New 'hairy' monster in the house

[DMD123]

This is a really pleasant surprise

When i clicked on the thread and saw the first post was back in 2014, i thought, someone just revived an old thread, but after reading this last post i am very happy i went through the thread and the puffer still being there with you.

I have been keeping one for almost an year now, and i want to ask a few questions as you have good experience with this one.

Mine when new was a very very active specimen constantly running around the front pane the moment i was in the fish room, now just hides under a piece of driftwood, eats once or twice in a week, although would eat crabs eveytime if I put.

Mine is extremely interactive with me but also very lazy otherwise. When it sees me it comes out of its cave and begs for food. It will swim around when I am in the room and is very inquisitive watching what I do. If I am in the room for a while and it senses it is not getting fed it will go back to just sitting.

I also keep an arrowhead puffer that I feel is pretty interactive too. I feel the key is a good sized tank and a lot of interesting decor. Each of my lurkers have a 65B to themselves. I know they say the fish only need like a 20-30 gallon but I feel the extra space makes them more comfortable and in turn more outgoing. Cant prove this theory but I do keep two lurkers and both are super interactive with me. The decor comes into play for them to interact. The hairy loves its cave but there is another piece that it sits on like a perch and watches over the tank. Must be interesting enough for the puffer because it never cruises the glass like others do.

Hope this helps. As a person who also keeps other lazy fish like bichirs, my puffers are way more interactive.

 

[headbanger_jib]

I too keep a suvatti, my suvatti is super active compared to the baileyi.

My baileyi lives in a bigger tank than the suvatti's tank

 

[DMD123]

My suvatti is still young and a very aggressive feeder. Will pop out of the sand as soon as I crack open the tank lid but nowhere near as interactive as the baileyi who interacts as soon as it sees me. Both stay out when they know I am there. I think part of the activeness is frequent feedings. I do smaller portions every day or every other day. My baileyi is tong trained and will eat krill from long feeding tongs. Mine too love crabs. I live pretty close to water and can go get little shore crabs to feed the puffers. Dont do it too often since it is so messy to clean up crab shell/limbs everywhere, lol.

 

[headbanger_jib]

My suvatti is still young and a very aggressive feeder. Will pop out of the sand as soon as I crack open the tank lid but nowhere near as interactive as the baileyi who interacts as soon as it sees me. Both stay out when they know I am there. I think part of the activeness is frequent feedings. I do smaller portions every day or every other day. My baileyi is tong trained and will eat krill from long feeding tongs. Mine too love crabs. I live pretty close to water and can go get little shore crabs to feed the puffers. Dont do it too often since it is so messy to clean up crab shell/limbs everywhere, lol.

i totally get the mess that puffers can make

 

[DMD123]

headbanger_jib , Do you catch yours puffing? Its a regular event with both mine.

Sorry blurry pics but you get the idea



The arrowhead

 

[headbanger_jib]

I

headbanger_jib , Do you catch yours puffing? Its a regular event with both mine.

Sorry blurry pics but you get the idea
View attachment 1403585
View attachment 1403586

The arrowhead
View attachment 1403587

I only ever saw my suvatti puff up once, i took a bit more time than usual to put his food and he puffed up

 

[erythrinus]

Mine are still coexisting with no issues, except when they both latch onto a mealworm and tear it in half. I can’t say what sex mine are (I read about the dimorphism online but do not know if it is true). They have very different appearances, and the less hairy one is more aggressive about demanding food. They’re constantly begging and have insatiable appetites. I really enjoy them. My suvati, in contrast, acts like a rock.
In response to whoever mentioned the sudden appetite loss, my turgidus did this. At first they begged and ate all the time. now they feed when they feel like it and don’t beg. I think they were still growing when I got them and are now they are adults. They look very healthy.

 

[DMD123]

Scruffy doing what she does best

 

[DMD123]

The other thing she does well is sit and watch me... on top of her "perch". This piece of driftwood has been fun to have in the tank

 

[erythrinus]

My male (I think) used to be very extroverted. I paired him with what I think was a female and the were doing great together. Then, a few months ago, she suddenly died. She had no signs of trauma or disease. She was the dominant of the two fish and ate really well until her sudden demise. Since then, he tends to sit in the back and I hardly ever see him. He used to beg for food as soon as I entered the room, but not now. He still eats because the feeders disappear, and if I catch him out he’ll eat mealworms and earthworms that i toss in. I don’t really know what his problem is unless he is depressed at the loss of the other one. Seems unlikely though..