Dwarf Puffers And Snails..

[youngfisher]

Im just wondering because im going for a planted tank for 2 dwarf puffers, I realise there is a high chance of ending up with pest snails because of the plants.

(im getting the plants fully mature and grown etc. before i get the puffers)

So say if i got infested by pest snails and there were quite a few, would the dps over feed on this and get bloat or somthing? or would they just eat them when they fancied some or all at once? if you get what i mean.

 

[bagu]

i dont think they will, they will just attack it; mine does, i had a snail infestation; id just see shells lying around lol

i have none at all now but she wont attack any i put in for some reason lol! ive had her for months, she seems to bite this rock every now and then for her beak to trim down =]

 

[lilacamy931]

Well I have not tried my puffs on snails yet (hoping a delivery today otherwise smelly rotten snails again ew!)

But my understanding is it really is down to individual puffs. Mine were quite good when first got them and only ate till they were full on bloodworm but the last couple of days they have got so used to me (eating out of my hands!) that they would most likely eat till they burst!

It really would be a trial and error method from what I have read on varying posts, they may gorge to begin with and then settle down. Or you may come in and find not one left!

If I get some tonight, I will let you know how it goes and how they react, will also experiment leaving some overnight and see what happens

 

[karigupi]

I find mine will only eat until they are full, I had a little snail colony in their tank when I first put them in & the first day or two they did go a bit nuts & were hunting them all the time, but then they calmed down.

 

[degsod]

I find mine will only eat until they are full, I had a little snail colony in their tank when I first put them in & the first day or two they did go a bit nuts & were hunting them all the time, but then they calmed down.

Sorry to hijack this thread but can I put Cherry Shrimp or Tiger Shrimp in with Dwarf Puffers? I am getting conficting advice.

 

[youngfisher]

Dont worry about hijacking. I believe this is all down to the individual puffer. But I know one thing that helps is if you put the shrimp in FIRST! then a couple of weeks later introduce the puffers.

 

[degsod]

Dont worry about hijacking. I believe this is all down to the individual puffer. But I know one thing that helps is if you put the shrimp in FIRST! then a couple of weeks later introduce the puffers.

thanks, that's what I was planning on doing once the tenk has been cycled. So do you reckon that Cherry Sgrimp will be ok? I carn't wait for the cycle to finish so I can get some movement in the tank

 

[karigupi]

Cherry Shrimp might be a bit small, Tigers are probably a better option.

With these little DP its a real unknown as some are very aggressive & will nip away at anything that moves & others will tolerate certain fish.

 

[frenchie]

back to the snail topic, the thing you need to worry about it the snails rotting after the dp's eat them. Dp's only eat a small portion of the snail, if they do that to a lot of snails in your tank you might want to pull out the eaten snails. This is usually not a probelm but if you have a snail infestation it could be.

 

[youngfisher]

Ok thanks, Hopefully I wont get a snail invasion but you never know with these things

 

[frenchie]

I personally have never had a problem with this. It is just something I have read can be an issue if you feed too many snails. Having shrimp to cleanup the leftovers will help.

Also on the shrimp issue, I always try ghost shrimp with my dp's first. Then if they are ok with the ghost shrimp it is usually ok to get the more expensive shrimp.

 

[bagu]

just give em a good wash before hand