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Seahorses

Paulie 069

Paulie 069

Where is all the people that are into seahorses. I need to hear from you all about if u want a seahorse thread on this website let’s have old fashion Vote so If ur interested in a seahorse thread respond to this post with a yes

Come on people make ur vote count
 
diana a

diana a

Staff member
NJRC Member
Moderator
Sounds cool! How do you catch them in Jersey? Is it better to just buy them from LFS? Soooo many questions. :thumbsup:
 
MadReefer

MadReefer

Staff member
NJRC Member
Moderator
Diana, problem with wild caught is trying to get them to eat frozen and parasites.
Prazi will help with latter n patience for feeding.
 
MadReefer

MadReefer

Staff member
NJRC Member
Moderator
I learned the hard way Matt.
Had dwarf seahorses years ago.
1st time captive bred but lost them when the brine shrimp hatchery did not hatch.
2nd time picked 3 pairs wild caught cheap n was given peach with sale. Lost 2 initially and remaining seemed okay. Had some babies and motivate what happened after that but 1 by1 they died.
 
Paulie 069

Paulie 069

MadReefer said:
In in for one.
Getting a 20g in a few weeks for this.
Click to expand...
Dude I have a extra 20gal tank with filter and filter cartridges also some fake plants. I’d also be willing to hook you up with 2 seahorses to get u started I can even get u water from the ocean so u don’t have to spend a dime you just have to be willing to come to my house and pick it up. I’d give u H Erectus because they are hearty and little easier to care for. Plus that’s the kind I catch
 
MadReefer

MadReefer

Staff member
NJRC Member
Moderator
I just put a sticky up for Seahorse resources. Some sites I used in the past and some new.
Also, created a forum for all to share pics, info, etc.
If you have a goof resource send it to me and will add to the sticky.

Giddy Yup Y'all!!!
 
deetu

deetu

Okay, just reading this and needed to share.
A 20 gallon tank is not good for either regular seahorses or dwarf. Too small for the regulars and too big for the dwarfs.

Regular seahorses are very dirty and it is hard to keep a 20 gallon healthy for them. I had 2 erectus in 20 gallon with 10 gallon fuge. I was planning on getting 56 gallon with the 10 gallon fuge once moved but husband wasn't too keen on that.
Have 20 gallon nano FOWLR with macro.
I know there are horses off NJ but they will need chiller to stay healthy... that is why it is easier to get tropical and have heater.
Dwarf ponies
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I got 8 dwarfs in October. They were wild caught. I wormed them and had them in 1 gallon cookie jar QT for a month.
I moved them to a 2.5 gallon cycled tank I added a Marina HOB breeder to keep rock in with sponge on the intake (took rock and sponge from 20 gallon). The Minon HOB is too strong for the 2.5 so will hold for 5 gallon upgrade.
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I originally had sand in the bottom but from encouragement from a fb dwarf site (Dwarf Seahorses - Help & Advice) and also seeing while caring for them in the cookie jar, I removed it before moving them over. It is easier to clean bottom of poop, dead bbs and check for health. (Snow globe...just fed)
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The hardest thing I've found so far for keeping ponies is hatching the bbs and making sure those stinking hydriods don't sneak in. I found that decapsulating the eggs does not kill hydroids, but freshwater rinses do. Even with me being extra careful, I got a different kind of hydroids that I misidentified as pineapple sponges (had them too). I tried to treat with Fenbendazole while ponies were in the tank but the boogers would not die so I moved the ponies back to QT and really nuked the rocks, washed the tank with freshwater.
I have 4 contaniners... one for hatching, one for holding and feeding, one for gut loading and one in fridge just in case something happens to the ones connected to the airlines. Yes, those are expensive glasses we got for our wedding that we never used until now lol
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With only 6 ponies, a 10 gallon would be too big at moment to feed since they wait for food to come by them and do not actively hunt. I did say 6, not 8. I lost one when didn't see it when putting back cleaned sponge and another when did massive clean to get rid of red slime since not a lot of water movement in there and didn't realize had nitrate spike when had neighbor watch dog and fed ponies overnight. Would have caught if home since noticed the bbs dead on bottom.
As they breed, I will upgrade. I've had two males be pregnant but dropped their eggs before hatching them. Don't know why. By the way, they only live about 12-18 months so it is important to have them breed to keep them... or you will need to buy more.
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Every morning I remove about a cup of water when sucking up the little poops and add new water when feed the bbs. This keeps the tank clean. I do this twice a day and will do partial water change if nitrates go up.
I was seriously thinking of selling the whole thing, especially after the hydroid outbreak but I'm getting the hang of easier way of doing things. They are really small and hide a lot (I keep magnify glass next to tank) but they really are cute.
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