puffers in a 5-10 gallon

[Sean_Buckley]

Could I have some puffers in a 5-10 gallon freshwater? Do all puffers need brackish? If not, what ones live in freshwater? What should I feed them? How many? Are they expensive? So many questions! AHHHHH!!!!
Sean

 

[David]

The dwarf puffer is entirely freshwater, and does not require any salt whatsoever. They are not very expensive either. You could have up to 2 in a 5 gallon, and 3 in a 10 gallon. Be mindful that they are territorial and will establish and defend their territories, constantly nipping at each other if the tank is too small. It is customary to feed them bloodworms, I believe. Shouldn't this be in the oddball section?

 

[Erised]

Yup, this should be in the oddball section and will probably get moved soon.
If you're willing to make your 10 Gallon a species only tank, you could have dwarf puffers in there ... for a 10 Gallon I'd say, get 2 dwarf puffers, not 3 ... however, 3 you might get away with anyway. Try to get 1 male, 2 female if this is how you're gonna do it.

If you get them, make sure there are Loads of hiding places for them, and a lot to break their eye-sight kinda thing so chances of them attacking eachother are smaller.

Dwarf puffers, the Only freshwater puffer you can keep in a 10 Gallon, wont be too expensive... I Think about 6 dollars each, however I really can not tell you this for sure, seeing as this is about what they are in holland (well, euros then ) and I havent heard prices in england or america

You can feed them brine shrimp, shrimp, bloodworms, daphnia and the occasional snail to keep their teeth down

 

[FrankSlapperinni]

The only puffer you could keep in a tank that small is a dwarf puffer. They live in pure freshwater, so salt is not a problem. They are extremely aggressive, so only they can be kept with each other in a tank that small. They have specific diets of live and frozen food which must be fed regularly, in rare cases will they eat flake, but even then it is not enough to sustain them. Snail are also eaten readily and will help keep their teeth down.
In a 5 gallon tank you could keep 2 DP's, and in a 10 you could keep either 3 or 1 South American puffer, which will grow significantly bigger but is also more peacefully, so you may have better luck tank mate wise. The SA puffer is also freshwater and has similar requirements, except they are known for their exceptionally fast growing teeth, and eventually you may need to trim them.
Puffers are extremely messy fish, and you should have a filter that can roughly recycle the water volume 10 times in an hour (IE for a ten gallon tank you would need a 100gph filter).
Also make sure to have lots of cover and plants to break the line of sight between puffers and other fish, as this will lessen aggression.
Read some of the articles in the Oddball forum for more info .

 

[David]

Dwarf puffers, the Only freshwater puffer you can keep in a 10 Gallon, wont be too expensive... I Think about 6 dollars each, however I really can not tell you this for sure, seeing as this is about what they are in holland (well, euros then ) and I havent heard prices in england or america

They are about $5 U.S where I am. And yes, you should definitely have some snails in there to keep their teeth trim, as they will obstruct their mouth if they get too long and they may starve.

 

[Sean_Buckley]

OK, thanks loads! Sorry about the oddball thing, Im kind of a newb.
Sean

 

[amazingbioloboydp]

The only puffer you could keep in a tank that small is a dwarf puffer. They live in pure freshwater, so salt is not a problem. They are extremely aggressive, so only they can be kept with each other in a tank that small. They have specific diets of live and frozen food which must be fed regularly, in rare cases will they eat flake, but even then it is not enough to sustain them. Snail are also eaten readily and will help keep their teeth down.
In a 5 gallon tank you could keep 2 DP's, and in a 10 you could keep either 3 or 1 South American puffer, which will grow significantly bigger but is also more peacefully, so you may have better luck tank mate wise. The SA puffer is also freshwater and has similar requirements, except they are known for their exceptionally fast growing teeth, and eventually you may need to trim them.
Puffers are extremely messy fish, and you should have a filter that can roughly recycle the water volume 10 times in an hour (IE for a ten gallon tank you would need a 100gph filter).
Also make sure to have lots of cover and plants to break the line of sight between puffers and other fish, as this will lessen aggression.
Read some of the articles in the Oddball forum for more info .

wow. took the word outta my mouth and in much better condition...most of that should be pinned in oddball section!



edit:sean,its okay we were all newbs at one point!welcome to the forum!