Amazon puffer, anyone with experience

Hi everyone! It’s been a while since I’ve posted much.
I’m looking for some info on Amazon puffers, preferably from someone with experience. I have been finding a lot of contrasting information, some websites saying they have to be kept alone or in groups in a species only. Then I saw a video saying that they are fine as a lone puffer in a community tank or a group of puffers in a community tank. The idea of doing dental surgery also makes me really nervous, so I need some more information about how often that ends up being necessary. I intend to feed mostly shelled food, but I need more info about where to get the food and which type of shells are best. I intend to put them into a 29 gallon tank, Amazon biotope (except for Malaysian wood). I have white skirt and gold tetras, and Otocinclus in that tank. Anyone with Amazon puffer experience, please help me to clear up some of this contrasting information and share some care knowledge. Thanks!

 

Hi! I don't have actual experience with them, but I've done a lot of research about them (which ultimately led me to the decision not to keep them) and keep 4 other species of puffers so I'll share some of what I've heard from people who've kept them:

-They are very active and social, and prefer being in a group. I wouldn't say it'll die of loneliness if kept alone, but it might be skittish or glass surf more. Each puffer has a different personality though.

-They would also prefer a bigger tank for swimming space, 29 gallons is cutting it very close if not too small even for 1.

-Species-only tanks are recommended because they are lazy and will try to eat the food meant for other fish instead of the crunchy foods that they'd have to work hard to crack. Also they can be nippy sometimes.

-Dental surgery seems to be pretty much unavoidable even with hard crunchy foods. It will reduce the frequency that you'll need to do it though.

-In my experience, the easiest hard shelled foods will probably be ramshorn snails and giant ramshorn snails. Malaysian trumpet snails are usually too hard for them to crack open and the shells of other species of snails are too soft to have much of an effect.
Most shellfish from the market will probably be too big for them to wear down their teeth on or expensive to buy, so breeding your own snails will be the easiest way. Of course you can give them shellfish meat, shrimps, crayfish, etc. too as a treat, but you want the hard stuff to be the staple.

Hope this helps even a bit, I considered keeping them but was put off by the dental care they require (Also I need to devote my love and attention to all the other puffers I already have.) If anyone has different experiences, feel free to add to or correct what I've said.

 

SAPs are one of the oddballs of the puffer family - I love puffers, and have kept a group of SAPs once. I enjoyed them, but will likely never keep them again unless the stars align.

A 29 gallon is really pushing it for SAPs, since they are a shoaling species. I kept mine in a 55, and at a decent number (5-6+), that was really pushing it. They're more peaceful than other puffers, but they are still somewhat nippy and pushy. You might be able to do three or so in a 29, but it wouldn't be recommended, especially with other fish in the tank.

I really do think SAPs need to be in groups. They have a tendency to be far more skittish than other puffers do, and I always saw mine huddling together whenever they were scared or uncomfortable. It took them a couple months to actually stop hanging together in a tight group, even in a well-planted tank.

As far as dental surgery goes, I never had to do that, but I only had the fish for two years before I gave them away and moved on. SAPs probably have the fastest-growing beak of any puffer species that I know of, so dental surgery is more common with them, but I wouldn't say it's unavoidable. Feeding snails (ramshorn are best, pond and bladder are okay, and Malaysian Trumpets are okay pre-crushed, since they'll still chew on the bits of shell to get the meat off), clams on the half shell (first, with most of the meat scraped off so they scrape the shell, and then feed just the meat later), freeze-dried shelled insects (in moderation, like mealworms and crickets), and shell-on shrimp are all good ideas and regular diet items for my puffers.

If you're going to do just the one, I would provide plenty of plant cover and hiding areas, and if you get to choose one from a store, I'd probably take the most outgoing one you can. Also plan to deworm them, since (to my knowledge) all SAPs are wild-caught and almost all of them will come with internal parasites to some degree.

 

Thanks for the info guys! I think I’m leaning away from the SA puffer, I’ve kept doing research and it seems like they won’t work out. Sadly, as bad as I want a puffer, I don’t think any species would really work. If you know any let me know though! I never want to compromise an animals care for my own preference. Hopefully someday I’ll get a puffer

 

Thanks for the info guys! I think I’m leaning away from the SA puffer, I’ve kept doing research and it seems like they won’t work out. Sadly, as bad as I want a puffer, I don’t think any species would really work. If you know any let me know though! I never want to compromise an animals care for my own preference. Hopefully someday I’ll get a puffer

In your current tank, I honestly don't know of any species I'd recommend.

Perhaps a pair of Red-eye Red-tail Puffers (C. Irrubesco) would work, but I'm not super familiar with them. I've heard they're quite tolerant of tank mates.

 

Hi everyone! It’s been a while since I’ve posted much.
I’m looking for some info on Amazon puffers, preferably from someone with experience. I have been finding a lot of contrasting information, some websites saying they have to be kept alone or in groups in a species only. Then I saw a video saying that they are fine as a lone puffer in a community tank or a group of puffers in a community tank. The idea of doing dental surgery also makes me really nervous, so I need some more information about how often that ends up being necessary. I intend to feed mostly shelled food, but I need more info about where to get the food and which type of shells are best. I intend to put them into a 29 gallon tank, Amazon biotope (except for Malaysian wood). I have white skirt and gold tetras, and Otocinclus in that tank. Anyone with Amazon puffer experience, please help me to clear up some of this contrasting information and share some care knowledge. Thanks!

I kept my 4 Irrubescos in a 29 gallon with tank mates for awhile before moving them and their tank mates up to a 40 breeder. That's really the only puffer I can recommend with your set up though.