RobinRTrueJoy
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 30, 2002
- Messages
- 2,441
- Reaction score
- 1
Does anyone here have live sea horses? I am considering having some but the information I read makes it sound very difficult to keep them alive.
sea horses, any one raise them and
- Thread starter RobinRTrueJoy
- Start date
Help Support Miniature Horse Talk Forums:
luvmycritters
Well-Known Member
I would love to have them and often pondered the idea. I never have gone through with it though - their life span is only a couple of monthes I believe.
Lori
Edited to add:
Ok - just did a search on the web - I found they have been known to live for four years or more...Dont know where I got my original info from!
Edited to add:
Ok - just did a search on the web - I found they have been known to live for four years or more...Dont know where I got my original info from!
Last edited by a moderator:
Winchester Farms
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Dec 17, 2004
- Messages
- 203
- Reaction score
- 2
a while ago i went to a big aquarium store b/c my friend was interested in getting a sting ray and wanted to know all about them. while we were there i asked the owner about seahorses. he told me they were extremely hard to keep. he said you need to establish a shrimp population first because the seahorses will only eat live shrimp so you have to get the shrimp to breed and produce enough food. and they are very fragile. there were many more things he said, which made it seemed impossible to own, but i still wish i had one. they are so pretty. i guess somethings are just not meant to be as pets.
They are SO hard to keep...my neighbours (husband and wife) are both marine biologists and they had all sorts of marine animals (amongst other things) including electric eels, piranahas and lots of other little strange fishies. They also took in 3 iguanas that needed homes and they lived in this huge iguana paradise and next door was their avary...They also took in hedgehogs that needed homes as hedgehogs do best in an enviroment that is calm, quiet and without tiny children and the owners learned that the hard way.
Anyway, my point...they also had seahorses...even they had major troubles keeping them. They only lasted a year or so if I remember correctly...It was awful. Seahorses are among the HARDEST animals to take care of and keep alive. They are NOT for beginners...as I've seen first hand even specialist in their field have major problems keeping them alive. It is their nature to not to well in an aquaium setting and they are very finicky eaters.
Also if you must have seahorse(s) although why someone would want to do something rediculous like that (it's like wanting to own a siberian tiger) please make sure they are captive bred. Many are caught in the wild and seahorses are a HIGHLY endagered species.
If you're going to go along with this make sure you do A LOT of research and make sure you buy from a store that is very knowledgeable about seahorses and go talk to experts.
Anyway, my point...they also had seahorses...even they had major troubles keeping them. They only lasted a year or so if I remember correctly...It was awful. Seahorses are among the HARDEST animals to take care of and keep alive. They are NOT for beginners...as I've seen first hand even specialist in their field have major problems keeping them alive. It is their nature to not to well in an aquaium setting and they are very finicky eaters.
Also if you must have seahorse(s) although why someone would want to do something rediculous like that (it's like wanting to own a siberian tiger) please make sure they are captive bred. Many are caught in the wild and seahorses are a HIGHLY endagered species.
If you're going to go along with this make sure you do A LOT of research and make sure you buy from a store that is very knowledgeable about seahorses and go talk to experts.
Michael is here and he is quite an expert on marine life. I will let him type to you:
Yo homie!!! Just messin with ya!! There are many different types of sea horses. They are one of the MOST delicate creatures in the marine habitat. They range from the Giant Yellow Kuda Seahorse to the Dwarf Black seahorse and all of the 270(approx.) other species in between. Now, They are very difficult to raise. The tankmates have to be smaller than the sea horse and you cant just have 1 sea horse. They get lonely and will theirselves to die. most are carnivorous and require live food like brine shrimp. Others just feed off of algea in the aquarium. If you get the "veggie" horses, do Not put any bi-valves (clams, oysters, scallops) in there with it. Now on to water quality!!! The acidity (Ph) in the tank has to be very low, no chlorine what so ever either. If you have a well lit aquarium, that could put em into shock almost instantly. For a minimum of 30 gallons, you should only have about 20 watt lights. Oh, yep you need a minimum of 30 gallons per sea horse! The water flowing from the filter cannot be violent at all, but it still has to splash enough to keep 'em well oxygenated or they will DIEEEEE!!!!Well thats all Robin!!! Toodles!!
Yo homie!!! Just messin with ya!! There are many different types of sea horses. They are one of the MOST delicate creatures in the marine habitat. They range from the Giant Yellow Kuda Seahorse to the Dwarf Black seahorse and all of the 270(approx.) other species in between. Now, They are very difficult to raise. The tankmates have to be smaller than the sea horse and you cant just have 1 sea horse. They get lonely and will theirselves to die. most are carnivorous and require live food like brine shrimp. Others just feed off of algea in the aquarium. If you get the "veggie" horses, do Not put any bi-valves (clams, oysters, scallops) in there with it. Now on to water quality!!! The acidity (Ph) in the tank has to be very low, no chlorine what so ever either. If you have a well lit aquarium, that could put em into shock almost instantly. For a minimum of 30 gallons, you should only have about 20 watt lights. Oh, yep you need a minimum of 30 gallons per sea horse! The water flowing from the filter cannot be violent at all, but it still has to splash enough to keep 'em well oxygenated or they will DIEEEEE!!!!Well thats all Robin!!! Toodles!!
Congratulations if you get into seahorses! I've had them twice in my life and they are just amazing creatures. Lot's of personality for something that wears it's skeleton on the outside. First of all, as with any animal DO YOUR HOMEWORK. Do it twice. Do it till you dream of seahorses and loved ones around you flee for fear of lectures.
Syngnathid.org is a fantastic place to start. Wonderful people and so full of advice. I learned so much there. Secondly is find yourself a good--I mean super knowledgeable-- Marine fish stockist. Go look at their fish. Are they healthy? Can they tell you more than "this one is named Sam" or "That one's a tang" Do they have agressive fish? Are they in the right sorts of tanks? That last one my sound dumb but I was at a place once where all the tanks were linked (Think like giant ice cube trays with water only an inch below the dividers) and the starfish were right next to the exotic clams.... For those who aren't into marine fish that's a huge no-no as starfish eat any and all bivalves. When a rogue starfish was retured to it's tank it had already eaten about two hundred dollars worth of fancy clams.
Unlike most fish, seahorses don't need as much swimming room. They need much more verticle space than most fish as they tend to rise through the water column to hunt and perform their mating dances (Which is also a sight to see. Oh, and the MALES get pregnant and give birth to hundreds of little squiggly babies!) Also unlike most fish they like a slower current as they are very slow swimmers and are easily outdone by faster fish and cleaner shrimp.
Speaking of feeding your underwater herd, you DO NOT have to feed them live brine shrimp. Actually it is better not to as there are other feeds which are more nutritious. Only dwarf seahorses subsist on a diet of newly hatched brine shrimp. Other species are better off on mysis shrimp soaked in a marine fish vitamin. They are available frozen in little cubes which you just thaw with a bit of tank water and administer with a turkey baster. The horses will know when it's feeding time and follow you for food. They suck up the food with such force (They're actually a lot like Miniatures in that way.)you can hear an audible "snick" sound through the glass.
A couple words of warning: If you want a little slice of marine reef ecosystem, seahorses are not for you. You really have to do your legwork to make sure you keep them safe from other fish and invertebrates. I'd suggest against using any form of liverock with them because of hitchiking mantis shrimp (Aka "Thumbsplitters") and other nasties. And if you want lots of light consider raising some hardy seaweeds for the horses to hide in. That's their preferred environment. You can't have just one, and they are much more active in groups of three or more. With fish the general rule of thumb is a gallon per inch of fish. With seahorses you can stock them more closely, say six seahorses for a 29gallon tall tank. The larger your herd the easier for them to clean up their meals before they have a chance to rot. But make sure you have a good protein skimmer and filter anyway.
Lastly, when you go to buy your fish, make sure your tank is well cycled first. I didn't and boy did I pay for it. It's natural for you get algae blooms in a young tank and it's better you get that over and done with before the horses arrive. It is possible to cycle a tank naturally (Not "Shocking" it) in about a month and a half to two months. Then you could add some shrimp and snails and maybe something fun like a sweet little blenny to keep you occupied while you drool over what species of seahorse you want (And they come in pinto's too!) Although it's a long time I cannot stress it enough to let the tank cycle A FULL YEAR (Yeah I know...) and get it really stable (pardon the pun) first. It will also let the tank build up it's population of mini shrimps which the horses will enjoy hunting.
Best of luck to you and, really, they arent' very hard to keep, just complicated to get started with. Choose tank raised, they're worth the extra money for hardiness and the knowledge that you're not stealing them from the ocean. With luck your fish will be entertaining you for four to seven years!
Syngnathid.org is a fantastic place to start. Wonderful people and so full of advice. I learned so much there. Secondly is find yourself a good--I mean super knowledgeable-- Marine fish stockist. Go look at their fish. Are they healthy? Can they tell you more than "this one is named Sam" or "That one's a tang" Do they have agressive fish? Are they in the right sorts of tanks? That last one my sound dumb but I was at a place once where all the tanks were linked (Think like giant ice cube trays with water only an inch below the dividers) and the starfish were right next to the exotic clams.... For those who aren't into marine fish that's a huge no-no as starfish eat any and all bivalves. When a rogue starfish was retured to it's tank it had already eaten about two hundred dollars worth of fancy clams.
Unlike most fish, seahorses don't need as much swimming room. They need much more verticle space than most fish as they tend to rise through the water column to hunt and perform their mating dances (Which is also a sight to see. Oh, and the MALES get pregnant and give birth to hundreds of little squiggly babies!) Also unlike most fish they like a slower current as they are very slow swimmers and are easily outdone by faster fish and cleaner shrimp.
Speaking of feeding your underwater herd, you DO NOT have to feed them live brine shrimp. Actually it is better not to as there are other feeds which are more nutritious. Only dwarf seahorses subsist on a diet of newly hatched brine shrimp. Other species are better off on mysis shrimp soaked in a marine fish vitamin. They are available frozen in little cubes which you just thaw with a bit of tank water and administer with a turkey baster. The horses will know when it's feeding time and follow you for food. They suck up the food with such force (They're actually a lot like Miniatures in that way.)you can hear an audible "snick" sound through the glass.
A couple words of warning: If you want a little slice of marine reef ecosystem, seahorses are not for you. You really have to do your legwork to make sure you keep them safe from other fish and invertebrates. I'd suggest against using any form of liverock with them because of hitchiking mantis shrimp (Aka "Thumbsplitters") and other nasties. And if you want lots of light consider raising some hardy seaweeds for the horses to hide in. That's their preferred environment. You can't have just one, and they are much more active in groups of three or more. With fish the general rule of thumb is a gallon per inch of fish. With seahorses you can stock them more closely, say six seahorses for a 29gallon tall tank. The larger your herd the easier for them to clean up their meals before they have a chance to rot. But make sure you have a good protein skimmer and filter anyway.
Lastly, when you go to buy your fish, make sure your tank is well cycled first. I didn't and boy did I pay for it. It's natural for you get algae blooms in a young tank and it's better you get that over and done with before the horses arrive. It is possible to cycle a tank naturally (Not "Shocking" it) in about a month and a half to two months. Then you could add some shrimp and snails and maybe something fun like a sweet little blenny to keep you occupied while you drool over what species of seahorse you want (And they come in pinto's too!) Although it's a long time I cannot stress it enough to let the tank cycle A FULL YEAR (Yeah I know...) and get it really stable (pardon the pun) first. It will also let the tank build up it's population of mini shrimps which the horses will enjoy hunting.
Best of luck to you and, really, they arent' very hard to keep, just complicated to get started with. Choose tank raised, they're worth the extra money for hardiness and the knowledge that you're not stealing them from the ocean. With luck your fish will be entertaining you for four to seven years!
stormo41
Well-Known Member
i wanted to get in to keeping fish like sea horses, the thing was my room was not big enough to hold a tank large enough for them. I ended up buying a small tank and getting a angel fish.
do your home work first like the others have said. it is hard to keep any type of fish really. since every one is differnt and needs differnt things. i would also like to point out that when your tank is ready for thses fish and you get them home. make sure you trasfer them into the new tank water very carefully. i have read with some fish you have to add in your tank water with their bage water til the bag dubles in size, only putting in a few drops at a time. i'm sure the sales people at the store can tell you how senstive theses fish are to that.
do your home work first like the others have said. it is hard to keep any type of fish really. since every one is differnt and needs differnt things. i would also like to point out that when your tank is ready for thses fish and you get them home. make sure you trasfer them into the new tank water very carefully. i have read with some fish you have to add in your tank water with their bage water til the bag dubles in size, only putting in a few drops at a time. i'm sure the sales people at the store can tell you how senstive theses fish are to that.
RobinRTrueJoy
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 30, 2002
- Messages
- 2,441
- Reaction score
- 1
WOW! Thanks for all the replies and info. I have been reading sevral web sites and am looking today for books. I am not sure now if I really want to get into this, they seem more fragile and I can't bear it when a critter is sick or dies. I will really study and think this through.
Thanks again!
Thanks again!
Dontworrybeappy
Well-Known Member
I've been thinking of having seahorses - but I have enough trouble maintaining our 10,000 gallon koi pond and a 2 gallon aquarium full of potbellied mollies (seems like there are more of those every time I look in the tank!) so I don't really feel ready to start u a saltwater tank.
Besides that, it isn't really seahorses I want, it's leafy sea dragons - and that is NOT going to happen, they're too endangered. I have a membership at the Long Beach Aquarium just so I can visit the leafy's there - they seem to know me too!
Besides that, it isn't really seahorses I want, it's leafy sea dragons - and that is NOT going to happen, they're too endangered. I have a membership at the Long Beach Aquarium just so I can visit the leafy's there - they seem to know me too!
