Colomesus asellus

[OrionGirl]

Just added a pair to my 40. They are really nice, great color, busy investigating everything. I was just thrilled when they took prepared foods last night! They ate some frozen brine, glass worms, blood worms and frozen shrimp. They didn't eat any of the prepared food, but I'm hoping they will take to that eventually. I have some live mussels (currently having out in the SW sump), and was planning on feeding them once a week for beak maintenance, in addition to handfuls of pond snails.

They are in with a bunch of bristlenose, dwarf puffers, kuhli loaches, the rainbow shark and UDC. I'm going to be adding more plants, and am hoping to encourage snails in one of my other tanks for these kids and the dwarves. The dwarves are in a bit of shock--they aren't the tough guys in the tank now. So far the C. asellus have stolen food from them, but no nipping or chasing.

Any one mixed these guys before?

[RTR]

I don't think one crunchy meal per wek will cut it for these fish. They are the worst for incisor overgrowth in the family. I feed at minimum one solid meal per day crunchy for these guys.

Good color is with you from the beginning if the stock was a good catch. You got good fish. They should hold color pretty well (they don't fade as many GSPs may do). If they have excellent color, they are among the showiest in the family.

Compatability is always a crap shoot with puffers, even the mild ones like these. Re-visit the question after a year to 18 months.

IME, 4-5 is safer than 2, a group rather than top dog/underdog. But the 40 is a bit small for that with other fish.

[OrionGirl]

Good to know--will the mussels be adequate? I'm limited on what I can provide during the winter, but plan on having crawdad during the spring, summer and fall, so store-bought shell fish and snails will have to suffice for the winter and busy times. Ghost shrimp as well, though I am not sure they are crunchy enough.

I'm considering changing my plans for a 55--it was going to be a brackish setup, but I'm thinking that might go on hold again, and I could set it up as a tank for the puffers, and move them all over. It would be lightly planted, and probably not have many other fish in there, just a few cleaners. So would that be a better long term plan, and add a trio to this pair? Maybe a pair of the ancistrus (I am still over run with the buggers) for cleaning.

[RTR]

Store-bought is fine. I can provide snails for my puffs, most of therest comes from the grocery. There is a recent short thread on another board you might enjoy on this point:

http://www.aqualinkwebforum.com/6/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=8126047912&f=3266032422&m=5926062614

The ghost shrimp will help, but more as the fish mature.

Adding a trio would be ideal IME, and the bristlenose will be good cleaners - not easy in a puff tank. The more the merrier on the plants - complex sight lines are good.

[OrionGirl]

Okay, they will be moving to the 55 in about a month (I am going on vacation, and really would not have bought them if I saw them in good health regularly). Or, everyone else will be moved to the 55, and they will get the entire 40 (+ a pair of bristlenose). The 40 is already established, and has the better lights, so will support plants better. Hmmmm....

The less tanks our house sitter has to deal with, the better, for now. They got snails last night, and I set up the tank for breeding snails again. The dwarves get a handful of pond snails from the LFS weekly, but their main source of snails are the baby MTS that hide in the gravel--not a good solution for the big kids. However--joyful surprise! I found a pound of vacuum packed raw, shell covered shrimp in the freezer last night--forgotten leftovers from Christmas.

Surprisingly, there are 2 amano shrimp in this tank that have been inspected, but not eaten--I'm guessing they are too large right now? The puffers are just a tad bigger than the adult dwarves right now.

[cdawson]

Your amano probably won't get eaten either. I've had 3 in with my SA puffer for about 5 months and he doesn't even so much as bother them. He eats their molted shell but otherwise leaves them alone. I can't even get him to eat snails, I've put him in a breeder net with about 20 snails for an hour and he didn't even touch them.

[OrionGirl]

What crunchy food are your feeding him?

[RTR]

There have been a couple of puffers I had to train to eat snails - exactly as per disposing on surplus ramhorns - crush them against the glass and let the fish eat them. It did not take long for the puffers to get the idea that the package of the shell was worth crushing for the contents.

When captive puffers who have previously eaten snails become reluctant to do so, it is usually tooth overgrowth, or a broken tooth secondary to overgrowth.

Habituation to tankmates can protect tankmates such as the Amanos for extended periods to indefinitely - I just don't count on it. High plant density and good secure molting refuge spots help too. Amanos are fast when they feel endangered. :)

[OrionGirl]

Just an update--everybody is happily munching snails and the shell-on shrimp. I've been putting them in until I see a slightly pudgy tummy on each puffer, and then feeding the other foods. Might not be needed, but I afraid they'll gorge themselves on the worms and frozen shrimp (unshelled kind), and want to prevent that. They eat the mussel, but don't seem to crunch the shell yet. I think they may be too small right now for the size mussel I can find (about 2.5 inches, vrs. a 1.5 inch puffer). I'll keep offering it, though.

They are very active, and beginning to show 'normal' behavior--coming up to the glass whenever I walk by the tank.

[RTR]

I do confess that most locally-available mussels are too big for young fish - and even with a pre-cracked shell may be too tough.

It sounds as though things are going well in your tank. The first 1-3 day days are often hiding and reluctant to feed, but puffers generally seem to settle in well quite fast for largely wild-caught fish (dwarfs may be or become the exception to that - so easy to breed).

Puffers, as are goldfish and some Cichlids, are great people-watchers. As with the fish mentioned and certain hound dogs, they are always hopeful that food will be offered. It makes you wonder just who is training whom?

[OrionGirl]

I'll be honest--they're getting me trained. ;) Just got back from a snail diving expedition at the LFS. I now have a 55 gallon tank that has about 150 snails in it. I will make one more trip on Monday to get some more, and hope that this along with the snails in the other tanks and the shell-on shrimp will keep them supplied with crunchies for the time that I'm on vacation.

I read today on another forum about someone who tried using a dremel on the plates of his dog-faced (marine) puffer. the beak was so far overgrown that they over lapped significantly. He ended up tearing one of the plates completely out! Terrifying.

[RTR]

I've only operated on puffer teeth once - and it ws a major trauma for me, and I assume the puffer as well, but the fish survived. I think I'm permanently scared. That may be why I'm such a nut on snail feeding. The fish was a South American BTW.

I've had others get a bit long in the tooth, then were switched to all-snail diets basically, and they recovered. The big mbu got mussels and snails, period. Krill or live earthworms were treat foods, but far from staples.

[SBA]

Hi OrionGirl

I realise this post is a bit late to say the least - I have only just got a computer that works after moving house.

Hope yours are doing well. I have two in a tank with 4 c. paleatus, 4 c. trilineatus and 6 harlequin rasboras. I realise this might not be the ideal mix but at present everyone seems happy. I had problems at first with the puffers nipping two c. aeneus' fins, to the point where I had to remove them and give them to a friend, but for some reason they don't bother the other species.

They never even look twice at the rasboras (too fast for them?).

I haven't had them long enough for the teeth to grow yet (they are about 4 - 5 months). I do feed them snails every other feed and shrimp etc, but from reading other's advice on here I fear that it is only a matter of time before DIY dentistry is required.

All in all great little fish with loads of character. How are yours getting on?

Ade

[OrionGirl]

Mine are doing great! They are bothering the UDC, but a new tank for the cats is cycling now (established filters, plants that are established and new--it's being challenged with ammonia now) and I expect to remove the UDC, the butterfly pulcher, and if I can locate all of them, the kuhli loaches this weekend. Then the puffers and bristlenose will be the only fish in the tank.

I'm feeding them shell-on shrimp, and have some small chunks of crab, which are really too big for them right now. Additionally, I add a handful of snails or some small ghost shrimp each day. I learned quickly to feed the crunchies first, then the other foods (mix of Emerald Entree, blood or glass worms, and community formula, small amounts only!). Otherwise, the puffer pig out on the soft stuff, and barely touch the crunchies. Not a big deal with the snails and ghost shrimp, but a royal pain with everything else!

I'm also adding more plants to this tank--the goal is to have it be heavily planted, with just the few puffers and bristlenose. My only concern--they don't seem to have grown much? I'm not sure if I should be able to tell they've grown or not...I could with the dwarves.

[RTR]

Puffers are not the fastest growing fish in the world for me - most seem not to have the huge spurt in early months that many capitve-bred fish do, but steadier growth over the first year to year and a half, then slower from then on. But the "from then on" is so long with puffers, it adds up. Just as for Cichlids and Loaches.

Also, being largely wild-caught, it depends in what the locals can and do know how to catch, and do catch. For many of these beasts, they have already had the first big growth period in the wild. Dwarf and Fahaka are exceptions - they come in small/very young and do show rapid growth in captivity. I've just assumed those folk know what to catch, and how to capture the easiest shippers.

[SBA]

yeah mine don't seem to be growing very quickly. they were about 3/4 inch when i got them (if that) and now are probably just over 1 inch.

not sure what 'normal' is, but they have never shown any signs of stress and i'm happy with water / feeding regimes. they got some at the lfs after i got mine that were a lot bigger - maybe 1 1/2 - 2 inches in length but a lot more in total body mass than mine.

from what i'm told they will only get to about 3 inches in captivity, i guess time will tell!

[OrionGirl]

That makes sense, and reassures me--I was worried that maybe they weren't getting enough to eat, despite have nicely rounded tummies. Thanks!