There is a large amount of material to understand, counting
cautionary statements, remarks... Bob Fenner>
Re: Puffer with suspected Ich- please
reply ASAP - I need to move puffer today - thank you ! – 11/17/07
Hi again- thanks for your advice.
<Welcome Debs>
I have refrained from doing anything until I got your reply which is
just as well as I had decided to use Methylene blue as LFS had urged me
NOT to use formalin.
Can I just ask a couple more questions, just to be sure ? When you say
'immersion bath ' with formalin, how long does he stay in for? An hour ?
And then followed by a freshwater dip, presumably the 8 min.s he managed
last time was about right ?
<Mmm, no... Please read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/formalinart.htm
and the linked files above>
And you definitely think I should put him in the main display with the
other fish?
<Yes>
Is that because of the chance of this reoccurring due to the QT tank
being so small?
<In part... more to be gained by moving>
I raised the temp overnight by 1 degree to 27 degrees, but the puffer is
currently at 27.9 degrees ( I have a Aquastar system) - will this drop
in temp bother him?
<No, not likely>
I'm a bit worried because I don't have a hospital tank big enough for
all the fishes if it reoccurs.
Thank you so much !
Debs
<Welcome. BobF>
Re: Puffer with suspected Ich -
further question – 11/17/07
Hi again Bob,
<Debs>
Just thought, if I'm going to put the puffer in the main tank , would it
be a better idea to add formalin to the QT tank he is already in to make
it less stressful, ie one less move?
<Could do>
I will remove the live rock and biofilter before doing this, and then
replace them when I've completed the treatment and cleaned out the tank
and filled it with new water. Or is it wiser to mix the formalin in a
separate tank and move him to it ?
Also, formalin strength, should I go for half normal dosage ?
Thanks !
Debs
<... posted... BobF>
Re: Puffer with suspected Ich
– 11/17/07
Hi Bob ,
Sorry to pester you again with a third follow up e-mail but I forgot to
mention something !! Since we got him, the puffer has crisscross
scratches on both his eyes. I looked it up and found that they can get
this from being netted, which the LFS guy did to get him in the bag. I
was hoping it would heal on its own, but hasn't. Any idea what it could
be ?
Sorry to be such a persistent pest !!
Debs
<Likely are scratches, as you state. RMF> |
Sick puffer, burrfish env.
11/6/07
Hello people,
<Jesse>
I am hoping that you can help me with my Porcupine Puffer. I have had him for
about 6 months and he has been doing great. He is in a 250g tank and the
parameters are Ammonia: 0, Nitrate: 0, Nitrite: 30 (this has become a common
reading since he was first introduced to the tank.
<I would be reading, making plans on how to lower this...>
Temp: 76-79, PH: 8.4, Gravity 1.020 (I was advised to lower it from 1.025 by my
LFS).
<Mmm, I would not do this... for the reasons stated on WWM...>
About 3 weeks ago, his skin became blotchy and he developed dry spots across his
back. The LFS said it looked like a fungal infection,
<... no>
but did not offer a remedy other than serious antibiotics.
<... a very poor idea>
I decided to raise the temperature to 81 degrees, and perform fresh water dips
with methlyne (sp?) blue for 15 min.s.
<... ditto>
I also turned off the lights for most of the day. The puffer ate regularly, but
often hid under rocks or rested in between rock formations for the majority of
the day. I would also find that he would occasionally puff up after I had turned
out the lights. After a week of treatment, he seemed ok.
The infection
<Not an infection>
was no longer visible and he was back to his normal self. Last Monday he
suddenly stopped eating. He has not eaten in over a week and swims away as
though he is afraid of the hand that usually feeds him. He usually eats squid,
prawns and octopus supplemented with Vita-Chem.
<Good>
I also occasionally feed him snails and crayfish to wear down his teeth. I have
no idea what to do with him. My only other thought was that another fish was
picking on him. I had added an Emperor Angel to my tank about 2 months ago, but
I have never witnessed any aggression between him or the other fish. I hope that
this was enough information; I would be terribly embarrassed if this was the
funkiest question of the day.
Thanks,
Jesse
<Heeeee! No worries. I would improve the environment... slowly raise the spg to
seawater concentration (like a thousandth per day) and seek out the means of
reducing and keeping the NO3 below 20 ppm... See WWM re... and this fish will
return to good health. Bob Fenner>
Puffer Problems - Help! Error
upon error upon... 10/27/07
Hello All;
I'm in distress. We have a porcupine puffer in our 30 gallon cube (I know too
small but for now so is he). We have ich. I started to treat the tank with
Cupramine (suggested by Store owner)
<... not in the display tank... You'll kill off all beneficial life...>
as I have no QT. I took all the inverts out and did the first dose. Tonight is
the scheduled second dose but I am reading here that I may have made a mistake
with this.....
Simply put, what should I do now?????
Sincerely,
Tim and Doreen
<Read... and either move the fishes to treat them elsewhere, or ask someone else
(the helpful store?) to do so. Start here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ichartmar.htm
and the linked files above, particularly on copper use. Bob Fenner>
Very very sick porcupine
puffer, needing to read re sys., fdg.... 8/30/07
I have a 90 gallon salt water tank.
<Too small...>
My porcupine puffer ate alot
<No such word>
of krill
<Insufficient diet>
for about 8 months and was always in great shape. Over the last 6 weeks when he
tries to eat he kind of spits the shrimp back out with alot of air bubbles and
would try a few more times and give up. I started breaking it up in smaller
pieces and once in a while would eat a little. He always wanted it but had
trouble. Until today he was still swimming around the top of the tank. Tonight
he is on the bottom, kind of curled up and breathing heavy. He also seems very
pale with white undertones. I am afraid he wont make it through the night. what
can I do?
Thanks
Dean
<Read. Here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/diodontpuffers.htm
the linked files above. Bob Fenner>
Burrfish With "Ich"? 8/7/07
<Hi Mark, Pufferpunk here>
I was trying to find out if a burr puffer could get ick?
<Actually ich, which is a freshwater disease, short for Ichthyophthirius
multifiliis.><<Mmm, both fresh and marine are commonly called "ich". RMF>>
I have had him for a month or two, its doing great, eating fine. I just started
seeing little white dotts on its fins and body. Could you help me and what could
I do.
<Yes they can get crypt, short for Cryptocaryon irritans (the marine form of
ich). Best treatment is hyposalinity. You can look here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ichartmar.htm in addition to countless other articles
at WWM on the subject. Also:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/hospital/swich/ How long have you
had this fish? There is a high death rate of this fish in captivity, due to
refusal to eat. ~PP>
Thank you, Mark.
Re: Burr Puffer with SW "Ich"
8/9/07
<Hi Mark>
I have had him for about two months and he has no problem eating and even takes
food from my hand. He is always looking, for or eating food non-stop. Will the
puffer work thru this or should I do something? He is housed with a Huma
trigger, Yellow tang, Snowflake eel, Lyretail wrasse and a pair of Marron Clows.
<Maroon clowns?>
Should I worry about any of these fish?
<It's up to you, whether you should treat all the fish or wait it out to see if
the burrfish gets any worse. He's more sensitive to the parasite, since he has
no scales. Sometimes I have seen a light case of crypt goes away on it's own but
you are chancing all the inhabitants getting it. I'd at least QT the puffer &
treat it. If you see the parasite on any of the other fish, then you will have
to follow the instructions for hyposalinity for everyone (in QT of course) &
leave the main tank fallow. Were there any new tank mates added recently? ~PP>
Thank you for all your help, Mark
Porcupine puffer with damaged spine and lump
– 08/01/07
Hi!
<Hello Leah.>
So I first want to say thanks for all of the helpful information you have on
your site.
<I'm glad you like it.>
I've been reading through these pages for months as I've set up my newest hobby
:o) I've successfully set up a tank with a Narrow-lined Puffer <Nice. Haven’t
seen one in years.> and a Flame Hawkfish (Save for a few ich incidents, which
have been remedied by the recommendations I've found here). Anyway, I'm
upgrading to a 100 gallon tank since my little puffer inevitably will become
much larger, and in the process am picking up some more tank mates.
<I fully understand the desire to fill a 100 gallon tank, but honestly, doesn’t
upgrading and adding new fish (which will grow quite large, too) sound paradox?>
This cute little Porcupine Puffer has been hanging out in my LFS for a few weeks
and I decided today that I must have him. He's appeared healthy each time I've
gone in to visit. Today I put him and a Sailfin Tang (picked up at the same
time) in a 20 gallon tank until my 100 gallon is established (they're both very
small still).
<OK. 100 gallons may sound and look like a lot, but you will have 2 large
puffers, which each would likely need more space than that. Your fish may work
in that tank, but be sure to have excellent filtration. Also ensure your puffer
is a Diodon holocanthus and not a D. liturosus or D. hystrix, the latter ones
get too large by far.>
They've acclimated very well and quickly, but I just sat down and noticed an
oddity on the porcupine little puff. There's a lump or bump on his side. Looks
like what an ingrown hair looks like on humans. And in the same area, hard to
tell if it's on it or next to it... one of his
spines is very long and brownish/black, as opposed to the rest which are
yellow/white for the most part. I'm concerned this may be a problem.
<Could be. I’m not sure from a description only, but possibilities are: problem
with the base of this spine due to netting (if he was netted wrong, which should
not be the case) or a bacterial infection (see .g.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BurrfishDisFAQ2.htm for the post “Sick porcupine
puffer 05/13/07” and similar posts and compare pictures). I’d watch and provide
pristine water quality in combination with a varied and vitamin enriched diet.
An infection would likely need sampling and a microscope or veterinarian. Also,
see if there is something moving in this lump. Any growth of it as well as a
general decline of the puffer's health would be a signal to act, too.>
His temperament appears fine, though, so I'm hopeful it's nothing big.
<I hope so, too.>
Any idea what this might me? I could get a picture, if you need.
<Pictures usually help, but your own 3D observations will likely be much more
precise with regard to diagnosis, if possible at all from just looking at this
lump.>
Let me know. Thank you, Leah.
<Hope that helps so far. If you can get a good picture you may want to send it,
maybe there is some visible detail overseen. Cheers, Marco.>
Porcupine puffer with damaged
spine and lump II – 08/02/07
Marco,
<Leah.>
Thanks so much for the quick reply.
<Most welcome.>
I am almost certain he is a Diodon holocanthus, (markings, long spines
on head, etc) so that's good.
<I agree seeing the pictures.>
I realize the 100 gallon might end up too small, but this is too good of
a deal to pass up for now on my college student budget. Maybe I'll be a
successful architect by the time they reach their full-grown size and
can afford a larger tank, haha.
<Good luck. I’ve always hoped for similar things to happen, too.>
Anyway, I'm not sure if it's because I've been sleeping and am
disoriented or not, but the bump looks a tad smaller.
<That would be good news.>
I'm sending some pictures I snapped this morning to see if that adds
anything into the equation, but they're hard to read since he's such a
tiny little thing right now. I circled the areas in red where the bump
is and have an arrow pointing to the long dark spine/scale.
<Quite well visible. I think this is an issue with this single spine and
the tissue it is anchored in. Hopefully not infected and will heal by
itself. My guess is it was caught with a net and the spine and tissue
was damaged.>
I checked out the earlier posts but it doesn't sound quite the same. I
did a large water change before they were put in the tank, and all
conditions are perfect, so hopefully he just heals.
<As already noted keep the water quality high (low nitrates, 0 ammonia
and nitrites), provide a varied diet (enriched with vitamins) and
monitor the bump. Don’t stress the fish too much.>
My LFS said he might be losing the scale <spine. Puffers don’t have
scales.> and have a little infection along with it <possible> and to
wait it out. Not sure if he knew what he was talking about, though. I
added some Stress Coat to the water from his advice just in case. I'll
write again if his health declines.
<OK.>
But so far he's doing just fine. Thank you again for the speedy reply!
Leah
<No problem and good luck. Marco.> |
|
|
Bloated Puffer 7/5/07
Hi Guys,
<Hi Chris, Pufferpunk here (I'm a gal).>
I have been reading WWM for a few years now and found a ton of advice on this
"obsession" of mine, but have never written, until now.
<Aren't we all obsessed after a few years?>
I have a 180 gallon FOWLR that includes a Blue Face Angel, Emperor Angel, Naso
Tang, Hippo Tang, Porcupine Puffer and a Niger Trigger. All of the fish are at
least 5" or bigger (in the case of the Angels).
They have been happy in the tank for over 18 months and have not had any issues
other than eat $1500 of my coral (hence the FOWLR he he).
<Too bad...>
My fish are literally pigs and will eat anything you put in the tank with them
but the puffer will only eat frozen krill.
<Really bad diet for a puffer. I have seen way too many incidents of puffers fed
a main diet of krill, developing lockjaw & eventually starving to death. See
here for better diet & methods of getting it to eat other foods:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/category/feeding/ >
He has done this for the 3 years that I have had him and I feed him 1 time every
other day or third day (basically
feed him till he can't eat).
<Letting a puffer gorge itself isn't good for him either. It results in a lot of
non-digested food, causing a liver problems (fatty liver) & a polluted
environment. Feed until a slightly rounded tummy.>
He has been very normal till a day or two ago when I noticed that he was trying
to poop and the Hippo tang was trying to
eat the waste before it even came out (since it is pure krill).
<Exactly>
But at the same time, it wasn't allowing Puff to get out all his excess. He was
picking so bad that when Puff tried to squeeze some out...the tang was attacking
his "hole" and really aggravating the fish.
<Poor puffer!>
So I have been watching him and his belly is getting larger and hasn't eaten in
2 days. I am afraid that he is scared to poop now and will hold in the waste
till it literally kills him.
<It is possible but also it may just be constipated.>
Have you seen or heard this before? Is there anything that I can do to help?
<You could try to feed it vegetable matter, like peas or algae wafers (puffers
usually won't eat these but some have). Otherwise, add Epsom salt, 1tbsp/5g. It
would be best to quarantine the fish. This is one of the many reasons, it is
suggested to keep a puffer in a tank by itself or with less aggressive tankmates
it can't catch. ~PP>
Sincerely, Chris
Re: Bloated Puffer 7/6/07
Hi PP,
<Hey Chris>
Thanks for the reply. I know that the krill only is not the best diet, so I
actually tried silversides (didn't eat them)
<Most puffers are not fish eaters.>
and recently put in a cleaner crew of 100 Turbos and 100 blue-legged crabs. To
my surprise he ate every single one! He would pick up the shell and crush them.
So his diet isn't just krill really.
<Yes puffers ware crustacean eaters & will generally eat your cleaner crews.
This doesn't change the fact that up till now, his diet was mostly krill. He
needs to get off that food immediately.>
Is it possible that he ate something that he can't digest? Maybe ate one of the
crab shells without crushing it first?
<I really doubt it, since that is it's natural diet in the wild.>
I read the link you sent and when he gets better I will definitely vary his
diet.
<I'd still try to offer him some veggies & see if he tries them.>
Thanks for your help,
<Of course! ~PP>
Chris
Porcupine Puffer stung by lionfish! 6/28/07
Hey there, <Hi Jeff, MacL here with you tonight.>
I have been using your website to research and learn for many years now and it
appears I can't find any information on my current problem.
I have a porcupine puffer who would be about 5 inches, and he shares the tank
with a 6 inch Picasso trigger and a 5 inch Volitans lionfish and a yellow head
moray eel.. All tankmates seem to get a long most of the time with the odd
argument between the puffer and the trigger, (he has never puffed up though as a
result)<You know I have had my puffer for five years and haven't seen him puff
up once.> however about a week ago during feeding time (which is awe inspiring
to watch them all eat) <Lord I bet, I can just imagine> the lionfish had not yet
engulfed his whole fish when the porcupine puffer decided it was time to get
some of that fish from his mouth. Now as he swam toward the lion the puffer ever
so lightly swam down onto the dorsal spines of the lion and quickly dashed in
the other direction.
After about half an hour the puffer had a small ring of blood in his left eye
and it eventually went away and now that one eye is cloudy. <Definitely sounds
like they had a close encounter. I've seen animals recover from being stung but
having personally been stung it hurts like you wouldn't believe.> He seems still
relatively happy and he still has a fine appetite however he has become far more
docile than he used to be. Of course he comes out a little more at night but he
used to follow us around the room and now doesn't come out as often. <I'm sure
he's both wary of the lionfish and wary of his tankmates since he does have an
injury and possibly cannot see as well as normal. While I do not advocate
medicating unless its necessary I would definitely keep an eye on his eye to
make sure its clearing up on its own quickly. I personally recommend adding
something like Selcon with vitamin C to assist in the cure but if the eye
doesn't appear to be healing on its own you might need to consider adding an
antibiotic. I wouldn't add it unless he appears to be having problems healing
because it does mess with the tanks bacteria on occasion as well. >
I guess that it is cloudy eye due to the stress of being stung by the lion but
just wanted to double check there is nothing I should do, as we would be
devastated to lose our cute little ET impersonator!!! <To me its sounds more
like he was stung in his eye because you saw the ring of blood in his eye.
Usually there is a mark where they get stung. Keeping your tank healthy is the
best thing you can do for your fish as you very well know. If he doesn't show
signs of improvement in two or three days I would look into antibiotics for
assistance. Your tank sounds lovely and amusing. Good luck, MacL>
Any advice would be appreciated..
Regards
Jeff
Porcupine Puffer 911, no useful data, bizarre
treatment - 06/27/07
Dear Wet Web Media Crew,
I have a question for you regarding my Porcupine Puffer. I went out of town last
week for 4 days and when I got back I noticed that my puffer is only hanging out
in the top left corner of the tank. His tail fin is ragged and disintegrating
(his other fins are fine), and his back is hunched up (like a hunchback). He is
breathing a little heavier than normal, but he does eat frozen food and dried
seaweed with gusto every time I feed the tank. I currently have the temp cranked
up to 88 degrees
<Why?>
(for 36 hours)
and I have been adding monocycline antibiotic tablets for the past 2 days (to
help with the tail fin problem and ward off secondary bacterial infections).
<?>
Any idea what is wrong with him? Is there anything else I should be doing to
treat him? The other fish in the tank seem just fine, and there weren't any
problems until I went out of town. I was only gone for 4 days, but something is
definitely wrong with him. Any help you could offer would be greatly
appreciated. Thanks guys!
--Danny
<... Please read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/pufferdisfaqs.htm
and the linked files above. Bob Fenner> Porcupine puffer with white-spot disease,
lots of reading required – 06/16/07
I reviewed your site and needed help saving my porcupine puffer. <Will do
what I can.> We got her probably about 3 weeks ago. She was swimming around and
eating adapting to her new environment rather well. All of a sudden she started
getting little white dots all over her body. I called the store that I bought
her from and they said to put marine C in the tank daily and see if that helps
<...>. I also put a lot of fish in at once and they advised to do a water change
daily due to too many fish introduced at a time <...>. That actually worked
<Seems it didn’t>. Everything was great for about a week. Then all of a sudden
we woke up one day and she had clouded eye on one eye <secondary bacterial
infection.>. I called the store again and they advised to use MelaFix for 7 days
and then do a 25% water change <Melafix won’t help much in this case.>. If it
doesn't clear then repeat for 3 more days. It has been three days now she is
swimming around a little. She has white spots all over so I gave her a fresh
water dip. During the dip I noticed that on her back it looked like her skin is
pealing off <Losing her slime coat>. Please help?? What do I do to save her and
keep the other fish in my tank alive at the same time?
<You need a hospital tank (no live rock, no invertebrates, no substrate.>. All
fish need to be transferred to this tank while the display tank stays fallow for
at least 4 weeks. If the white spots are salt-grain like, treat against
Cryptocaryon with hyposalinity or chelated copper (see WWM re; if you use
copper, do not overdose and monitor well). If the spots are tiny and numerous,
treat against Amyloodinium with chelated copper or formalin (again: read all
about it on WWM and do not overdose). The latter disease would be very bad and
can kill a puffer in 48 hours. It seems you need to read a lot. Aside searching
WWM for Cryptocaryon and Amyloodinium with the search tool, read
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/diodontpuffers.htm and the linked FAQs on diseases.
All you need is already written on WetWebMedia. Good luck. Marco.>
Puffer vs. Power head... and the winner
is... sys., dis. 5/31/07
HI crew,
<Jesse>
Last night I added two new power heads to my 220g tank that were rated for
400g/h. This morning I woke to find my Porcupine Puffer stuck in the intake of
one of the power heads.
<Not an uncommon occurrence>
I am sick about it and quickly removed him while turning off the other power
heads. He suffered a giant hickie around his front fin, but has been swimming
around rather well. The color also began to return to the area within an hour of
the event. My big worry is that he is not really using his gill on the affected
side of his body. It is pretty swollen will he be able to heal from the wound?
<Hopefully>
Is there anything I can do for him other than maintain healthy water conditions
and a good diet?
<This is about "it">
My wife and I are both very upset. He is our favorite fish in the tank. I assume
the color returning is a good sign, but please let us know if there is anything
else, we can do to help him heal.
Thank you,
Jesse
<Intake skimmer/s on all powerhead/s... Supplied or retrofitted. Bob Fenner>
Sick porcupine puffer 5/13/07
Hello,
<Hi there>
I have been an avid reader of your website for over a year, am constantly
reading up on your answers to people with situations similar to my own (as well
as non-similar - in case something unexpected comes up), and recommend your site
to others. This is however my first time writing to you, and I'm sorry but it
is a kind of long story.
<No worries. Take your time>
I currently have a sick porcupine puffer, he was about 6 inches, end to end
when I first got him about a year and a half ago, but now he is approximately 9
inches. He has been sick for about 2-3 months now. The illness first
manifested itself as a swollen nose, which we did not think too much of,
assuming he had bumped his nose on something.
<Likely so>
However the swollen nose turned into 3-4 well defined and separated bumps and
he stopped eating or being very active. At that point we removed him from his
tank (75G with a 20G sump-he is the only fish, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrates
hover around 40
<Too high...>
which we try to bring down to less than 10 with frequent water changes-water
comes from an RO unit) and put him in a 75 gallon bare bottom quarantine
tank. He continued to get worse and soon we noticed he was breathing
hard. With a flashlight we saw white spots on his gills, about the size of sand
grains, and so we assumed he had ich as well as a bacterial infection in his
nose.
<Mmmm... much more likely these spots were something else... even just resultant
from the nitrate poisoning...>
We began treating him with Cupramine in the quarantine tank, carefully
monitoring the copper levels twice a day. Since he still wasn't eating we twice
had to anesthetize him using clove oil and force feed him (his diet typically
consists of thawed shrimp, mussels, squid and whatever else we buy at the
seafood dept at the grocery store, soaked in Vitachem). During one of the times
he was anesthetized we aspirated some pus like liquid from his nose using a
sterile needle (we are microbiologists) to look at under the microscope.
<Neat>
A local vet we found not long after biopsied one of the bumps and sent it for
analysis, concerned Tiki (the puffer) might have fish TB.
<Mycobacterial problems in ornamental aquatics... are quite common... But there
is always the issue of cause/effect to consider...>
While we were waiting for the results we began treating with Isoniazid,
Kanamycin, and vitamin B6 and Tiki actually began to get better. His breathing
has completely slowed down, the white spots on his gills have disappeared, and
he has been eating on his own for about 2 weeks now; responding when we hold a
glass in front of the tank and tracking us with his eyes or coming over when we
come to look at him. The bumps on his nose have also gone down. However, the
current problem (and I'm really sorry it's taken so long to get here) is that
one of his eyes is cloudy and has white spots on it.
<Very likely this is secondary... unilateral involvements are almost always...
resultant here from a "bump", trauma...>
I really believe this is related to his nose infection and I can tell that it
bothers him since he sometimes rubs his eye against the side or bottom of the
tank. The eye has been cloudy probably for almost two weeks now, the white
spots are new since yesterday. Also the results of the lab analysis came back
and they found gram positive coccobacilli in the material from his nose, however
the bacteria was not acid fast, aka it is not fish TB.
<Correct>
From what I understand a gram positive infection is fairly rare in saltwater
fish.
<Also correct>
So I am curious as to which antibiotics I should now begin administering for
both his eye and his nose. If anyone could offer any suggestions it would be
greatly appreciated. Thank you so much.
<Well... a bunch to state, or that could be stated... IF you were to avail
yourself of antibiotic use I would definitely make this an injectable... As you
have access to a Vet, and are in the micro- field/s... I would "skip right
ahead" and locate/use Chloramphenicol/Chloromycetin (in a succinic acid base)...
See (Ed) Noga re this if your Vet cannot relate the use here.
I WOULD definitely fix the nitrate issue (this could actually be the a priori
cause of all problems here)... See WWM re NO3 cures...
AND I would like to encourage you to delve a bit more into pathogenic fish
disease and perform at least body slime/smears, sans staining next time you
believe a disease-causing organism like Crypt is present. Bob Fenner>
Porcupine Puffer has Discoloration
4/24/07
Hello guys!
<Mark>
I just recently discovered your website - seems if you do a search for
any kind of fish problem, google points right to your site. It has been
very helpful.
<Ah, good>
I picked up my porcupine puffer 3 days ago and right away he was up
swimming around the tank (not pouting at all). He has been eating fine
and everything seems to be healthy with him except today he has
developed this discoloration all over the top part of his head.
<I see this>
He didn't have any signs of this when I first purchased him. I don't see
any spotting or anything so I am assuming this isn't ich, but could not
find anything about this in any other postings. I have attached a
picture of my puffer (the best I could get anyway).
Is this some kind of disease and should I be concerned? Or maybe it has
to do with stress of being moved?
<Am hoping just this latter... there are some infectious agents that can
result in this "whitening" appearance... But actual treatment is not
recommended here... Bolstering this animals immune system with foods
soaked in vitamins/HUFAs (e.g. Selcon), is about all I would do here>
Thanks for any help or advice you can give! It's appreciated.
-Mark
<Bob Fenner> |
|
 |
Porcupine puffer with discoloration, probably a bacterial infection –
04/22/07
Hello guys!
<Hi Mark. Marco here with you today.>
I just recently discovered your website – seems if you do a search for any kind
of fish problem, google points right to your site. It has been very helpful.
I picked up my porcupine puffer 3 days ago and right away he was up swimming
around the tank (not pouting at all). He has been eating fine and everything
seems to be healthy with him except today he has developed this discoloration
all over the top part of his head.
<Not good.>
He didn’t have any signs of this when I first purchased him.
<Porcupine puffers often get ill when stressed.>
I don’t see any spotting or anything so I am assuming this isn’t Ich, but could
not find anything about this in any other postings. I have attached a picture of
my puffer (the best I could get anyway).
<I assume your tank is cycled? Check your nitrates, which can be another stress
factor.>
Is this some kind of disease and should I be concerned?
<Yes and yes. Looking at the picture you took he probably has a bacterial
infection, maybe Vibrio if it is reddish. If it grows, you need to act as soon
as possible. You will need an antibiotic for gram negative bacteria (e.g.
Maracyn Two). You can treat him in a bare bottom hospital tank or (using higher
concentrations) apply daily half an hour to one hour aerated dips. Read all
about bacterial infections/treatment/antibiotics at
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/infectio.htm and the related FAQs. Also search
for Vibrio.>
Or maybe it has to do with stress of being moved?
<Stress leads to a weak immune system and consequently to an outbreak of
diseases.>
Thanks for any help or advice you can give! It’s appreciated.
<Hope he pulls through.>
-Mark
Porcupine puffer with discoloration, probably bacterial infection II –
04/24/07
Marco,
Thank you so much for your reply. You were the only person we could get to give
us any real advice and it is so much appreciated. Unfortunately, our puffer
passed away last night. :( He was my favorite fish and I'm still very sad about
this.
<I am very sorry for your loss. Happens much too often with porcupine puffers,
they are so sensitive. I’d check the water parameters to be sure everything is
ok with your tank, anyway.>
I wanted to ask if there is any way to support your website. I think it is great
what you do.
<Thanks for your kind words. With regard to support maybe Bob has something to
add. Being a conscientious aquarist and keeping on to learn is a good way to
honor the work of the crew in my personal opinion.>
Thank you again, Mark.
<Take care. Sorry he did not make it. Marco.>
Dead puffer with cut open side; Tetraodotoxin release ? – 04/16/07
Hey, How are you all today?
<Hi. Don’t know about the others, but I’m ok.>
Well last week my puffer died due to ich. I tried everything to get rid of the
darn parasite, but nothing has helped.
<Sorry for your loss. Much too common with porcupine puffers.>
I worked up to see my porcupine puffer dead. I couldn't recognize the fish. The
skin was off and his under side was cut open (yes I saw his stomach!!). I don't
believe my eel attacked it, because my eel would maybe be dead due to toxins.
I'm guessing my starfish tried to eat it, but left it alone after it tasted the
puffer.
<Not necessarily. Moray eels are resistant to several similar toxins, so,
although I do not have specific information about them and Tetraodotoxin (marine
puffer toxin), it seems well possible for moray eels to eat puffers. However, in
your case I suggest he tried to puff (as they often do before they die) and his
connective tissue (weak due to whatever reason) and skin cracked. I have seen
such cases or/and the results in tanks with no other fish.>
My question is: did toxins release from the puffer into the water?
<Improbable. Tetraodotoxin does not dissolve well in saltwater. In contrast,
boxfish (not puffers) can secrete ostracitoxin (informal name for the still
unnamed boxfish poison), which does dissolve in saltwater. To be on the safe
side you may want to filter with fresh carbon.>
It seems like my lionfish wants to eat, but he can barely open up his mouth to
grab the food. Any thought?
<Watch him. Could be lock jaw, which in general is supposed to be caused by an
unvaried diet or vitamin deficiency. Could also be a sign of an infection with
the parasite your puffer had. See if he is breathing heavy to confirm.>
Oh, I'm also selling the aquarium setup if your interested! Thanks! Ben.
<Take care. Marco.>
Porc with possible bacterial infection 03/26/07
I was hoping you could assist me with my puffer problem.
<I’ll try. For further questions consider visiting
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ . Many experienced people with regard
to puffers can be found there.>
I have a Porcupine Puffer and he seems so be fine as far as eating and swimming,
but I noticed a pale spot on his head. It has grown from the mouth to his fin
and surrounds his eye. His eye looks ok it is not cloudy or enlarged. The area
is very pale and appears almost as if a layer of skin has been removed. The rest
of his body is normal. Could cooper have caused this issue because I had treated
my tank with copper power for ich 8 weeks ago and I am currently using activated
carbon to remove it as of yesterday?
<Probably a bacterial infection due to a weak immune system.>
My LFS instructed me to leave the copper in to make sure the Puffer did not get
ich.
<After eight weeks you can remove the copper.>
My water parameters are ammonia 0, nitrites 0 nitrates 40 (I will be doing a
water change this week) it is a 220 FOWLR and the temperature is 80 and gravity
is 1.016.
<Your water change should be 50%. Provide a varied diet of mussel flesh, prawn
and squid. Soak the food in vitamins. Inappropriate diet consisting only of one
type of food is the number one reason for sick porcupine puffers. Start
increasing the specific gravity again by 0.002 per week.>
Should I treat with an antibiotic?
<If it keeps on spreading: yes. Ask a vet to identify if the bacteria are gram
positive or negative. If you cannot find a vet, who does that, treat with
antibiotics recommended for gram negative infections, since they occur more
often.> <<Heeeeee! You can't get most Americans to change the oil in their
cars! RMF>>
Thank you, Jesse.
<Good luck. Marco.>
Porc with possible bacterial infection II 03/27/07
Thanks, but I unfortunately lost my puffer. Last night when I returned home
the infection had spread and he was blind in his left eye. This is the second
puffer I have lost, while all my other fish are very healthy. I feed them krill,
mussels, prawns, scallops, squid, Spirulina enhanced brine shrimp and all are
soaked in Zoa vitamins (recommended by LFS). I recently purchased. I tried to QT
him, but it failed and this morning he was gone. The disease spread very fast.
Is this common with porcupine puffers because I have tried to be very careful
with the specimens I have purchased. I have researched constantly, but seem to
have very bad luck with these fish. Jesse.
<I am really sorry for your loss. Bacterial infections are common with weak
Percs. Stress and bad water quality are factors that need to be avoided. Your
diet sounds perfect, probably something else impaired his immune system, maybe
the high nitrates, maybe the low specific gravity, maybe the copper treatment.
Marco.>
Head down bum up porcupine fish 3/19/07
Hi guys and g’day from down under
You are the greatest!
<G'day! and thank you. Brandon here.>
You gave me some much appreciated advice with my seahorses last year, and now
I’m in need of some help with my porcupine fish.
<Glad to hear that the Seahorses turned out ok.>
I’ve had him for 12 months now, I got him when he looked like a spiky little
olive, about an inch long.
<They are so cute when they are little.>
It took about 8 months for him to come out of his shell and become active. He
used to only come out of his cave at feeding time, but now he’s out most of the
time.
<Good.>
He is about 3 ½ inches long and has been fine up until now. 2 days ago I came
home to find him in the corner with his tail facing upwards, and his face in the
sand. He has a small bulge in his rear end, and I assume he has swallowed some
air.
<This sounds very likely.>
He snaps at food on the surface aggressively, like a savage little dog, and
spits bubbles out regularly during feeding.
<Spitting out the bubbles is a good sign.>
I have read other messages on WWM advising on burping to release the trapped
air, and I have tried this. The problem I have is when I hold him with his face
up, he puffs up and his spikes become very hard as they point outward.
<You can try this, not something that I would do personally. Make sure that his
head does not come out of the water. This will just compound the problem.>
I can’t rub him to try to expel the air, because I don’t want to end up with a
spike through my skin, and if I tap him gently with one finger, but he just
keeps puffing. He does deflate, and then puff up again, but no bubbles come out
of his mouth. I have tried twice with no success, and I don’t want to stress him
anymore. Is there anything more I can do, or is there a preferred method of
trying to release the air?
<Let him try to do it on his own. Not much else you can do here. Bob, am I
missing something?> <<Mmm, not to worry re the "spikes" poking through your
skin... they're pretty dull... I would capture this fish (two nets) and gently
squeeze it from the underside, rear, moving fingers toward the front... to try
and expel the air here. RMF>>
Thanking you in advance, and all of my sea creatures thank you as well.
<You are welcome. I hope that this helps. Check the dailies to see what Bob
has to say. Brandon.>
Dario.
Re: head down bum up porcupine fish 3/23/07
<Hello Dario.>
I appreciate your advice, and you were right.
<Ahh. Good.>
It took about 4 days, but my puffer sorted the problem out himself.
<Did you check the Daily FAQ section on the site? When Bob replied, he said
that you should not worry about being poked with the spines. Just rub gently
from below the air bubble, up the stomach to the mouth.>
He is all cool again.
<This is good. Glad to hear it.>
He still pokes his head out of the water during feeding time, but at least now
he has experience in getting rid of air bubbles by himself.
<Hmmm. I would still try to get the food in the water before he has a chance to
stick his head out. Safer in the long run.>
Thanks very much.
<You are most welcome. Brandon.>
Porcupine Puffer and Ich... need... to read... develop a trtmt.
strategy... and act! 3/6/07
I have had a Porcupine Puffer for about 3 weeks now. I haven't added
anything new to the tank, but about yesterday I noticed that she seems to have
come down with Ich (lots of white spots all over her body and fins).
<Lots?>
I did a fresh water dip and a 33% water change yesterday and most of the spots
seem to have gone away by this morning. However when I got home from work today,
I found that she seems to have broken out again.
<Ah, does read like this is Crypt>
I did another dip and waterchanges immediately.
<... Your system has the parasite... dipping, water-changing won't effect a cure
here>
In my freshwater tank, I use Mela-Fix,
<Worthless>
but I am leery to use chemicals in the puffer's tank because of the possible use
of copper.
The bottle of Mela-Fix I have doesn't explicitly say it does or doesn't have any
copper in it,
<It's a "tea" made of soaked Melaleuca leaves... a marginal bacteriostatic... at
best>
but I am not sure. Do you know of any products that can help treat my water that
is copper free? Should the chemical say one way or another about its copper use?
Thanks,
-Chris Meyer
<Please read here (and soon):
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/cryptpuffs.htm
and the linked files above... Bob Fenner>
Web Burrfish with ripped up face 2/22/07
Hi WWM crew!
<Anthony>
I have a Chilomycterus antillarum in a 150 G tank that must have recently
scrapped it out with one of his tankmates. I woke up one morning to find that
the side of his mouth and upper lip had been torn off. Aside from that, he
seems to be ok, swimming, eating normally. The tears don't
actually touch his eyes, but they come very close to his right eye. This
morning when I woke up, he (? - is there any way to sex these things?)
<Not externally; as far as I know>
had what looked like little white squiggly lines ( inside?) his eye. Kind of
like little tiny pieces of spaghetti I guess. Could this be caused by
stress related to his injury?
Thanks,
Anthony
<Mmm, maybe... could even be a parasite it "got" while in the wild, expressing
itself... in all events, I would do what you can to discover, remove the
bully/cause of the injury here, and bolster this fish's immune system with
vitamin supplementing its favorite foods. Bob Fenner>
Puffer Pectoral - 02/09/2007
Hello WWM crew member of the day,
<Alana>
I have a little Porcupine Puffer in a 75 gallon tank with a Black &
White Heniochus butterfly, 50 lbs of live rock, a mated pair of Percula
Clownfish (that have been laying eggs lately), and just added two days
ago, 2 curly Q anemone.
<Yikes... may be trouble here... esp. with the puffer>
This morning when we woke up we noticed our puffer was not really using
one of his side fins and then with a closer look we saw that it's fin
was white and looked a little swollen and that there is also a white
spot on it's body right under it's fin. We also noticed that our Heni
also has a white patch on it's pectoral fin also but not as big or
swollen looking. I have looked on your site and others for a while and
can't seem to find what it could be. My question is, do you think the
anemones could have stung them or is it a virus?
<Most likely stung... and could be consumed by this puffer in time>
I have included the best of almost 50 pics I tried to take ( not a very
good photographer hehe). Please any info would help. This is the web
site I get all my info from. Greatly appreciated, Alana
Mills
<Mmm, well... would be better to move the anemones elsewhere really...
The Burrfish will very likely self-heal in time. Bob Fenner> |
|
 |
"Ingrown" Spines on Puffer? 2/3/07
Thank you for you help.
<No problem. Pufferpunk here with you today.>
I have spent a couple of days reviewing your website and have not found my
answer.
<Thanks for looking 1st!>
With the purchase of our home we "inherited" a salt water tank. We are not very
knowledgeable but have grown very attached to our fish especially our dog faced
puffer and we feel an overwhelming sense of responsibility for these fish.
<I can't blame you. They're more like a dog, than a fish.>
Your site was most helpful when he was very sick with ich about 1 yr ago. He is
acting well, eating with none of his previous symptoms. However, over the last
few weeks I have noticed some bumps (about 4-5) over his back and now some are
protruding like small spines or spikes. It started with some a couple and now
there are more and 2 are protruding spines! There is no redness and as I said he
is acting fine. Our fish service person has "no idea" what it is, but we want to
make sure that it is nothing serious before it is a real problem.
<Sometimes their spines stick out, like an ingrown hair. Nothing to worry
about. ~PP>
Thanks for either reassuring me or helping me if I should worry.
Thanks, Brenda I. Troche MD
Burping Your Puffer 1/28/07
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.
<You're very welcome Ben, Pufferpunk here.>
My wife and I purchased a porcupine puffer today.
<Wonderful, personable pet!>
The LFS we bought it from is highly reputable with the 4 saltwater clubs in my
area.
<Good choice.>
When the owner of the store approached the tank with a net, I asked if it should
be caught with a container instead. The owner said not to worry and caught the
puffer easily with the net and placed it in a very large bag while still inside
the tank. The puffer was not exposed to air and didn't flinch during the entire
process. I acclimated the puffer over 2 hours using the drip method. I then
used my large net to move it into my tank. Of course it puffed up while being
transferred this time.
<Ummm... I don't get it. You didn't want the shop to catch the fish with a net
but you did instead???>
The puffer came out of the net easily but was full of air and couldn't even get
away from the water's surface.
<Which is why a puffer should never be caught with a net & exposed to air. Can
prove to be deadly.>
My wife rushed to the PC and WetWebMedia. She searched for "puffer air" and
found one of your replies regarding how to burp a puffer. It's now been about 6
hours and the puffer is eating mysis, picking at my snails and small hermits and
resting near the sand bed at the bottom. I'm so grateful for your wisdom,
experience, and willingness to share them both.
<Glad you found that info.>
I do have one question though. My puffer, even when sitting near the sand bed
picking at shells, uses its front fins more than I think it should. It's almost
as though it's fighting a small air bubble to stay near the bottom of the
tank. Do porcupine puffers have their front side fins in constant motion?
<Puffers do not swim like other fish. They need to constantly move their fins
to "hover" in the water. It should however, be able to lay motionless, without
struggling to keep upright, when resting.>
There could be a small air bubble still inside, as the top line of the puffer
from head to tail isn't exactly straight. It has a very slight, hunched
appearance.
<Here is more info on burping:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library.php?p=54
You're welcome to join in on that forum & post about your puffer. There are
many good articles in the Library there & also in the Marine Puffer
section. Enjoy your new puppy, er... puffer! ~PP>
Thanks in advance, Ben
Puffer Problem 12/20/06
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
Our porcupine puffer was purchased approx. two weeks ago and was fine for a
week.
<Was he placed into a fully cycled tank?>
Now he has white over his eyes and appears to be blind. He is not eating and is
lethargic. He is breathing shallow and doesn't even attempt to escape upon
being touched. We treated him with a freshwater dip for the ich but are not
seeing improvements. Help!!!!
<What ich? Ich cannot be treated with 1 FW dip. Please read:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4576
Please post your water parameters: ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH. ~PP>
Porcupine Puffers... a paucity of useful info. re dis. - 11/11/06
I have two porcupine puffers purchased at the same time
<When?>
but housed in different aquariums, both exhibiting the same symptoms, one
beginning yesterday, the other today. They have been eating well, seem to have
adjusted, then developed a darkening and swelling of the skin, which seems to be
spreading quickly. Now lethargic and not eating, within 24 hours of onset of
symptoms. Treating with PimaFix and oral penicillin.
<Neither likely useful...>
Do you know what this is or what I can do?
<Time to "punt"... look to root causes... Highly likely (both) envi |
