reccomend a puffer?

[devder1]

Hi, i was wondering if there is a puffer you would reccomend for my 40 gallon planted tank. i thought maybe a figure 8, but not sure if i want to do brackish :(

[bigfishrcool1193]

maybe south american puffer........ let me search the scientific name and the TL

[bigfishrcool1193]

Colomesus asellus

6" TL

full freshwater

[devder1]

awesome thanks! ima look for one then, maybe tropical treasures :naughty:

[bigfishrcool1193]

awesome thanks! ima look for one then, maybe tropical treasures :naughty:


Pets inc. had one a few weeks ago for $10:drool:

i was gonna buy it but had no where for it:nilly:

[groovitudedude]

http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/?g2_GALLERYSID=0e22a0c14dd32422797b28c940bb9fcf

South American Puffers are community friendly and stay relatively small, but need usual dentistry. Good luck!

http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/C_Asellus/

[devder1]

http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/?g2_GALLERYSID=0e22a0c14dd32422797b28c940bb9fcf

South American Puffers are community friendly and stay relatively small, but need usual dentistry. Good luck!

http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/C_Asellus/
by community friendly do you mean to all fish?

[devder1]

Pets inc. had one a few weeks ago for $10:drool:

i was gonna buy it but had no where for it:nilly:
awesome! i am not sure how many more fish trips i can convince my parents to go for tho. i am trying to find the right time to ask my dad to drive to peoria to pick up a 125 on saturday! :headbang2 :nilly:

[ryverrat]

Don't keep south americans with fish that have long fins/tail- they will pick them apart (mine tortured some angelfish- rehomed the angels). Mine have also killed plecos- not common but mine are a little weird.

[devder1]

hopefully my ABK will hide :eek: and my killies would they be ok?

[Pufferpunk]

Maybe, maybe not. You can never tell with a puffer.

[devder1]

Ok I can move them if worst comes to worst

[Bogwoodbruce]

South american puffers are generally communal, although each puffers personality is different, we got a batch of like 30 in at the shop a few months back, great fish. Very active and rather mellow some of our customers are keeping them with discus, angels and other general community fish without any problems.

Go great in planted tanks. Thats what i'd go for. :)

[Pufferpunk]

They are happiest in groups.

[devder1]

They are happiest in groups.

Could I do more than 1 in a 40?

[devder1]

South american puffers are generally communal, although each puffers personality is different, we got a batch of like 30 in at the shop a few months back, great fish. Very active and rather mellow some of our customers are keeping them with discus, angels and other general community fish without any problems.

Go great in planted tanks. Thats what i'd go for. :)

Thanks for the insight! I'm hoping he won't kill any of the fish I have now but I guess I gotta take a chance :(

[Pufferpunk]

You can keep 3 in a 40g w/o any other fish. What do you have in there now? Did you read the links Groovy gave you?

[devder1]

You can keep 3 in a 40g w/o any other fish. What do you have in there now? Did you read the links Groovy gave you?
ya i did the 2 things that worried me are
1. it sed "plants will take a beating in the hunt for snails". would my live plants be OK
2. it sed they need a daily diet of snails to keep their beaks down. i dont have any snails, and they cost 3$ a pop at my local petsmart :eek:

[Pufferpunk]

They bite holes in plants, looking for snails. It is speaking of feeding them the small "pest" pond snails (size of their eye) that come in on most plants. Even with that, regular (4-6 month) teeth trimming, is necessary.

[devder1]

ok ouch i dun want my plants ripped up
would they survive fine on frozen shrimp and clams and stuff

[Pufferpunk]

Sure, just plan on trimming their teeth.

[devder1]

What do I trim em with scissors?

[groovitudedude]

What do I trim em with scissors?
Nail clippers after you knock them out (It's a lot more complicated than that, but there's an article on it.)

This is how I did it:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/hospital/dentistry/

[devder1]

ok cool i might do those, what about pea puffers?

[Pufferpunk]

Very mean fin-nippers.

[devder1]

hmmm would they kill everything?

[Pufferpunk]

I wouldn't want to be harrassed by them.

[devder1]

I wouldn't want to be harrassed by them.
lol ok

[smokecrops]

hi i have a kinda off topic question, what are some good beginner puffers for my son to have, that won't die or are generally weak, i need some that will stand up to not super care....

[devder1]

hi i have a kinda off topic question, what are some good beginner puffers for my son to have, that won't die or are generally weak, i need some that will stand up to not super care....

well what size is the tank? If you want to do brackish figure 8's would be good
If you have a big tank then a fahaka would work great, once they are past 3 inches they are indestructible

[groovitudedude]

hi i have a kinda off topic question, what are some good beginner puffers for my son to have, that won't die or are generally weak, i need some that will stand up to not super care....
To be honest, I wouldn't suggest a puffer to someone who's not going to give it a lot of care. Most puffers are very delicate and scaleless. They are not your average fish ;). If I were you, I'd stick with other fish unless you want to give them "super care".
well what size is the tank? If you want to do brackish figure 8's would be good
If you have a big tank then a fahaka would work great, once they are past 3 inches they are indestructible
I wouldn't go suggesting a fahaka puffer to someone who's not that experienced...

[Pufferpunk]

What do you mean by "stand up to not super care.... "? All puffers are very sensitive to water parameters & need "super" care. Minimum of 50% weekly water changes, unless you severly understrock the tank. I really don't think a BW fish is for you, since it takes an understanding of premixing salt, measuring specific gravity, etc, for this. Also, if you are looking for a low-maintence fish, puffers don't eat flakes & you may find it difficult to supply the foods necessary for this exotic fish.

Here's a whole libray of pufferinfo for you: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/?sid=2cbddf0b1df1dce61d1094bc5cec8422
Pufferpedia (puffer profiles): http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/

[devder1]

To be honest, I wouldn't suggest a puffer to someone who's not going to give it a lot of care. Most puffers are very delicate and scaleless. They are not your average fish ;). If I were you, I'd stick with other fish unless you want to give them "super care".

I wouldn't go suggesting a fahaka puffer to someone who's not that experienced...

I have heard that fahakas are very hardy, I clearly stated he needs a large tank so I don think it's that ridiculous

[Pufferpunk]

I have to agree with Groovy on this one. There are no "easy" puffers that don't require more care than the average fish.