Trouble with dogface puffer

[Clay mcclure]

hey guys, new to the forum, fairly new to saltwater. I have a 75 gallon tank with a snowflake and a dogface. PH is a little low 7.8-8.0 but for days my puffer has been doing great and today I came in from work and he's almost lifeless in the tank. I get near him and he swims very off balance. At the moment he is laying in a corner clearly breathing but will not eat and shows no sign of visible disease. He looks kind of thin but before today he was eating just about all I could give him. Has anyone dealt with something similar or know of a good all around medication I can try with him in my qt. thanks in advance

 

[silverado61]

You said your pH is a little low. What about the rest of your parameters? Ammonia, Nitrites and Nitrates? What are those numbers exactly?
You also said he eats just about all you give him. What do you feed him?
Have you tried doing a water change?
Last, how old is your tank and how long did you let it cycle?

These things and more will help get you the answers you need.

Welcome to swf.com

 

[Clay mcclure]

I have a slight trace of ammonia everything else is 0. The tanks been up for about 4 months, it cycled for 2 of them. I feed him ghost shrimp and frozen krill. I am going to get some RO water to do a water change this evening. But he's the only one doing this. My eel my clowns my starfish and my hermits are all fine

 

[silverado61]

Once you do the water change the ammonia should drop to zero and the pH should go up some what. Test again the next day anyway.
Keep an eye on the sea star also. At 2 months running there's not much for it to feed on. If you need to, try putting a piece of algae sheet on a veggie clip and put it right next to him so he can find it easy. That's what I did for my urchins.
As far as the dog face goes, after the water change, keep an eye on him and see if there's any improvement. Can you test for calcium? Sea stars need it to stay at proper levels.

Just a thought.