Gatito

Have got the vet putting through a script so I can worm them, will be picking it up tomorrow. Hopefully it's that. Tried them tonight with beef heart & liver, they all showed interest but weren't keen enough to go for the strange new food :lol:. Will grab some fresh mussel tomorrow to try them with. Maybe these two are just weak specimens? As far as the size of the bloodworms go i can't ever remember them eating the fullsize ones, so maybe they've just been feeding on the smaller ones, but aren't getting enough? Little monsters are predatory though, so when i chop bloodworms up with the rest, they go for the big ones because they distract their attention :roll: Thanks for all the ideas and advice so far, going to worm them and keep experimenting with food, and will whack some tiny baby snails in there more regularly just in case it is their teeth (they don't touch the shells of halfsized rabmshorns, i'm not sure if they crunch the baby snail shells), though i don't think so :-?

Thanks phoenix44 for such a prompt response!!! They do get snails but not too regularly. The dwarves are unique as puffers that don't tend to require regular grinding down of the teeth, unlike the bigger varieties. Also it doesn't seem to be a loss of appetite, as they still show a lot of interest in food. It seems to be more a difficulty with the size of the bloodworms - i'm assuming that they get some of the smaller ones, but not enough to give them nice fat tums.

Hey guys, I have 6 freshwater dwarf puffers, a few adult and some juveniles, which are all fed on bloodworms. Two of the juvies are getting really skinny, and i've noticed they seem to have trouble eating the bloodworms - they go for them, but let them go again. I'm guessing the bloodworms are too big/wide? Have tried freeze-dried tubifex worms, but they seem too small, the puffers swim up to them but don't target any of the worms. I'm going to get a whiteworm culture going again to try them, but was wondering if anyone had any food supplement suggestions for them in the meantime? They've never shown much interest in flake foods and i think crumbles would have the same issue with width as the bloodworms. Maybe i'll have to cut a few bloodworms down the middle :lol: :lol: Any suggestions or insight appreciated

Awesome, i might try some gobies with mine, really miss having them. How bbig is your tank and how many dwarf puffs do you have in there redracer? Ottos are pretty commonly recommended as tankmates for the puffers. I used to have some but don't think i'll worry about getting more unless i need them for algae issues. Cute little guys though.

i loved my bbee gobies, would have kept them if i could trust the puffs not to eat them, though so far they've been fairly placid. If the 30l is fairly new i would stick to one for now (messy critters), if it's well-established i'd get another one

Male is quite big - 2.5-3cm. Females are about 1.5-2cm

Indeed, sorry to give the wrong idea. My juveniles are about half the size of my adult females, and 1/4 the size of Mr Puff. I hope i get mostly females, they're much cuter and have nicer markings, though i kind of like the size of Mr Puff

woohoo, went in today and got 4 more. Tank looks so much better with 7, i can't wait to watch the babies grow up and find out what sex they are!

awesome, thin k i'll have to pay them a visit. got mine as adults so would be cool to see/keep juveniles. do you know if mt roskill has them? will give them a call

I hope so, with that size difference i'll be crossing my fingers and holding my breath for your dwarf puffs. If you don't want them they can come join mine

thanks guys. am thinking i'll use potting mix with a smooth medium gravel on top, to prevent newts getting fine gravel stuck to their footsies. Have been happy with using driftwood and the ornaments as land space but would like to make it all a bit more attractive - can always use driftwood over most of the water area to maximise climbing space until the newts go mostly aquatic. java moss is a must, but i love the idea of miniature figs, going to look them up right now....

Online info pages say to allow about 20L per fish, but that's only because they're messy - if you keep the water quality high you shouldn't have an issue with stocking more heavily. I have 2 females and 1 male in a 70 litre with 4 golden zebra and angelicus loaches, and would be open to getting a couple more, either another pair or more females. Healthy happy adults can be bred, and lay eggs in java or christmas moss. I haven't looked into it much further than that. I have given mine baby snails but started with the bigger ones as i brought a bunch home from work and had to wait for them to start making babies . Those pics are from when i first got my puffs. Have no current trademark on the name Mr. Puff

Awww, they look so similar i thought they may be of similar size. Gorgeous fish

Currently have my newt (yes, singular, need to organise some friends, probably after our wedding in march) in a big exo-terra with 9cm deep water, and a few ornaments and driftwood sitting above the surface for my still fairly terrestrial newt to clamber over. There are danios and cories living in there at the moment too. Would like to empty the tank and silicone a piece of glass into the aquatic/lower 10cm of the tank to section off 1/4 or 1/3 of the floor space. I then plan to fill the smaller side with some kind of soil/substrate, fill the larger side with water (for when Frederick decides to go aquatic ) and place driftwood in the aquatic section so it sits above the water level and Frederick can use that space while he still chooses to stay out of water. I'd love any input anyone can give on what kind of soil (or whatever, moss?) to use - i want to plant newt-safe fauna in there, so needs to be both safe for the newt and good for growing plants. Any newt owners out there that can suggest good newt-friendly plants for the tank? Can be aquatic plants also. Any suggestions or comments in general would be awesome also

Wow, are they a dwarf puffer? Do you know if they can co-habitate with the Carinotetraodon travancoricus? They're gorgeous, and of course the females are the prettiest I agree with henward, would love to see these guys around, i never even knew of them

sweet, thank you Neon and phoenix44 I really like them, and surprisingly, i really like the mixed group with the zebras, they don't seem to notice the odd one out. Added a third golden zebra today too so it's now a quartet, may put another angelicus or two in there later too.

I took home some loaches to share space with my dwarf puffers, two golden zebras and one that looks like an angelicus loach... I was hoping someone could confirm this for me, or let me know if there's another loach that it could be/looks similar to the angelicus, etc etc. This is him (or her ). Sorry for the poor photos but they're tricky enough that i just grabbed what i could while they were bagged: And this is him/her next to a gold zebra: I'd love to know for sure what he is He looks quite nice with his golden zebra buddies, similar colours but a change in pattern. Thanks guys!!!

It's because they're trying to scare us off I think new fishkeepers are more fun because they want to talk about fish, and their setup, and ideas to up the awesome factor. Experienced fishkeepers are more likely to have an "i just want to get the fish that i want, i don't want to smile and risk being given a sales pitch" attitude I have people all the time that, for example, could take me to town with their knowledge of say, american cichlids or monster fish, but wouldn't have a clue about other things, e.g. community tank compatibility. And then there are the guys that think those pretty tropicals are as simple to keep as a bowl and some tap water, and would walk out with a fish and kill it if no one approached them. For the greater good, us friendly/"pushy" salespeople None of us know whether we'll benefit from talking to someone until we actually start the conversation.

On the whole i'm not really enthralled with this thread, too much generalisation. It all comes down the the individual customer AND staff. But i know 90% of the guys i work with that have a decent knowledge in fishkeeping are more likely to tell you how to DIY something cheaper rather than sell a product. And sorry cynics, but when we come over and ask what fish you have, and you get your back up and spit out the "i'm just looking" defense without even finding out who we are, often we DO ACTUALLY WANT TO KNOW WHAT FISH YOU HAVE Because we like fish too, otherwise we wouldn't hover in the fishroom mucking around in tank water all day. Funny story: We had a customer that bought 7 ten-day plaster of paris feeding blocks because she was going away for a couple of months. Of course they would have all dissolved in the first couple of weeks and killed her tank. We told her this, and recommended either having someone come by at regular intervals to feed them, or the long-lasting gel blocks that the fish pick at when they're keen for a feed. She got very defensive and suspicious, as the gel blocks were more expensive, and insisted on buying the plaster of paris. Guess who was back for an exchange the next morning, once she'd had time for logic to sink in?

the adult size for Carinotetraodon travancoricus is about an inch (2.5cm). My male is about that, and my females are about 1.5-2cm, and they handle at least a few bloodworms no worries. How big are yours? I would expect them to eat more but i'm no expert on these guys, let alone adolescents (sp?). Maybe mine eat 3 or so bloodworms then hide the rest.... Tricky beggars... I'll watch them next time and report back (will try to remember to anyway) :roll:

Possibly, but the puffers tend to go for the snails as soon as i pop them in, so i reckon the clowns would get chased off. If i put more than 2 or 3 snails in the tank at once then the clowns could have some too, then clean up the carnage when the puffers are done. Yeah oto's are fairly widely recommended to live with them, and i like otos, but as it's only a 70 litre tank i'd like to try the clowns or maybe a small school of something else that i like MORE, and if it works, great. I'm not too worried about 2 of my puffs, they've been pretty placid so far, but one of my females is pretty aggressive, i think it'd be her that would cause a problem with other fish. Have heard from a lot of people that have theirs in a community tank, and a lot of others that can only do otos or nothing at all with theirs. I feed a 1/4 cube of bloodworms to 3 puffers every 2nd or 3rd day. This is supplemented with snails, and is not how i recommend that anyone feeds theirs, i've just been very busy and so they don't get fed every day . I am planning on doing 1/4 cube every 2nd day with snails once or twice a week, and seeing how that goes, as i'm going on holiday end of march and want to make sure the pet feeder doesn't overfeed!!! May move on to daily feeding if it turns out that i really should be Has anyone tried whiteworms with their dwarf puffers? I was thinking about cranking my old culture back into action to provide a bit more variation. Also thinking about tubifex (sp) worms, though either of these two may be too small. Freeze-dried shrimp? Frozen tropical tucker? Any thoughts?

Unless you got lucky with placid puffers, they'd probably shred the gobies. I've had bb gobies in my last tank and they're not really quick enough. Plus they sleep out in the open, that's when the puffers would get them. I've been thinking about trying some small clown loaches - they're quick, and would sleep squeezed into a narrow space like under a slab, so the puffs couldn't reach them, and would clean up the half-eaten snails left behind by the puffs....

Hahaha, this is how i read that last post

I've never had to catch them myself (netted when bagged by seller) so thanks for that tip, will use it (or try, quick beggars) if/when i eventually have to move them

No, you're right, his eyes were cloudy, not sure if it was damage on the eye surface from the net or what. I'm pretty sure they've cleared up now, wasn't too worried so haven't had a proper look at them lately. They're so cute with the snails - circle them, so cautiously watching and waiting, then they edge closer.... then pause... then BAM!!! Really really quick attack. They pick at it til it falls off the glass, and hang around it picking at what they can reach.