Who Gives A Fish Forums

I'm having some trouble with my Valentini puffer in my 45-gallon tank. For months, everything was fine - the puffer, my 2 clownfish, all good. We even called the puffer "the sheriff" since he'd swim around freely, eat without issue, and interact with us.

But about 10 days ago, I introduced a fluxeon goby/sleeper banded goby, and now my puffer's behavior has changed. He won't eat and avoids interacting with us. During feeding, he'll just wedge himself into a rock crevice.

The goby's pretty low-key, but it's like he's taken over the "sheriff" role. I'm looking for advice on how to help my puffer adjust to the new addition.

"First off, I'd double-check that your water quality is still on point, just to rule out any issues there.

Could you post some pics of the puffer and the new goby? Want to make sure the goby didn't bring any unwanted guests into the tank.

In the meantime, try offering the puffer some live brine shrimp - sometimes a treat can help them get over their funk. It's possible he's just feeling a bit displaced now that the goby's taken on some of the 'sheriff' role, but with some patience and the right food, he might come around."