cowfish in a reef tank

[DEAD_BY_DAWN]

i would like to add some corals to my tank in a few months after i add a cowfish all the info i can find out is simply non reef safe i figure he will eat the worms shrimps etc but corals to ?,any thoughts on this thanks

[andestang]

I had a cowfish in my 33g and consisted of LPS ,zoo's etc and I never caught him doing any harm. SPS I would probably be a little more cautioned. Plus with the extra current flow you need with SPS's might prove to be difficult for him/her, as they are very weak swimmers. What type of corals are you planning on getting ?

[bulletsworld]

John,

Which did you decide to get the longhorn or the blue boxfish?

I have kept my cowfish in my reef for over a year now with no problems.
I have never had my cowfish nip at any corals. But who knows maybe there is some coral out there that I don’t have in my tank that might just be tasty to a cowfish. I have not encountered it yet. When they say boxfish are not reef safe I believe its because they will eat inverts. They will go after hermits, snail, scallops, clams, shrimp, etc, but usually not able to eat them until they get older due to their small mouth.

Every once in a while my cowfish will go after my shrimp but had never touched my cucumbers, sea hares, urchins, lobster. Cowfish have the ability to blow air in the water to uncover their prey. I have seen my cowfish do this with small hermit crabs or pods and eat them. Mine also seems to do this with my large pagoda coral but I discovered it was in search of food particles of uneaten food in the stony plate. My cowfish is always hungry. :mrgreen:

I think cowfish are one of the most fascinating creatures in the hobby.

Congrads on your new cowfish! :mrgreen:

[albert_dao]

Keep in mind the fish grows to lengths over a foot long in relatively short order. I had a helmet boxfish grow from a tiny 1.5" cube to a 5" monster in little over 8 months. I gave it to a friend and the poor thing died during transport. Did great in my tank though, I had (and still do have) lots of gorgonians and soft corals.

[bulletsworld]

The longhorn cowfish do get quite big fast.

With my helmet cowfish though unless a thornback has not grown that much in a years time. Mine was quite small & now is an inch or too bigger.

hey albert_dao, curious what you feed your cowfish that got good growth in 8 months. I've been wondering why mine hasn't gotten bigger...maybe due to diet? :eek:

Also what size tank did you have it in? I always love to here others that have had great experiences with these fish.

[albert_dao]

I housed mine in a 72 gallon tank hooked to a 50 gallon 'fuge. He was fed everything. Mysis, brine shrimp, squid, angel mixes, pellets and flake, fish eggs and some fish meat (whatever was in the freezer).

Keep in mind I fed this thing almost everytime I walked by the tank. He was literally ready to jump out of the tank everytime I walked by. Closest thing to a dog that I've kept in a fishtank. I might try another one once I move out again in the spring.

[bulletsworld]

Keep in mind I fed this thing almost everytime I walked by the tank. He was literally ready to jump out of the tank everytime I walked by. Closest thing to a dog that I've kept in a fishtank.

:lol: :lol:

Yup, I go through this routine everyday with my cowfish & the porcupine puffer. :lol:

My mom sighing always before about me always talking about my "Damn fish (as she would say)..."Get me LFS gift certificates for Christmas and birthdays Mom nothing else!" She would say.."NO WAY!" :lol: Until she came to visit first time & feed them while I was on vacation. My mom was so excited like a little girl telling me how everyday it was like the fish were waiting for her when she got it the door, just a waiting at the end of the tank staring at her. She was so amazed telling me that they would follow her around like puppy dogs, watching her every move. Even convinced the cowfish was up against the glass watching TV when she was. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Love these fish!

[DEAD_BY_DAWN]

thanks for all the info guys as for which one i'm not sure yet there was only one blue box on the list and about 25 cowfish so i ordered both and a lion so chances are i will get the lion and the cowfish ,which should make a great combo with the male green bird mouth wrasse and the snowflake that will be it for fish if everything goes well and the nitirates stay low ,there 3ppm right now i would like to add a some lps once i upgrade my lighting and to think i would like a fish only tank lol ,thanks again all of you guys have been a great help with this tank and my 20g reef :)

[albert_dao]

Whoa, whoa, whoa. You can't keep the boxfish with the bird wrasse or the eel!

The wrasse is too overbearing and the eel will probably end up injuring the boxfish eventually.

[Quinn]

You figure the eel would hurt the boxfish? How? :neutral:

[albert_dao]

Most eels hunt with their sense of smell. When food is added to the water, they have a tendancy to snap at whatever comes close to their jaws. I've had my snowflake eel severely wound a yellow tang (which is fine now) even though the snowflake was regularly fed with a stick.

The boxfish would be easy pickings to the feeding behaviors of moray eels with it's awkward swimming.

[bulletsworld]

:eek: eel & boxfish..... :eek:

Knowing that the cowfish is not a fast swimmer, not able to act quickly. You would have to spot fee the cowfish perhaps on one corner of the tank & then may be fine.

[albert_dao]

Don't forget that boxfish that are overly harrassed release toxins into the water.

[bulletsworld]

Don't forget that boxfish that are overly harrassed release toxins into the water.

Yup, most definately! No tank (reef) or no more tankmates, if the cowfish is stressed. In the wild the cowfish has no problems do to a HUGE ocean of water but in a small tank.... Your cowfish doesn't understand & not only will it kill itself but will also wipe out the rest of the reef tank! Call this getting a Royal Flush. It's a risk.

But then again I did have a shark with my cowfish at first. :eek: But I was always worried & stressed me more then anything. Later ended up selling the shark & but still got the cowfish. :lol: :lol:

[ghztew]

I'm a little confused.. are you guys saying that it's fine to have a cowfish in a reef tank?

Are there any corals/inverts/anem's that you should absolutely not keep with a cowfish?

[DOO-E]

In Aquariumfish magazine there is an article on this it is the current issue. Has guppies on the front.