Puffer in need of help!

[cdawson]

I'm at my wits end here guys, my SA puffer is such a picky eater that no matter what he'll only eat blood worms and won't even touch snails. His beak is becoming too long and I don't know what to do. I'm willing to trim it but he's so small, I don't want to do it without hurting him.

[ChilDawg]

There are anesthetics that will help to put him under while you grind his beak with a Dremmel tool, but I hesitate to recommend them as a DIY project...talk with your local vet to see if they can help you with this project.

[cdawson]

would I be able to get my vet to do it?
at a price of course. If anyone's done this please let me know info.
I've heard of doing it with nail clippers before anyone done this way before?

[andruboz]

when i thought my puffer had a beak problem i sent email to a vet named dr. Myron Kebus.
i guess he's a vet specializing in fish.

he said if i had my vet call him, he would explain to the vet what to do. send him an email, maybe he'll do the same for you.

[email me or private message and i'll give you his email address. dont feel right just posting it publicly. hate for him to get a spam flood or something.]

[Shikkapow]

try ghost shrimp..they have a semi hard shell.. dont know if it will help though, but it might...:confused: :confused:

[cdawson]

will the ghost shrimp grind the beak down ?

[ChilDawg]

I'm reading that shrimp will help keep puffers' teeth down, but I'm not 100% for certain on it.

Here's a FAQ on Puffers: http://www.pufferfish.co.uk/aquaria/species/pufferfish/faq/index.htm

[Pufferpunk]

Unless you bombard SA puffers with snails as food almost every day, eventually you are going to have to trim their teeth. I have trimmed them once already & will be doing it again soon. There are a couple of ways to get them to eat snails. The rule of thumb is give them snails as large as their eye. The way I am sure they get some, is to place the fish in a breeder net with the snails for a few hours. Here is a recent post from someone on another site. I will be doing it this way this weekend.


Last night, I finally did what I've been putting off - I trimmed the teeth on "Buckey" - my S. A. pufferfish. This is what I did. I took two shoebox size plastic containers and filled them with water from the aquarium. I put an airline in each of them. In one I added 3 drops of pure clove oil. I used a net and cup to catch the puffer - so he wouldn't be exposed to air (I didn't want to risk him inflating with air). I put him in the clove oil container. Within 5 minutes he had stopped moving his fins - he was under. I took a new pair of cuticle trimmers and tried to trim his teeth. This was very difficult. It is so hard to get at their tiny teeth and not hurt them. I spent a few minutes trying to do this. I repeatedly dunked him in the water to keep him nice and wet. When I gave up trying to get the teeth cut further back I put him in the other container. Within a few minutes he was moving his fins again and another few minutes after that he began to swim. I left him in this container for about 30 minutes so he could fully get his bearings back. I also put some small snails in there with him - hoping he might eat them. I am trying to fatten him up. He ate at least one and continued to peck at the others. I finally put him back in his aquarium with a bunch of snails of various sizes and he proceeded to munch away on the snails. He actually used his teeth - and didn't just suck the snails out as usual. So, I'm hoping with continued snail feeding I won't have to trim his teeth again. Oh, I also added Stress Coat to the aquarium and his recovery container. I'm hoping it will help with the trauma of being handled. So far so good - we'll see how he is doing tonight.

[05dr]

i used infant size fingernail clippers. i also dreaded the day until i had no other options. now i have done this several times (i have 3 south american puffers) and have never used anesthetic. caught them, put them in a bucket and then took each out individually to do the trimming. in an effort to minimize time out of water i just got a firm grip and once i was pretty sure the clippers were aligned i gave a good squeeze. the first two times i didn't cut them perfectly (one tooth slightly longer or a little jagged) but it would soon even out and i figure only with experience can you become good at it. i think the most important thing is not trying to be too careful as they are slippery and you will just not be able to get a good grip extending the process longer and longer. all have been a little scuffed from the net but appear normal within 2 days or so. with my feeding regimen i need to trim teeth every 6-9 months per puffer. good luck

[Pufferpunk]

Well, I just tried the clove oil. It worked great! A lot easier than the last time I had to trim my SA's teeth without it. They just rolled over & stayed still while clipping. I placed them in fresh tank water & they were swimming around within 2 minutes.

[cdawson]

approx. how much did you use pufferpunk and how much water?

[Pufferpunk]

I filled 2 Coolwhip containors w/tankwater. Put 3 drops of clove oil (next time I'll try 1 drop) in 1 containor. Added the fish. Within 1 minute the fish was laying on it's back. It looked dead. I took the fish out & clipped it's teeth with cuticle nippers & placed it in the containor of fresh tankwater. I could see it breathing. After 1 minute it had righted itself, 2 minutes it was swimming around, 3 minutes it was back in the tank swimming like nothing had happened. Repeated with other puffer & all is fine with them today.

[ChilDawg]

Would someone archive this thread? This is really useful information for Puffer owners!

~Matthew

[cdawson]

no kidding useful doesn't even come close to describing how valuable this info is! I searched for a week straight and couldn't find this info ANYWHERE (I couldn't find any info on how to trim puffers teeth). Someone should send this info into aquarium fish magazine or something.

[cdawson]

pufferpunk, how big are your SA puffers?

[pehjon]

Dear you guys,

New member here. I have been looking for a forum regarding trimming puffers' beak or teeth for such a long time and finally, I found one. You guys are right, this article should be pinned somehow as the info is very, very helpful.

I have four figure eight and I noticed that one of them has its beak growing faster and bigger than the others'. I was a bit worried since they are still small and how can one actually trim their teeth. They always eat snails (plus some live and frozen food and luckily for me they also munch on some flakes too) - sometimes crushing but mostly just sucking them out. But still, his beak still got bigger and today, during feeding time, I saw him kinda struggling while eating. And now at least I can try helping them out with this problem.

Sorry for the long post... Just really glad to have gotten this info!

Thank you very much!
Peace!
Pehjon (Austria)

[Pufferpunk]

My SAPs are 1-2"( I have 3 of them). I am actually writing my next article on this (if I can ever get off these forums...) & will probably send it to TFH. If you're interested in this subject, here's the thread: Trimming Puffer Teeth (http://puffer.proboards2.com/index.cgi?board=hospital&action=display&num=1085932782)

[cdawson]

holy crap! I wrote this topic like a year ago! I don't suggest pulling up old topics like again pehjon... :(

[RTR]

But it is good info...

[pehjon]

Sorry about that, cdawson... I didn't even look at the date... Was just in a little panic there. Anyway thanks again ;)

And you're right RTR, good info!

And thanks for the link Pufferpunk. It was really a very informative thread.

Peace!
Pehjon

[cdawson]

But it is good info...


yeah...you're right. Sorry the MOD in me kicked in ;)

[Firsttanks]

Just a small note on keeping your puffers teeth worn down: I have been experimenting with a theory with my South American puffers. I have started to pour their supper onto a large rough flat piece of rock and as they pick the bloodworms and shrimp off the rock their teeth are being slowly worn down. I have been testing this theory for about 6 months now, since I performed my last bit of dentristy, and it seems to be keeping the growth in check. It will not wear down any existing overgrowth, but there is no evident growth in the 2 whose teeth I trimmed last time.

[captseaweed]

Florida puffers are naturally drawn to snails for food. Even snails that fall from the mangrove trees and float at the top of the tank. They recognize the shell shape that they are familiar with from the variety of species available to them from the ocean floor. If your puffer doesn't recognize the snail as food, try crushing it first to get the puffer interested. From there, the puffer will learn to try to suck the snail from the shell. I have had many puffers collected here in the Keys, and they come to the top of the tank immediately and suck the animal right from the shell, the same with sinking snails from the ocean.

[marc oaten]

hi,

I've been looking for a method of trimming my SA puffer's teeth for ages. This info is great I will be trying the clove oil method this weekend. Has anyone had any deaths or major problems doing it this way?

cheers

[Pufferpunk]

I do not recommend using clove oil on a weak, emaciated fish. It will not come back from being tranqed.

[Puffernewbee]

I have some websites you can see in this thread:
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=55573