Congo Puffer

[spud13]

hi, i had looked for a freshwater puffer for a while and came across a congo puffer, and he asked to come and live with me!!!!!!
he is about 2"
i would love some tips on how to keep him healthy and happy he has his sand and im feeding him krill and blood worm at the moment but he isnt interested in eating it, i have a list off the internet of possible food to feed him.. these are
ghost shrimp- gut loaded ( what does gut loaded mean?)
feeder guppies
crayfish
shell on shrimp
where can i get these from
if anyone can give me any tips or information i would apreciate it

 

[spud13]

i forgot to put its the Tetraodon miurus

 

[severum boy]

Well done of the new fish, miurus are great puffers. The best foods are larger foods like prawns. If he is not interested in them, attach the prawn to a bit of cotton string (cant remember what its realy called) and wiggle it around in front of him, he should get the message. The prawns can be brought from any large supermarket in the frozen section.
Dont feed him live feeder fish, these will diminuish his health. If you offer food to him every 3 days, he will be healthy and happy.
What size tank is he in?
Oh yeh, also read the pinned topics at the top of Oddballs, this should have some useful info to help.

 

[spud13]

at the moment he is in a 65litre tank but i am setting up a much larger tank so i am having to keep a close eye on the levels
its a good job i had already done my research on the congo puffer as the chap in the fish shop told me he could live with my two clown loachs plec and various other fish i have in another tank and he should be fine and not eat them,
he is bright orange at the moment and has got a great charecter
would you put snails in there for him to snack on

 

[severum boy]

Yep, snails are a good food, but still feed him as you would normally. Dont get a much larger tank for him, the space will be wasted. A 30"x15"x15" with sand and a few caves will suffice, they tend not to be that active.
How much did you pay for him?

 

[spud13]

i payed £7.50
do you think he would live ok with the plec

 

[Fella]

i payed £7.50
do you think he would live ok with the plec

A congo puffer will not be able to live with any other fish, at all. They are piscovorous. If there is anything they cant eat in one go, they'll disembowel.

 

[DarkEntity]

Gut loaded means overfeeding the shrimp with really healthy food so when the puffer eats the shrimp he is getting a good healthy balanced meal

 

[spud13]

thank you for all your information, im going food shopping for him today, im going to get him lots of variety so hopefully he will find something he likes!!!!

 

[severum boy]

£7.50 is a great price, around me they usually cost upwards of £20.
Well done!

 

[DarkEntity]

Ive seen them nearer 30-40 where i am, alot depends on size though i suppose.

 

[spud13]

he had been bought once and sent back to the shop for refusing to eat anything but live fish!!!!! ive been and bought him some shrimp, he thinks there fun to chase but hasnt caught one yet, and he ate some blood worm today, well sucked them,
i have also tried him with muscle and prawn but he turned his nose up at it, but the fish man gave me some muscles in there shell's do i have to do anything with them before i put them in? and do you think they will be ok for him to eat,
i thought £7.50 was cheep too, the other fish shop has a mbu in for £40, its the first congo ive seen round here
have you got a congo or ever owned one?

 

[Rocker]

I have had three in the past and all three have been very active. I would say you need a minimum of 30g to house these puffers. One of my favourite of all.
What colour is he?

 

[spud13]

he is bright orange with like a speckled tummy, he is very active,
he likes the shrimp as i have found the remains of one!!!
how quick do they grow? he looks ok in the tank at the moment but think he will need a bigger tank if he grows quick
+ i dont no wether it is to do with the puffer but even after a water change my nitrates were still high so i have had to soak my filter and i will see what my levels are tomorrow, i have never had trouble with nitrates before...
any tips on keeping them down

 

[newtotropical]

he is bright orange with like a speckled tummy, he is very active,
he likes the shrimp as i have found the remains of one!!!
how quick do they grow? he looks ok in the tank at the moment but think he will need a bigger tank if he grows quick
+ i dont no wether it is to do with the puffer but even after a water change my nitrates were still high so i have had to soak my filter and i will see what my levels are tomorrow, i have never had trouble with nitrates before...
any tips on keeping them down

Is your tank planted with real plants? this will help keep levels down, other than that water changes.