Mbu crazy

[peterp63]

Okay, I made a crazy impulse buy... twice. First, was for a 10" mbu that I picked up in Austin.... then a couple weeks later I paid for an 18" mbu that is the fattest puffer I've seen. He's the one at Fish Gallery right now. They have him snacking on 1-2" mystery snails right now. It's a trip to watch him eat those things like candy. I used to have a big fahaka, so I know how to take care of these guys, but I was wondering what everyone else here does for treats. I'll probably use whole or headless shrimp as his primary meal. Also, crawfish when they're in season and snails as I order them in bulk every so often. What else do y'all feed your large puffers??? I was just at the big asian supermarket and they have frozen EVERYTHING. Even large whole snails and those small crabs. Fairly cheap, too. And, since they've been frozen they should be free of any diseases, right? Anyways, any suggestion would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks y'all!
-Peter

[TaTeR ToT]

Post some pics foo.
BTW I used peeled market shrimp, whole blue crabs, whole squid, and mystery snails for my fahaka.

[peterp63]

Whole blue crabs... like, the legs?? Did you catch or buy live? Frozen? Squid is doable, but I want something that they have to use their beaks on. That's why I give shell-on shrimp. I used to give frozen mussels where he had to break apart the shell to get to the goods...

Oh, and I'll post pics once I get the big guy at home and comfy. I am about to order some giant manzanita wood for decor in the new 215 he's gonna call home.

[TaTeR ToT]

That's a.bet, I fed mystery snails everyday.
Sounds like a great scape, I love manzinita wood, it.looks so clean

[peterp63]

Dang man, mystery snails EVERYDAY???! You buy them wholesale? I found a place that will send them to me for $.85 each... I was hoping to breed them, but I'm sure that will take forever...

[ohmar606]

just looked it up on youtube, feeding those Fa(ha)kas, are crazy lol

[madugo]

u bought the big one used to in be in their big display tank?
if so you need to feed him up...that thing is skinny for that size...
as of frozen stuffs in the asian market...watch out for some of the stuff that is really high in salt...
specially those small black crabs...

[TaTeR ToT]

Its actually really easy to.breed them, all you need is a 30g or so rubbermaid containe, throw a koralia nano in their, and a an eheim 2213 a 50 watt heater, and nothing for decor except for hornwort, and for lighting I would use like a coralife5 no.
They will breed regularly, they lay pods of eggs that look like small raspberries on the side of the container.

[peterp63]

u bought the big one used to in be in their big display tank?
if so you need to feed him up...that thing is skinny for that size...
as of frozen stuffs in the asian market...watch out for some of the stuff that is really high in salt...
specially those small black crabs...

No, they got one in bigger than that one. Well, maybe not as long, but fat as heck. I'm picking him up on Saturday :)

[peterp63]

Its actually really easy to.breed them, all you need is a 30g or so rubbermaid containe, throw a koralia nano in their, and a an eheim 2213 a 50 watt heater, and nothing for decor except for hornwort, and for lighting I would use like a coralife5 no.
They will breed regularly, they lay pods of eggs that look like small raspberries on the side of the container.

Is that what you used to breed your own mystery snails?

[TaTeR ToT]

Yes sir, I got the idea from Alex and cassie at ultimate fish

[peterp63]

Yes sir, I got the idea from Alex and cassie at ultimate fish

Nice! I think I might just try it out...

[danielp]

Was in FG at lunch and Don feed him a big ole snail.

He devoured it in seconds. Was pretty amazing what he did to that snail in short order.

You have to post some video of this when you get him settled in.

[MerrittA]

You should make sure to feed him a vitamin of some sort. Mbu's and other puffers tend to die in captivity from bad feeding habits (along with horrible water quality but don't get me started!). Don't just feed him one specific type of meat, mix it up as much as possible. I feed my mbu formula one and two tablets. He can easily eat 8 a day. Along with the vitamins I give him mystery snails, scallops, once a month a crawfish and only a small amount of shrimp. It is difficult to find freshwater invertebrates that they would normally eat in their natural environment. Good luck!

[myjohnson]

Do they take pellets?