Need some advice on seahorses

howdy20012002 · #1 03-21-2010, 07:50 AM

So I am in the process of setting up my tanks in my house and was looking for some advice.
In my office, I am setting up a 230 reef.
I also have 2 - 65 tall cube tanks that I was going to have seahorses in.
I would prefer to have them all on the same system.
are seahorses susceptible to diseases from other fish as well or just other seahorses. I am talking more about the seahorse specific diseases, not things like ich or such but more the bacterial type.
I plan on buying all the seahorse at once from the same source, so there should be no problems with that.
however, I just don't know if the fish in 230 could potentially add problems
I am also setting up a 180 gallon quarantine system for the fish to be held in for at least a month before being added.
as well, I wil have a 100 gallon coral quarantine system as well.
so what do you think?
can I keep the seahorses in the 2 separate tanks but attached through the same system?
thanks in advance for the input
Neal

Madreefer · #2 03-21-2010, 08:14 AM

I am doing just as you describe and have'nt had any problems. But the fish in my main tank are healthy and have no "noticeable" diseases at all. Plumbed the seahorse tank in a year ago.

SeaHorse_Fanatic · #3 03-21-2010, 10:55 AM

My seahorse tank was/is plumbed into my fowlr. No noticeable problems with the seahorses in the past from doing this.

If all the seahorses are from the same source, hopefully no transmittable diseases between species. However, I think that there are some species that carry pathogens that are transmittable to other species but you should check with seahorse.org or other specialty sites for that sort of specific info.

Anthony

rayjay · #4 03-21-2010, 02:36 PM

Is what you propose being done? YES! It can be done. However, there are more failures than success stories so it's best to do more research before getting into it.
Seahorses are prone to ANYTHING that is foreign to them from the situation they are bred and raised, be it other seahorses or any other fish.
The bacterial problem though probably causes more seahorse deaths that parasitic problems and that comes from keeping a tank above the recommended temperature range of 68° to 74°.
While the seahorses are normally found in waters warmer than that, those waters are continually changing.
In our tanks, the contained water is a breeding ground for bacteria like vibriosis, and, the bacteria multiply exponentially for each rising degree temperature, especially at 75° and above.
I was one who didn't maximize the odds of success by doing the recommended things but I've since learned my lesson over the last 4 1/2 yrs.
MY THOUGHTS ON SEAHORSE KEEPING

However, I have a friend who just put a pair in a tank without any specific conditions set, and he was successful for several years before they perished.
There is a thread on RC now where a hobbyist has a pair of reidi's that I raised from fry, and has the tank hooked into a sump connected to another sump that is hooked to his main tank. He has a chiller inline for the seahorse tank.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1810342
Reverend Reefer's post starts at post #5.

Now, while bacteria situations are probably the worst, parasitic problems come a close second.
Seahorses many times fall to infestations of parasites that they have not grown up with and if a seahorse or other fish placed with it has such a parasite then there is a great chance that problems will surface.
That is why, on seahorse.org, you will find that for the BEST chances of success, only house together seahorses that come from the same breeding/raising source that have been together in the same water growing up.
There is a slow protocol for acclimating seahorses to those raised elsewhere but it is hit and miss.
Also, SOME people just luck in when mixing species or sources of species.
Unfortunately I wasn't one of those people.

G1GY · #5 03-22-2010, 03:39 AM

I just got a pair of hybrid seahorses from Ryan at BA's. (Thanks for pointing me in the right direction Ray. ) I put them in a 14 gallon biocube with a purple firefish goby as the only tankmate.

I'm just leaving the cube at room temp and they seem to be doing great! Eating frozen mysis and the male is going to dump a bunch of fry any day now. I even have them eating from a brine net now. I put the net with shrimp in the tank and they either hitch on the net and eat or go right in the net and then come out when they've had their fill.

Also, my horses spend most of their days pod hunting. They move from place to place on the rock and just wait for a pod to come by. I'm just amazed how well they hunt concidering how slow they move. Actually, I've been amazed at just how fast they can get around when they want to.

I'm glad I picked up these guys and set up this cube. I've missed my reef since I shut it down.

rayjay · #6 03-22-2010, 12:33 PM

If your hybrids are like mine, they are still pretty small.
Once they mature, you will need a larger tank.
The recommended size for a pair of normal sized seahorses is 29g.
Water quality is extremely important so be sure to keep up on tank husbandry and if any food finds it's way to the bottom uneaten, siphon it out.
You can put a fan(s) blowing on the tank to keep it a little cooler in warmer weather.