SeaHorses

[p2kmon]

I have a few questions about Seahorses for anyone out there.

I have a 29 gallon aquarium I want to change from Freshwater to Salt. The LFS Said I should get the Live Sand to put on the bottom, The Ocean Salt - or other brand, I should have a Second Filter like a Whisper 100-125 and some "hitching post" for the Seahorses.

I have heard that Seahorses are hard to care for, I was wondering how hard, I do tank changes on a regular basis, and want my fish to be healthy and happy.

I'm asking because, I was told I would be able to put with them a Blenny Scooter, goobies. I also asked about the longhorn cow fish, and was told, that would proabably be ok.

After looking things up, I found that the cow fish, can secret(sp) a poision and kill other fish, not a great idea. I also read that Bleenys can cause a problem for seahorses.

What fish can I put with seahorses ? I read up that Goobies and pipe fish are about it, is that correct.  I was looking around for a Seahorse page or web site, I could find just about everything else.

Any help would be appreaciated.

Thanks,
P2kmon *thumbsupsmiley*

 

[colesea]

29 gallons is very -small- for a saltwater tank. If you've never done saltwater before, I would suggest that you really give it some serious research and purchase a larger tank (say 55 gallons or 75 gallons)

SeaHorses are not recommened at all for inexperienced aquarist. The problem with them is that they are 1) highly sensitive to water chemistry, 2) must be fed live foods, and 3) are very hard to feed.  Seahorses are sedendary kinda critters, that like to wrap their tails around a "hitching post" so to speak, and simply suck up whatever swims by. They really are not active hunters or food seekers.  The best food for them are live mysid shrip or larger brine shrip, both of which can be difficult to obtain and culter. I've kept seahorses before, and have had to feed them with a pipet and squirt the shrimp right in front of their snouts. Even then, the shrimps swim away and sometimes the seahorse miss them, so it can be a tedious process making sure they eat enough to supply them energy. And any unstable water chemistries or stress always put them off their food.

Cowfish (aka trunkfish, Boxfish family Ostraciidae) are also not good for such a small tank, or as fish to have at all. The first is because they can get pretty large, a good 10" to 20", so that means your tank is way too small. The second is that these fish extrude a poison slime from their skin if they get stressed out. Not only is this poison slime harmful to their tankmates, but if it builds up it can kill the trunkfish itself. If the animal dies in your tank, forget it, the released toxin has killed everything else as well.

If you wanted to do a 29 gallon saltwater tank, I would stick to damsels or clownfish if I were you.  These do okay with blennies and gobies.
~~Colesea

 

[brit_s86]

We have a 29 gallon,In the process of switching it to a 44 gallon.We have 2 clowns,a blenny,firefish,boxfish,starfish,some othe rlittle fish,and a shrimp,oh and a emperior angel,we will be getting a tang too.

 

[aresgod]

your kidding right? both of you are givingnot the best advice.
while seahorses are tough, they are not impossible, However, they should be in a species only tank with maybe a blenny or goby, dwarf sea horses would be better in a 29, while bigger isalways better, itis easier to keep small tanks as long asyou are diligent about water changes small tanks are fine, lord rode has a 2 gallon tank, and it is easier than his other tanks, i have taken care oftanks that were inthe ounces....and they are reallly easy so long as you keep low stocking and do water changes....keep in mind, super small tanks like that would not work for seahorses or dwarf sea horses.

Brit you have way too many fish for a tank with both those sizes combined. you need to have a 90 gallon + tank for those fish to be even close to being happy....please get them a good home in a tank where they have enough room.

 

[ram man]

I have found my 6 gallon to be incredibly easy! Sure water chemistry can change quickly but it wont happen if you keep up on the maintnence. The most fish i would put in a 29 gallon is 2 clown and a goby. And if you need info the stickies are realy helpful.

 

[wayne]

Your tank is way overcrowded brit. I would not be addinganything more to it, I would be removing some fish like the boxfish and angel if I wanted them to live more than a few months.

People have kept emporer angels that live to over 20 years in age - I suspect that 20 months would be good going in a 40 gallon.

I've always believed seahorses to be relatively tough in terms of water conditions - certainly I have seen pipefish (pretty similar) in some fairly 'nonreef' water naturally. They are however an abject p.i.t.a. to feed, and that is going to require some commitment to culturing live food, and polenty of it. And not just brine shrimp either (nutritional junk)

 

[S.Reef]

Agree with Wayne, I had a juvenile Emperor angel that I was keeping for a friend in a 90 gallon tank, and that was pusjin it.

 

[Leslie]

Well, not advise from me, just what my (limited) experience has been with ... pipefish, cowfish, blenny and goby. I have a 55gal.natural bay tank.(I live on Tampa Bay & catch what we put in the tank)It's a true natural sand bottom with plants,rocks,shells and whatever else you'd find at the bottom of the bay minus the beer bottles & coke cans. We have a very happy tank with 5 pipefish(just had babies)5 blennys(just had babies)goby(3 or 4) 5 quarter sized flounder(will release when they get too big for the tank... or eat LOL)1 cowfish, 1 silver bait fish, a sand dollar, 1 snail, 1 stone crab. We are feeding them frozen brine, sinking pellets & flakes. We have top, middle & bottom feeders. (ghost shrimp for live feeders for the goby) Probably ALL beginners luck, but it's working. We are NOT overcrowded, everyone seems to have found their places to hide,co-habitate and procreate! All of this started in a 29 gallon tank ... we just wanted more!

Seahorses are closely related to the pipefish. They do actively search out food.

Just my senseless 2 cents worth. Thanks for letting me post!
Leslie

 

[wayne]

Tell me how that tanks doing, and how many of them are alive in 2 or 3 years. A few months is no measure of success

 

[Austin815]

I had a 29 gallon sw tank, and instead of a cow fish.. I recomend a saddleback valentini... i belive that is the name , it is in the puffer family, but i didn't have problems with mine at all with my little gobies .. it just liked to eat all the food!

 

[dbacksrat]

just watch the toby puffers around inverts