# Any advice for dwarf puffer biotope tank?



## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

Someday soon I'm gonna start my fiances 20g long dwarf puffer tank it will also house some shrimp snails and possibly otocinclus affinis (not biotope correct but we'll how efficient the shrimp are at cleaning the fine leaves plants) it will be an NPT will a German mattenfilter. Lighting will be a dual bulb T5NO giving me medium lighting. Looking to do some rotala species and some eleocharis species witha sand cap in the soil. Any other suggestions? I want the puffers to breed so I'm gonna mimic nature best I can including the use of peat and RO water to give me soft water with a pH of around 6.5-6.8 any suggestions or tips I should know on breeding this species?


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

Advise is to read up on dwarf puffers: your shrimp and snails are food.

v3


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## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

I have. I was planning on the snails being food. The shrimp however I was told the puffers won't get a taste for them unless i feed them frozen or thawed shrimp from the store


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## Say Car Ramrod (Oct 9, 2011)

I had a dwarf puffer in a little cull tank and he never bothered the shrimp. Might just depend on the puffer's personality 

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 4


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## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

Yeah I hear it's hit or miss. But I'm plNning on having 3 of them (1m/2f) so hopefully they have good persnalities


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## wildroseofky (Mar 5, 2013)

You will want to get frozen bloodworms and tongs to feed them to the puffer with. I was told that snails only is not good. I recently got a dwarf puffer but the poor thing didn't make it. Most have internal parasites, so you need to get a wormer. Make sure your filter doesn't make a strong current. They are so little that too much current can knock them around. It is my understanding that breeding is next to impossible. Most are wild caught. Here is a link to a great puffer forum with lots of info. http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=4

They like lots of hiding places and lots of things to look over and around. Very curious creatures.


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## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

I'm already planning on feeding them a varied diet. And as far as the rest I'm gong to he using a German mattenfilter with poret foam so current will be very little if any but with great filtration. And I'll keep an eye out for the worms u speak of but in hoping I don't get those problems as the ones I'm getting are tank raised from a local breeder.


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## dprais1 (Sep 12, 2012)

I think breeding is easy. Mine were always doing the breeding thing. It's raising the fry and eggs that is probably the hard part. 

White worms and grindal worms would be good choices for food, I fed mine whiteworms more than anything else..

They get more aggressive as they get older. As your puffers mature your shrimp will disappear. 

Puffers, IME, are sensitive to change so slooowly acclimating them to your tank conditions would really be ideal.


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## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

I'm not sure where to get white worms and grindle worms. Is that something my LFS should carry? And they come from 7.8 pH and I'll be drip acclimating them down to 6.5 but a very stable 6.5


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## bitFUUL (May 14, 2010)

Snails are a must for puffers. It keeps their beak filed down, just like a bird.


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## Qwe (Jul 8, 2013)

bitFUUL said:


> Snails are a must for puffers. It keeps their beak filed down, just like a bird.


Dwarf puffers don't have that problem. They don't even eat the shell, they suck the snail out escargot style.

Mine also love to eat live blackworms...


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## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

I'm planning on just planting densely and letting them eat the ramshorns that come with the plants. Maybe buy more in the future if I need them


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## wildroseofky (Mar 5, 2013)

I was never able to find live worms. I had an earthworm colony that I tried feeding to my puffer but he would not eat them. You can find people selling worm cultures in the classified section sometimes. I was thinking about ordering some fairy shrimp eggs to hatch for my next attempt. Mine ate snails just fine.


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## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

Well I'm a member if a fish club in my area and people always have weird things for sale so maybe if I just ask around. Just last month people were going nuts for daphnia cultures


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## dprais1 (Sep 12, 2012)

I keep microworms, whiteworms and grindal worms. PM if interested.


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## Colorblizzle (Dec 27, 2012)

I'll keep that in mind. I'm on tapatalk and don't know how to message lol. But I also don't have the puffers. Yet either


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