South American Puffer

[lionfishlover]

Hi there guys, i saw a SA puffer at my LFS, and instantly fell in love, i asked about if it would be okay in the tank i have and living with the other fish, which is okay but was told they have to be fed bloodworm, but my housemate (who owns the place) wont let me keep any frozen foods in the freezer or keep anything in a separate tank/container, what i wanted to know was if i could feed it flakes and keep something else in the tank (small snails maybe) for it to feed on. Also i was am thinking about getting a couple of ghost shrimps, would the puffer attack/eat these, i would have thought not because of size but thought i would ask to be sure.

Cheers Scott

 

[StingrayKid]

It's great to see people are getting into Puffers! But first you need to know some things...

Did you say you want to put it in with other species of fish? I would not do this. They can be fin nippers and kill other fish.

Frozen and prepared foods are needed by Freshwater Puffer species. So, you would need to buy a little mini freezer/fridge to put the food in. Snails are also good for Puffers.

The shrimp would most likely be eaten. This Puffer should be kept by its self, or in a species-only tank. I would say the minimum tank size for the fish is 20 U.S. gallons, but I've seen people say 10 U.S. gallons.

I hope this helps and I hope you can get the Puffer. They are really awsome. Good luck!

 

[lionfishlover]

Hi there, thanks you your reply, i have a 3ft tank with 2 guppies, a silver molly, a cherry barb, 7 neons, and an otto. I really like puffers aswell, i was told (and from internet sites) that this is one of the more placid puffers and would probably nip the guppies tails but shouldnt be too bad with them.

What do you think?

If not is there a puffer that would be better to put in there or would you advise not to put one in at all.

And sorry to go over it again, is there any way to feed them without keeping things in a separate container? As i said before my housemate wont let me keep frozen food for the fish even if i got a separate fridge/freezer, dont know about if i had a little tank or something in my room to keep live food in, but even with that, i go away a lot because of work and my housemate feeds the fish while i am away but i know she wouldnt feed it anything live.

Cheers Scott

 

[StingrayKid]

I'm not sure about it be peaceful, but I would definately not put it in that tank. It will most likely really hurt most of the fish. As for the flake food, it will probably ignore the flakes, so, as I said, the frozen foods are needed. You're in a sticky situation so, in my opinion, the best way to go is to snag another tank, cycle it out, buy the Puffer, and get a mini fridge.

 

[SirMinion]

A south american puffer will certainly eat the shrimp and will also kill the other fish. He needs his own tank.

Puffers will not eat flake, and I doubt that you would be able to keep up with his demand for snails as puffers are very hungry fish.

You only option is the frozen or fresh/ live food.

Cockles & mussels can be bought for human consumtion both frozen & fresh, surely your housemate can't onject to those in the freezer or fridge?

One other think to consider, SA puffers have an alarming rate of tooth growth and if not fed regular hard foods the teeth will need trimming by hand.

Because of this, I would not recommend SA puffers to someone new to puffers. I suggest you look for some dwarfs instead.

 

[lionfishlover]

Hi, thanks for the replies guys, think that the puffer will have to wait for the moment then, should be getting my own place in the next six months and might start a separate puffer tank then (maybe a marine one if i am feeling confident), so until then thanks.

Cheers Scott