Puffers wont eat !!!?

Question

I have one dwaf puffer. he's very thin and he wont eat. i have tons of live snails but he wont touch them. I also have given them frozen blood worms with no avail. i have even tryed live baby brine shrimp and still nothing. any suggestions?

he isnt sick

Answer 1

The puffer fish may indeed be sick. Call your vet and ask if they or any practices in the area are experienced with tropical/exotic fish. Call the vet and consult with them - they can't charge you for advice!

Check pH and make sure your puffer is receiving proper vitamins. Try using ghost shrimp - they are a bit bigger than the baby brine, and might entice your puffer to go after them.

Another great resource are online tropical/exotic fish forums. I will list some below in the sources.

One thing to check for, though, are overgrown teeth. In the wild, puffer teeth are worn down because they feed primarily on hard-shelled creatures. In captivity, they may not be getting enough shellfish - and their teeth can get so overgrown that they can no longer eat. If this is the case - you may have to perform your own dentistry (ONLY IF YOU ARE AN EXPERIENCED FISH OWNER), or take the fish to a vet who knows how.

Answer 2

Hi, well u can always 1. go to teh pet store and give them a water sample ,so they can test it ,-Also ask them to tell u everything they have that the puffer might eat(sounds crazy but when i was wroking at petco this same thing happend about 3 or 4 time puffers are tickey so aneyways the one would only eat brine shrimp and then he would eat flakes every now and then i guess he liked to mix it up - the other one something was off in the water and he just was not in the mood to eat b/c the water was off i think it was the salt someone had it to low so then they gave him to us and he was doing alot better.) -(also u can go to if u have a ptco and ask them for a care sheet on that fish and it will give u more info on foods and how to get him to eat ) --DiD You try a feeder fish?~a really small one that worked all the time for us.2..you can take him to a vet(yes sounds crazy but people do it all the time b/c they are there pet and they do have feelings like u and i and as u see u go to the glass they will look at u and everything ..)
Good Luck i hope i helped a lil.. I know puffers are stinckers!~!~

Answer 3

If he won't eat then he might be sick, you might not be able to see whats wrong.

Try luring him with live fish, feeder minnows work well for that.

But just incase, add some Doc Fish sea salt, it'll relieve some stress and also acts like a natural remedy sometimes.
Do a 10% water change for a few days

try www.aquariumadvice.com
they offer excellent help.

Answer 4

Find out what the pet store was feeding him. Some will actually eat flake food. The ones I had would only eat live brine shrimp.

Also, check the water paramters, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates, and the temperature. That could be stressing him.

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

Answer 5

You could try mosquitoe larvae (frozen) or perhaps very small mealworms or butterworms. I had one puffer that would not eat anything but the fins of rosey reds... he didn't last very long.

Answer 6

I had the same problem with my puffers and unfortunately they died. I hope yours pull through.

Answer 7

go to the pet store and ask them for help. your fish is sick and will die without the proper help. good luck

Answer 8

if he is sick he won't eat and there isn't much u can do about it

Answer 9

he sick,they wont eat