Porcupine puffer not eating and going downhill

[infraled]

Hey everyone,

My porcupine puffer started getting fussy about eating two weeks ago. It escalated to where they are chewing and then spitting out almost all the food they get. They are now getting too skinny and I don't know what to do.

Tank parameters:
125 gallon long
1.0225 salinity
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
20 nitrates
76 degrees temperature

Last water change was 3 days ago, I did a 50% change to lower the old tank syndrome of higher nitrates.

Tank mates:
Zebra eel
Small chainlink eel

Diet:
Mostly seafood blend mix from Trader Joe's (frozen/raw shrimp, scallops, calamari)
Some krill

Observations:
Definitely losing weight
I noticed a long time ago that they seemed to have an abnormal gill "bubble". I'm trying to have a decent picture of it, but on it's right gill there is a bubble that flairs out when they breathe. The bubble is not seem on the opposite side. They used to be healthy, but I don't know if it applies to what's going on now.

Video of the bubble:

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hey everyone,

My porcupine puffer started getting fussy about eating two weeks ago. It escalated to where they are chewing and then spitting out almost all the food they get. They are now getting too skinny and I don't know what to do.

Tank parameters:
125 gallon long
1.0225 salinity
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
20 nitrates
76 degrees temperature

Last water change was 3 days ago, I did a 50% change to lower the old tank syndrome of higher nitrates.

Tank mates:
Zebra eel
Small chainlink eel

Diet:
Mostly seafood blend mix from Trader Joe's (frozen/raw shrimp, scallops, calamari)
Some krill

Observations:
Definitely losing weight
I noticed a long time ago that they seemed to have an abnormal gill "bubble". I'm trying to have a decent picture of it, but on it's right gill there is a bubble that flairs out when they breathe. The bubble is not seem on the opposite side. They used to be healthy, but I don't know if it applies to what's going on now.

Video of the bubble:

spiney box appears to have some sort of abcess which can be post injury or bacterial. Water somewhat cool and salinity is low. Im not convinced reason why it stopped eating but fish is noticeably thin.
What foods are you/were you offering?
Eyes look good as well as breathing. Again, could be bacterial but if flukes or other ailment, Ruby rally Pro is a wide treatment for issues. That can be added to tank safely. In quarantine, Seachem Kanaplex or Neoplex

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Hey everyone,

My porcupine puffer started getting fussy about eating two weeks ago. It escalated to where they are chewing and then spitting out almost all the food they get. They are now getting too skinny and I don't know what to do.

Tank parameters:
125 gallon long
1.0225 salinity
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
20 nitrates
76 degrees temperature

Last water change was 3 days ago, I did a 50% change to lower the old tank syndrome of higher nitrates.

Tank mates:
Zebra eel
Small chainlink eel

Diet:
Mostly seafood blend mix from Trader Joe's (frozen/raw shrimp, scallops, calamari)
Some krill

Observations:
Definitely losing weight
I noticed a long time ago that they seemed to have an abnormal gill "bubble". I'm trying to have a decent picture of it, but on it's right gill there is a bubble that flairs out when they breathe. The bubble is not seem on the opposite side. They used to be healthy, but I don't know if it applies to what's going on now.

Video of the bubble:

Sorry, I can’t see the bubble you are describing.

Does your puffer’s teeth look overgrown? That is pretty common to see and it does cause them difficulty in eating.

Jay

 

[infraled]

spiney box appears to have some sort of abcess which can be post injury or bacterial. Water somewhat cool and salinity is low. Im not convinced reason why it stopped eating but fish is noticeably thin.
What foods are you/were you offering?
Eyes look good as well as breathing. Again, could be bacterial but if flukes or other ailment, Ruby rally Pro is a wide treatment for issues. That can be added to tank safely. In quarantine, Seachem Kanaplex or Neoplex

I might up that temp to 78 based on what I'm reading and I could bring the salt up a little. I thought that running a little less salty helped stave off parasites.

I've been offering the usual frozen shrimp and scallops. I've been offering frozen krill. I dosed it with garlic and made much smaller pieces to aid in their ability to chew it. Is tube feeding or paste an option?

I'm going to check out Ruby Reef's Rally Pro, never tried it!

Any food suggestions?

 

[infraled]

Sorry, I can’t see the bubble you are describing.

Does your puffer’s teeth look overgrown? That is pretty common to see and it does cause them difficulty in eating.

Jay

Here's a shot of it, it's right near the gill (or over it). The teeth actually look really good. My previous puffer had much longer teeth. Any recommendations for highly desired food?

 

[vetteguy53081]

Here's a shot of it, it's right near the gill (or over it). The teeth actually look really good. My previous puffer had much longer teeth. Any recommendations for highly desired food?

Fish again very thin. The lips appear swollen and may be from glass surfing/rubbing which they are known to do.
As for food, :
silverside fish
small shrimp
chopped clam
Mussel
squid pieces
prawn

 

[infraled]

Update:
Still not going for anything. I drove across town to get him brand new food and we're about to try that.

 

[infraled]

I've started to try to provide mysis shrimp through a syringe. Not sure how much is actually staying in though. I double checked his teeth though and they are perfectly worn and are not the issue. I'm starting to wonder if there may be something inside him or maybe a blockage? That is just a guess at this point.

 

[lion king]

Temp and salinity are fine, spiny box puffers are notorious for going off feeding. Offer them live ghost shrimp or even a small fiddler crab, if they refuse then there is a health issue.

How long have you had them, spiny box puffers are also notorious for internal parasites, which can linger for weeks, even a couple of months, before showing up.

Did you happen to treat your inhabitants for internal parasites, general cure, as eels also frequently carry internal parasites and last with them a very long time. The puffer would graze on eel poo. Just offering the simplest explanation of what I have seen frequently. Are the eels eating well?

 

[ReefHog]

Unless I'm missing something, I only see one emaciated porcupine fish. The pics are not of a spiny box puffer or burrfish. How long have you had it? Was it eating good when you got it, and for how long? Porcupines are typically pigs when it comes to food although they will sometimes go on a hunger strike occasionally. Not long enough to get that skinny though. Puffers can get lockjaw and are not able to eat their food due to nutrition defiencies from eating only krill. They're prone to flukes and are more sensitive to ammonia than other fish. Is it still "trying" to eat? If so, sometimes feeding with feeding tongs and making them work for the food will get them to swallow it.