Did you know a Dogface Puffer REALLY PUFF'S! Pix's INSIDE!

[bulletsworld]

Hey thought I would share this...

I was given this dogface puffer months back that they didn't think was going to make it. I doubted myself. At the time, it was black in color, curled in a ball, infected with velvet & ich pretty badly and even a bad case of fin rot, was missing most fins and couldn't even swim.

I cured him & nursed him back to health in a 29 gal QT that he's still remains in for over 3 mths now, but he’s fully recovered & doing great. YEAH! .

As they have dogface puffers STAMPED “NOT REEF SAFE” I often felt bad thinking he depressed in the bare bottom 29QT tank. Adding smaller fish in with him before, he never bothered & was not aggressive at all being very gentle natured and a very personable fish. Has to know what you’re doing all the time, follows you around the room. Very neat!

So the other night, as I'm cleaning his tank...After having the battle of not being able to find him a good home. I question myself thinking hmm....wonder what he would do in my 77gal reef tank?

I scope him in a cup (less stress-not exposed to air at all) & slowly put him in my 77gal. He swims around very slowly and stops to look at EVERYTHING. Now first thing you think of with a NOT reef safe animal, from what you read about them is "they will eat inverts", so I was worried. Keeping my eyes glued to the tank at all times. He never bothered & wasn’t interested with a single invert, my clams, lobster, snails, crabs or shrimps. So I kept watching him.

Then as I’m watching the dogface he slowly swims over to a mushroom....FAST….CHOP…releases! Telling myself its only a mushroom I let him carry on.... He looked at the colt coral.. CHOP! Then proceeds to swim around Telling myself maybe he’s just curious, wants to know what it is…o.k only a little piece out of the colt coral... Then he goes over to the Xenia... CHOP! Takes a bite & proceeds to the next coral. He was sampling a piece out of EVERY CORAL!!!!!

He seem to leave my LTA alone but went over to my RBTA at the other end and did this strange blow threw his mouth, blowing the tentacles of RBTA & before I knew it he snapped really fast at the RBTA and CHOP! Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! OMG! O.k I grabbed my net & cup! He's getting OUT OF THERE!!!! So the next to happen... The puffer knowing I'm taking him out. He starts doing a chocking action under the water! Suddenly he getting bigger and bigger and bigger! PUFFED UP SO HUGE! OMG! I had NEVER SEEN a dogface puffer actually PUFF! It was the size of a football!!! Sorry I don’t have pictures of his FULL puff, as I had to grab the camera! But fully puffed he would just roll around like a beach ball floating on the top of water, eyes sunk in his ball. It was the weirdest thing I EVER did see! To un puff he would spit the water out of his mouth but then puff up again when I attempted to capture him again.


Puffers inhale water to fill their selves up! It’s the neatest thing to see! But NEVER recommended to EVER try as they only do this when extremely stressed. It was the coolest thing to see but felt bad that I stressed him.

Anyway I thought I would share my experience. DOGFACE PUFFERS DO ACTUALLY PUFF & ARE NOT REEFSAFE. They WILL EAT ALL YOUR CORALS! I just never gave him the chance to sample my inverts. So when you’re in doubt and you think you can put them in the reef... Note to Self: NOTTTT!!!!

Enjoy pics! Before & after

BEFORE
http://www.canreef.com/photopost/dat...gface.jpg?7900

BEFORE
http://www.canreef.com/photopost/dat...uffer.jpg?3802

AFTER
http://www.canreef.com/photopost/dat...p-med.JPG?5313

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/dat...d-med.JPG?3768

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/dat..._ball.JPG?3891

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/dat..._down.JPG?2363

Sorry not sure how to post these pic's on this post.