The Hypocrite thread mbu

[Jenerik]

...there are many people out there that just enjoy fishkeeping and don't partake in forums... a lot of the ancient fish didn't know the difference.

My wife and I would fall into this category. I have been keeping fish my entire life and this is the first time I have chosen to get involved in a forum.

Our Mbu puffer is slighty less than 3 years old and was about 4" long when he purchased him (I "assume" it is a male, just because of his bright coloration but of course, have no idea how to actually sex one of these guys...). We kept him, until about 4 months ago, in a 48" tank with a bunch of Tanganyikan cichlids...

That tank, of course, is too small for the long run. We are presently living in an apartment while our house is being remodeled. His interim home is a 105G plastic stock tub...

His permanent tank will be a Marineland Deep Dimension 300G, which is 72"x36". Based on his size, that will be just about fine for him. When I last measured him, he was about 25" long...

I have never found him to be any more difficult to keep than any other fish. If anything, he is hardier than many of the smaller fish in the tank. Yes, Mbu are not for everyone but there is no "magic" needed to keep one, no special filtration, and yes, you absolutely can buy an over-the-counter aquarium that will work for one for its lifespan.

I also agree with whoever it was that said earlier that most care sheets were probably written by someone who only copied and pasted things off the internet and never has actually kept one of these guys.

Just my 2-cents.

 

[Stratoquarius]

Just want to chime in here and say that when I was 14 I had my first job in an LFS. there was a Mbu puffer about 12" long that had been in the store since he was 2". he had been there for over a year and nobody wanted to buy him. I always felt bad for the poor guy and wanted to take him home to my 55 gallon just to give him a better life. the fish probably died in that 20 gallon tank.

now i'm not saying keep them in 55g tanks, but if I could go back in time I would've saved him. A fish being well looked after and cared for in a tank that won't house their adult size for short term is much better than letting the fish die in an LFS tank.

 

[eklikewhoa]

My wife and I would fall into this category. I have been keeping fish my entire life and this is the first time I have chosen to get involved in a forum.

Our Mbu puffer is slighty less than 3 years old and was about 4" long when he purchased him (I "assume" it is a male, just because of his bright coloration but of course, have no idea how to actually sex one of these guys...). We kept him, until about 4 months ago, in a 48" tank with a bunch of Tanganyikan cichlids...

That tank, of course, is too small for the long run. We are presently living in an apartment while our house is being remodeled. His interim home is a 105G plastic stock tub...

His permanent tank will be a Marineland Deep Dimension 300G, which is 72"x36". Based on his size, that will be just about fine for him. When I last measured him, he was about 25" long...

I have never found him to be any more difficult to keep than any other fish. If anything, he is hardier than many of the smaller fish in the tank. Yes, Mbu are not for everyone but there is no "magic" needed to keep one, no special filtration, and yes, you absolutely can buy an over-the-counter aquarium that will work for one for its lifespan.

I also agree with whoever it was that said earlier that most care sheets were probably written by someone who only copied and pasted things off the internet and never has actually kept one of these guys.

Just my 2-cents.

OMFG!!!! That dude is super sexy!! LoL.

Very nice specimen you have there and I don't know about the "others" here but I think if he's lived and grown that much he has to be happy with a happy appetite! It's gorgeous looking! Size comparison to your baby is unreal! Your wife could be cradling them both!

Thanks for taking the time to register and share this BEAST with the rest of us and chiming in with personal experience to back it.

 

[eklikewhoa]

Just want to chime in here and say that when I was 14 I had my first job in an LFS. there was a Mbu puffer about 12" long that had been in the store since he was 2". he had been there for over a year and nobody wanted to buy him. I always felt bad for the poor guy and wanted to take him home to my 55 gallon just to give him a better life. the fish probably died in that 20 gallon tank.

now i'm not saying keep them in 55g tanks, but if I could go back in time I would've saved him. A fish being well looked after and cared for in a tank that won't house their adult size for short term is much better than letting the fish die in an LFS tank.

This is exactly why I feel the instant "shunning" of new members interested in MBUs that goes on here is very sad. There is little I have read about anyone doing anything about puffers being collected and exported so why not embrace those that are willing to take the time and save one.

 

[eklikewhoa]

Jenerik, Love the Riprarium you got going on the tanks too! Gives it a nice touch and I'm sure the plants soak up a great deal of waste once settled

 

[Jenerik]

Thank you. We enjoy him very much. I do believe that emergent plants are very beneficial in tanks with big waste producers like the puffer.

I will do a DIY thread once the new aquarium goes up. That is how I discovered this forum.

 

[kevinfleming21]

I miss my big guy

 

[arapaimag]

Thank you. We enjoy him very much. I do believe that emergent plants are very beneficial in tanks with big waste producers like the puffer.

I will do a DIY thread once the new aquarium goes up. That is how I discovered this forum.

Fantastic fish. It will be great to see him in the 300.

 

[NDsuperduty]

Since I don't own a puffer I will not try to say they are good in any specific size tank but to all the people complaining about them being abused or neglected because they aren't in a 1000g tank I will add this....quit wasting your time, and go fight a bigger fight if your worried about animal abuse. There are probably 1000x more boa's and pythons being bought each year buy people that never intend on having anything bigger than a 30g terrarium. And once they get too big they release them to the wild where they can grow larger, crossbreed, and kill local animals or even little kids.

Yes it's sad to see Puffers kept improperly, but IMO a 7ft python being set free is way more important than a puffer being in a cramped aquarium.

Just my $.02


Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app

 

[Jenerik]

The issue is that a good percentage of peope rattling the "your tank is not big enough" saber actually have no firsthand experience with Mbu puffers and are just quoting what some self-proclaimed "expert" on the internet said.

I would venture a guess that those among us who have kept Mbu succesfully for some time spend more time enjoying our fish than running around the internet, trying to tell people they are wrong. At least that's how I feel.

Just my 2-cents.