I was thinking about getting a puffer, probably a green spotted or figure 8. I have heard they have to eat snails regularly or their teeth grow out too big (kind of like rodents, I guess) Can you keep a steady supply in the tank or will the ouffer eat them all and make you get more? Do you have to run a separate snail tank? Are there snails that will survive and reproduce in a brackish tank? What types of snails are best, any old kind?

I want to learn everything I can before I buy anything. Any info you have is welcome.

i have a puffer myself, he's a small little thing bout 2 inches, anyways more to the point i have had him for about a year, and what i've done is visited billions of sites, at least when i first got him, and what i found out from the sites, and the expierience is that they like live food best like, uh, bloodworms, it's not suggested that you feed them freezedried but i have a friend who has a puffer and they feed him freezedried with live, and that seems to be workin out ok, but as far as snails go, i would suggest having a seperate small tank, bout a half g, maybe 1g, just to keep snails in, otherwise he'll eat them all at once and most likely get sick or explode, sounds funny but that actually would happen, getting sick at least but puffers are real fun, tell me if you decide to get one. in the mean-time here is a help site if you have any other questions http://www.pufferfish.co.uk/aquaria/species/pufferfish/

My puffer loves to eat shrimps.
so I dare not place it together with my amano.

so where u get your snails?? looking for some of those guy. let me know

They eat close to anything. They love things with a hard exoskeleton or a shell(shrimps, snails). They'll even bite legs off shrimps that are too large for them. Definitely not to be kept with small(or even larger) invertebrates.... very useful for snail extermination but clown loaches work just as well.

Hi dude...

Very much interested to get a puffer for snail extermination purposes but after seeing all this, somehow i have a big worry for my Yamato shrimps in my tank. I have a small 2 ft planted tank which i have abt 6 yamatos now.....currently i have this big problem with snail infestation that almost every evening after work...i would need to use a tweezer to pick up the snails from my tank as seems it is eating up my plants plus the rate of reproduction is very fast. Daily pick up would be at least about 20 - 30 snails....Not too sure how to control this problem.....LFS asked me to use those anti-snail chemical but i doubt it as i worry it might kill fishes as well.

Hope someone here would share any good methods to minimise the snail .....was thinking of getting those dwarf freshwater puffer ( carinotetradon travancoricus).....very cute and small puffer which i think might not attack the yamatos....Clown loach...i think its useful but i read from other articles....clown loach is not suitable for planted as it might mess up the gravel etc.... i worry it might dig up the riccias which i have it planted at the foreground.....

Finally got myself one fresh water mini puffer (carinotetraodon travancoricus).....small tiny puffer abt 5mm in length....in my 2ft planted tank to get rid of those small pinky snails which destroy my plants slowly.

Well , got it for almost 1 week now....very good job in exterminating those snails and so far very happy with it as not only it done a great job...best is the puffer didnt dare to go near or want to nibble my yamato shrimps........seems the yamato shrimps is bigger in size than the mini puffer...haha...for now, the tank is clear of snails and i have to keep snails in a small plastic container just in case no more food for the puffer......perhaps this is the reason that puffer didnt go and disturb the shrimps...

well will continue to keep in watch whether will it attack the shrimps and would share thereafter........

I've got two of the dwarf puffers. Wiped out 3/4 of my limpet snail population in one tiny 1 foot tank overnight. Used to have snails clambering all over the place, they wiped it clean. I thought it would eat hydra... it doesn't.... but they look very fat and happy with themselves anyway.

I wouldn't trust it with shrimp gary, even if they're larger. These puffers are quite bold.. even against creatures many times its size. Might snack on a leg or two off your shrimps if it had the chance. Not a fish for the community..

Hi Gary, where do you bought the mini puffer? I bought 1 from EA but it doesn't seems interested with snail...now i noticed his stomach is so slim, seems many week not eating....but still alive....

Hi Mak...

i bought mine from my garden lfs la...i asked the owner to bring in some as i told him is good for this n that....haha he got 5 in and i only buy 1 ...haha the rest however was sold after a week...haha

So cham la if u see that poor fella so slim...usually it will search n eat nonstop as long as got snails...usually i quarantine him in another tank as i dun wan him to overeat.......

Maybe i can loan my puffer to u.....hehe

my poor dragon fish is dead should i get another or just get something else?