Porc Puffer shy?

[banditpowdercoat]

I've had my porc for almost 2 months now. He eats Krill outa my fingers, but he allways hides. Only comes out when I have food. My other fish are tangs and angels, not agressive so it cant be that he's afraid. But kinda depressing that he only comes out to eat. Anything I can do to get him to come out more?

Also, He LOVES Krill, I tried him with some cooked shrimp today, not liking it as much. He ate it, but tool alot longer. He wont come out and eat Mysis when I feed the others though. What else should I be feeding him? Dont want to be just Krill, cant be good for him to have only one type of food, right?

[Leah]

Dan, what angels do you have?

[Keri]

Maybe they aren't too aggressive but maybe too boisterous for him? He may not be a great swimmer, they look a little awkward (esp. if your tank has a lot of flow)

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Cooked shrimp is not a good idea. Raw shrimp is far better. I also feed ours small crabs from the seashore (and the local Chinese supermarket sells these frozen). Ours is much more active at night than during the day. Poofie lives with several tangs and dwarf angels too.

Anthony

[fishoholic]

When I had a porc puffer he loved frozen clams on the half shell from H2O life, which I bought at Big Als.

[Ephraim]

I have the same problem with my stars and stripes. there is nothing in the tank for him to be afraid of but he's the most nervous fish i have ever seen. I have had him for well over 6 months but i still need to stand 10 feet back from the tank for him to eat.

[banditpowdercoat]

Dan, what angels do you have?

A Hippo, Yellow, and A Sailfin Tang.
Coral Beauty and Flame Angel.
Checkerboard Wrasse
Pair of Perc Clowns.


He never seems afraid of them when he comes out to eat. Usually him and the Sailfin will eat from my fingers at the same time. He has never puffed up, that I have seen. So maybe he just likes being alone? Sure hope he gets more active.


BTW, how do you sex Porc Puffers? Would like to know if he is a he or she?

Heres a Pic I managed to get the other day. I know you've been jonsin for a pic, Leah :D
http://banditpowdercoat.com/Powdergallery/nfpicturepro/albums/userpics/10002/Dsc00028.jpg

[Leah]

Keep the skimmer, send the puffer: grab::grab: What a cutie. And your right
I am jealous and not just of the fish, hehe! Joking well sort of :redface:
Can't imagine the angels you would have alot to do with it by the way.

[my2rotties]

Porcs are nocturnal and sometimes sleep the entire day. You litte guy is probably hunting all night and sleeping in his napping spot during the day. I would not be too concerned about it. He is adorable.

[iansfishy]

Dan, any issues with him eating you snails or crabs?

[banditpowdercoat]

Ian, I have a bunch of Snails in the tank and he hasn't seemed to eat any. I havnt seen any broken shell's BUT, I did buy 2 cleaner shrimp when I got him. Was a test, but he ate them :( $40 meal LOL. I bet if the cleaners were fullgrown, would be diferent, but they were small too. I have a full grown coral banded shrimp in my other tank. He's large enough that I think the Puffer might leave him alone??? I don't really like the coral banded much anyways, he's kinda a jerk it seems. he came with the 150g. I may toss him back into the 150 and put a couple cleaners in the 45.

[my2rotties]

My puffer ate a few fish, but has never touched the shrimp. Swims around with a fire shrimp on him all the time. He is a HUGE porc and and does eat snails, which make him sick all the time. He puffs up constantly trying to cough up the shells he swallowed.

Sadly he has started killing smaller fish in the tank, but does not eat them... just kills them. He is going to his new home shortly.

[bulletsworld]

If you've only had him for two months, give him time. He's a small guy too. Porkies are loner fish really. They don't school with other fish and usually swim alone. They are noctural creatures and prefer to not have bright lights & have rocky caves to sleep under. He may come around more, or look at you from a shaded area. If your curious how active he can be, get a blue LED flashlight and explore your tank at night. You will be surprised what you find. Its a whole other world. Very cool though. He's still young so Krill, or RAW shrimp is fine for him. When he gets older he will start to snack on other things. Trust me. He will get bored. :mrgreen: Give him time.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Yes, raw shrimp, prawns, scallops, etc. NOT cooked. My wife's porky is big and he's also kinda shy during the day.

I believe Porcupine puffers are primarily nocturnal (at least Poofy is) and large aggressive feeders, like tangs, triggers, and large angels might intimidate it during the day. At night, ours is always out and about, but during the day, its out mostly when we're feeding krill, freeze dried shrimp or other seafood. We also collect shore crabs or hitchhikers (from LFS) to give him a treat.

Little puffers are also much more shy than bigger ones.

I'm sure it'll be fine in the long run.

Anthony