Porcupine Puffer ate my glass Floating Thermometer!!!

[Funky_Fish14]

Agreed with Marlin. I run a digital thermometer in my tank, as well as a heater that is seperate from the control unit with it's own probe measuring the temperature. Redundant, and not that expensive.

[fishhunter8]

Could you not just run a magnet along the bottom to collect all the lead balls? I still believe the glass would be more worriesome but if the lead balls bother you or they try to get eaten... don't know too much about salt water yet but I though this might help.

[bulletsworld]

Originally Posted by fishhunter8

Could you not just run a magnet along the bottom to collect all the lead balls? I still believe the glass would be more worriesome but if the lead balls bother you or they try to get eaten... don't know too much about salt water yet but I though this might help.

BRILLIANT! i WONDER IF IT WOULD WORK???!! I almost want to tell the boss I'm going home early to... Wait a sec, I am the boss! Hmm.... I wonder if this would really work though?? Now I wonder if my Tunze magnet would work... hmm....ponder. GOOD SUGGESTION! Thank YOU! I will keep you posted if it works!

[bulletsworld]

UPDATE: On Stewie (a.k.a Griffie) the porcupine puffer...

I spoke to soon about him NOT inflating himself. Late lastnight he was blowing up like a big balloon over and over. Poor lil buddy. Although..he wouldn't touch the peas, he did swallow the krill whole. He seems to be having trouble chewing. I'm thinking he cut his mouth on the glass when he had the floating thermometer almost all the way in. However; at least he had some food!!! WOoHOOOO! Now he doesn't want anything to do with me. Dashing away from me when I come to the tank. He's acting as if I may have made him swallow the darn thermometer! Usually Stewie follows me around as I walk by. He won't even let me pet him now, he dashes away. Humanizing the puffer aside, he's not him self and doesn't want to socialize. Which tells me he most likely is under the weather with lead balls and perhaps glass shards. I will continue to monitor and update. I will see if I have some pictures of my pet monster handy.

[my2rotties]

Yup he has indigestion... not much you can do aside of trying peas and krill. I would imagine if he is inflating he has not tore his stomach up from the glass enough stop him from doing so. I would think this is a good sign but I am not sure. Whenever he did this at my house you would swear he had difficulty chewing as well, but I think it is from him trying to upchuck what is bothering him.

When he had indigestion here, he would not eat for up to a week, and was fine. I would take a shrimp or prawn and almost tease him with it for trigger a feeding response. Be careful when you do this, since once he strikes he tends to get both fingers in his mouth along with the food. How do I know this? He almost came out of the tank with my fingers once. He didn't do much damage but it hurt.

Like you mentioned to me a long time ago... he is getting really bored and needs some sort of stimulation. I am thinking you need a couple of fish you don't care about much for him to hunt. He was a big boy when he was caught, and I think he was hunting in the wild for too long to be totally happy in captivity at times. He is still the largest puffer I have ever seen.

Originally Posted by bulletsworld

UPDATE: On Stewie (a.k.a Griffie) the porcupine puffer...

I spoke to soon about him NOT inflating himself. Late lastnight he was blowing up like a big balloon over and over. Poor lil buddy. Although..he wouldn't touch the peas, he did swallow the krill whole. He seems to be having trouble chewing. I'm thinking he cut his mouth on the glass when he had the floating thermometer almost all the way in. However he ate!!! WOoHOOOO! Now he doesn't want anything to do with me. Dashing away from me when I come to the tank. He's acting as if I may have made him swallow the darn thermometer! Usually Stewie follows me around as I walk by. He won't even let me pet him now, he dashes away.

I will try to get a picture of Stewie for ya guys.

[bulletsworld]

Here is some pictures of Stewie (a.k.a Griffie)










Pictures don't do justice, as he looks small in pictures. I assure you need a bucket to get him out of the tank.

[my2rotties]

Ooohhhh you got a Norman too!!! My guy is doing great. I took him off of frozen foods to slow down his growth. He is as big as Griffie now! Norman is the fastest growing fish I have ever had.

I miss my big fatso... but my smaller fish sure don't. He looks awesome!

[bulletsworld]

Originally Posted by my2rotties

Like you mentioned to me a long time ago... he is getting really bored and needs some sort of stimulation. I am thinking you need a couple of fish you don't care about much for him to hunt. He was a big boy when he was caught, and I think he was hunting in the wild for too long to be totally happy in captivity at times. He is still the largest puffer I have ever seen.

He's the largest puffer I've ever seen! I was surprised when I first seen him. I did get a orange spoted goby he hasn't been able to catch, although I wish he would. Goby is digging big holes under my rock and tumbling it. I can't even catch that lil bugger!! I was hoping Stewie could for me. I also put a lawn mover blenny and a damsel in there with no luck of him catching.

Hey did you ever see the video of the lady that did work out routines infront of her porcupine puffer and he followed. I gotta see if I can find that video. Its so neat! Next I will try work outs in front of Stewie to see if he responds. This time I doubt he's bored but a little under the weather. I know the silver lead balls he injested can't be good for him.

[Skimmerking]

Good Old Griffie there what a nutbar. he should be CANREEF'S mascot.

[my2rotties]

Never saw the videos I bet Griffie would do it though. Just tie a shrimp to your waist, or dress in clown fish colours Griff would get the gobies by herding them into the corner where my overflows were. Generally they would go into the over flows and drown in the sump downstairs from the rushing water. Then he bit my Mandarin in half remember? He hunts a certain way but he never bothered my LMB. Get a clown fish, he will love you forever... he seems to really enjoy those! Just kidding! He does love those though. He also enjoys wrasses, and after my Mandarin finally died he was looking for him forever. They are supposed to be poisonous and it did not bother Griffie a bit to eat half of it. I doubt that a belly full of lead would bother him either...

Give him time for a hunting strategy for the gobie, he will figure it out since he has nothing but time.

Originally Posted by bulletsworld

He's the largest puffer I've ever seen! I was surprised when I first seen him. I did get a orange spoted goby he hasn't been able to catch, although I wish he would. Goby is digging big holes under my rock and tumbling it. I can't even catch that lil bugger!! I was hoping Stewie could for me. I also put a lawn mover blenny and a damsel in there with no luck of him catching.

Hey did you ever see the video of the lady that did work out routines infront of her porcupine puffer and he followed. I gotta see if I can find that video. Its so neat! Next I will try work outs in front of Stewie to see if he responds. This time I doubt he's bored but a little under the weather. I know the silver lead balls he injested can't be good for him.