pufferfish...?

Question

im looking to get a pufferfish, but im in the process of reserching abit about them at the moment to make sure i can provide and care for it properly. Ive been on websites to see what the smallest kind you can get is, i visited a local aquarium today and they have some green spotted puffers which where only around 5cm big? are the just babys? or have they not been able to grow due to crowed conditions in the shops? websites say they average 10cms in a tank set up, and that figure 8 puffers average 6cm, is this correct?
whats the minimum tank size to keep them in if you get the smallest one? i dont want big puffers...would prefure smaller ones. im aware they are brackish and only eat live food, cannot be kept with other fish...
thanx for any help
x

Answer 1

Green spotted puffers, like the one you saw, max out at about 6 inches (15cm), so the ones you saw are definately sub-adults or juveniles.

Due to the activity habits of this particular puffer, it will require a 30gal tank (minimum), or 30gal per adult green spotted puffer if keeping several due to their aggression level.

Live food isn't necessarily required (other than perhaps live ramhorn snails), but require 'hard' food (in the form of mollusks and crusteaceans) to keep their beaks from overgrowing. Mine do fine on frozen shelled shrimp, mussels, clams, prawn, etc.

There are smaller species of pufferfish that will suit your preferences and work in smaller tanks, though, as Copperhead has indicated.

Answer 2

One of the smallest puffers is the dwarf puffer - these get to be about 1 inch (2.5 cm) max, and are a true freshwater puffer (don't require even brackish water as an adult). If you're looking for small size, this would be the way to go. They still need a reasonable tank (about 10-20 gallon) and like lots of plants & cover. They're territorial, but have been spawned in a home tank.

Here are some places where you can get info on them:
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=971
All puffers - dwarfs are listed under the freshwater photo, green spotted and figure 8s are under brackish: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/

Answer 3

You can have a 10 gallon brackish water tank if you want to. You will not be able to put more than 3 dwarf, green or 8 puffers (roughly 3 gallons per fish here) into it however. It is better to keep the species the same however there are many people on this site that have kept all three together with no problems.

Sizes will vary from fish to fish but that sounds close. No they aren't babies they just haven't matured yet.

Also, brackish water is going to take a bit longer to set up and cycle than your fresh water will. Once you understand this and have a good foundation your puffer housing will go smoothly. Once you understand this, you will be fine.

Here is a good site with solid info http://www.dwarfpuffers.com/

Sorry added, I keep thinking of things for you here.

Dwarf puffers are quite hardy and can tolerate a variety of water conditions. For them to be healthy and happy, though, you should try to give them the best conditions possible. Keep in mind that Dwarf Puffers are 100% freshwater fish! While greens and 8's do best in brackish. They can tolerate small increases in salinity but are at optimum health in pure freshwater.

Temperature - While they can tolerate a broad range of temperatures, dwarf puffers seem to do best with a temperature of at least 80F (26C).

PH - A PH of at least 7.0 -7.3 is best. & is basically neutral.
Nitrites and Ammonia - As with any fish, you want to keep these down to 0 at all times.