BAD SPOT ON PUFFER

[wipeoutmama]

My puffer has a bad spot above his lip. He eats well(anything he can-krill,blood worms,clams etc). The 100 gallon tank reading are all reading o except nitrites o.5) He is very active. Salt and salinity are good.Temp is 78.5. None of the tank mates-yellow tang- coral beauty- green spotted puffer- seem to pick on him. please help. Been this way about a week.

 

[beth]

Is that eroded away or a growth? How long has this been going on?

 

[wipeoutmama]

Hi Beth and thank you. I doesn't look like a growth. It's been about 2 weeks. At first it looked like he may have hit it or scraped it. It hasn't gotten any worse in the last week, but it hasn't gotten any better.

 

[beth]

Does he have the opportunity to eat hard shelled foods? Is he nudging his nose into rock crevices causing this irritation or erosion?

Keep a close eye on the tank to see if you notice aggression, or if he is wedging his face into rocks.

How long have you had him?

 

[wipeoutmama]

Have had Frank for 8 mts. i feed him the hard shelled mussels and clams..I do see him running his lips all over the glass alot of times. I haven't noticed him nudging rocks. I work during the day.so I may got to Lubbock this weekend and get a nanny cam to sit up. That is not on his nose is it?

 

[beth]

With what you said, it sounds like he's picked up a bad habit of nose rubbing. Now, does he do this on the back or side class? Is the glass reflective? If so, you many need to black out the back and sides to keep him from seeing reflections.

 

[wipeoutmama]

bless you,I think you may be right. I have been watching closely and he does rub his nose ALOT on the side glass. i looked inside the tank and it is just like a mirror. I can't see the outside of the tank from the inside sides. Open for suggestions as of what to do. He does it on the right side and some(not as much) on the front. more so on the front when I turn off the right side lite. Does he think it is another fish?

 

[silverado61]

Kinda looks like WC Fields. "Ah Yes".

 

[beth]

Try getting some black background paper and tack it up to the sides. If that works, you may want to later decide to permanently paint the exterior black (on the outside obviously).