Puffed Up Kicks (10 Gallon Dwarf Puffer Tank)

[attibones]

It took them a while, but they are finally taking bloodworms from me. Kahlo is hard to feed because he is so shy.

It seems they also ate the entire colony of ghost shrimp without me noticing. Silly puffs! I was thinking about getting ten some cherry shrimp friends today, but I think I'll try the shrimp in the betta tank instead.

The hornwort killed some of my plants. It blocks the light, so I'm not surprised that I lost some. I don't think I'll add anymore. The puffers seem to enjoy swimming through the tangles of hornwort. I'm thinking about investing in another cave for them though.

Any ideas about why they are so skittish (Frida is bolder but still spooks easily)?

 

[Ninjouzata]

They're so cute! Glad they're taking bloodworms now.
 
Ooops, good thing you didn't add the cherries before noticing Hope they work out in your betta tank.
 
I hate hornwort..it makes my hand itch. It does look nice though. I'm sure they'd love another cave!
 
Not sure why they're skittish, was thinking maybe they're still settling in but it's been a few weeks. Maybe it comes with being so cute and tiny? :c

 

[attibones]

Males are apparently much more easily startled than females, so that's to be expected. I'm really hoping these cuties start spawning behavior soon. Think of all the wittle puffies! Anyway, I don't have a set up to raise any fry, but it would be fun to watch it happen. I know they are both sexually mature (though no one knows how old they are since they were wild-caught). The seller has also led me to believe they've spawned before. Apparently they aren't hard to breed. They just have to decide to do it.

 

[attibones]

Confirmed sighting of two living shrimp! After the hellacious journey I've been having with my sorority tank, I'm just glad that my puffs are happy and healthy and soooo cute. I've been trying to find information on breeding these guys once the sorority has settled, but I can't seem to find much information on conditioning requirements or breeding behavior. All I know is that these two are never apart.

 

[Puffer_Nat]

They're cute as hell

 

[attibones]

Indeed.

I'm thinking about removing the hornwort in this tank. I don't know why I keep buying this plant. It's terribly messy and it block all the light so my plants die. But I'm worried that if I pull out the hornwort, then my puffs will be even more timid because many of my plants are dead. I don't know. I'm thinking about pulling up the hornwort anyway, putting the puffs in a bucket and then seeing if I can't arrange the existing plants to provide a denser bit of coverage in the center. Then I'll get a few more cave structures and they should be all right.

 

[Ninjouzata]

I read they're really hard to breed..hope you're successful. No tips that I know of for you, sorry
 
I -hate- hornwort. Not only for those reasons but it makes my hands itch a lot. What about some watersprite?

 

[attibones]

It makes me itch too. I'm allergic to a lot of grasses, I wonder if this is in the same category?

I'll try water sprite. I've tried water wisteria several times but it just dies on me. I'm leaving the hornwort in for the weekend, but when I come back I'm probably going to take it all out.

 

[Puffer_Nat]

How are they settling in? Any more pictures?

 

[attibones]

I'll try to get some good pictures of the puffers today. If not, then I'll get a few pictures tomorrow when I plan on cleaning up the plant mess. I've also got some snail shells on the substrate which need to be removed. 

 

[mcano]

Can you offer some tips on getting these guys to eat frozen bloodworms? I have 3 dwarf puffers and only one of them enjoys eating the worms. I will be breeding some snails for them but its just so much more convenient if these little guys can start eating some bloodworms too.

 

[attibones]

It took my guys a while before they were ready to start accepting food from me. I have a medicine dropper which I use only for bloodworms to make this easier. I take plastic medicine cups and dip out their tank water and break off some worms for them and defrost in the tank water. Then I use the medicine dropper to pull up some of the worms. Next I put the dropper in the water kind of close to the intended puffer but not so close as to scare him away. Then I drop out a few worms at a time to get his interest. Eventually they begin to associate the dropper with food and will hover around it. 
 
If you've done something like this and they still haven't shown interest in the worms, I would add garlic juice to make it more appealing.
 
How long have you had them? Do you have plenty of hiding places? Sometimes they won't eat if they feel threatened. Also, you really need to start giving them live foods. They could be having issues with their teeth, meaning they aren't able to eat well.

 

[mcano]

Usually I just defrost a small amount of worms in a separate cup, but I like your method better. I dropped in some small pond snails yesterday and the 2 that don't like the worms seemed to enjoy the change.
They are set up in a 10 gallon tank theres also ghost shrimp in there (They were in the tank before the puffers) along with a dwarf cory.  Theres a couple hiding spots but Im planning on adding another tall plant or ornament.

 

[attibones]

Mine go through at least a dozen snails a week between the two of them. They need the hard shells to keep their teeth manageable. They also will enjoy ghost shrimp as a snack.
 
Be careful with that dwarf cory. These guys are known for their inability to live peacefully with other fish.

 

[mcano]

Yeah definitely will move him out of the tank if theres trouble. I hope not though so far everyone is getting along so far. I might go to the lfs to pick up some more pond snails they have I only have 4 and I dont think those will reproduce anytime soon, how long do yours take?