FAHAKA

[tommybhermitage]

Hello guys, I have a baby fahaka on the way to my house. It’s listed as 1”, any tips to help it survive to adulthood? Best foods? I know snails, but what kind? And where can I get them? And should I give them to him this little? I have a 10g quarantine set up for now to make sure he’s all good and healthy. He will ultimately end up in a 120 wide. Thanks!

 

[Fat Homer]

For snails you can breed your own ramshorn snails, they make good feeders... just avoid snails such as MTS which have very hard shells that can crack a puffers teeth...

During quarantine i would watch out for possible IP’s as most puffers seem to be wild caught, so that would be the best time to treat if there are problems...

My only concern might be tank size as im not sure how long a 120G wide tank is and fahakas can have quite a bit of burst speed when spooked...

 

[tommybhermitage]

Well, once I get him stable for sure Iwill look for a 180. I have a 125 open and a 200g, but where would I get a ram horn snail? Order online? I have a 10 month old and I want her to get used to the puffer as a friend lol

 

[tommybhermitage]

Never mind I just placed an order on amazon. Will update when he comes

 

[Fat Homer]

Never mind I just placed an order on amazon. Will update when he comes

Ramshorn snails should be pretty easy to come by at most LFS’ i would presume... if not, you can see whats available to you which could be easy to breed...

Otherwise, hard shelled foods from Asian markets or the frozen section can also help when your puffer is older...

Think things like clams / mussels / crab legs etc...

 

[tommybhermitage]

Well I got him in, he ate some plant I had in his tank, and he ate some krill. He’s super tiny. Ignore the hard water stain I will clean it sometime lol hard to get a picture of him he won’t stop moving. How much should I feed? Seems belly is not full at all. Should I go until he’s plump each day, or every other?

 

[tommybhermitage]

He’s eating algae I have on my wood as well

 

[Fat Homer]

Yup, feed till you see the stomach is slightly round / bulgy, but dont over do it to the point where its like twice the size of the puffer...

Also, keep an eye out for possible IP’s just because it does look a little skinny atm, although could be due to all the traveling and stress of shipping...

 

[tommybhermitage]

Will do. I don’t think he feeds them before shipping so that could be why he was skinny, because 5 minutes after being in tank he ate my plants and some frozen krill. I’ll update

 

[Fat Homer]

Will do. I don’t think he feeds them before shipping so that could be why he was skinny, because 5 minutes after being in tank he ate my plants and some frozen krill. I’ll update

Lol, hopefully you dont have a fahaka that likes to do some gardening like mine used to...

My old girl used to literally trim leaves off my anubias plants if she thought they got in her way... coz around her cave and areas she hung out i’d often see missing leaves...