How to set up a seahorse tank

Nice article....my plans were to setup a sea horse tank for the Mrs, but according to the article, they need at least 74° or below. That's not feasible without a chiller, which I'm not buying for her small tank. Guess that squashes that idea. :)
 
Smitty said:
Nice article....my plans were to setup a sea horse tank for the Mrs, but according to the article, they need at least 74° or below. That's not feasible without a chiller, which I'm not buying for her small tank. Guess that squashes that idea. :)
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Totally understandable. We are asked about Seahorses a lot, so that's what inspired the article. Often callers/emailers get a little deflated once they learn why they are so challenging, but it is what it is. They are beautiful creatures and, if one is up to the challenge—AWESOME! But we thought folks should know what they are getting into so they can prepare accordingly. We succeed when our customers succeed—that's why education in our industry is so important. Thanks for reading and always being supportive of our posts here!
 
Ive kept seahorses for a while, and never kept my temp down at 74. I even ran halides over the tank, temp got as high as 82. I never had issues.
 
MarineDepot said:
Totally understandable. We are asked about Seahorses a lot, so that's what inspired the article. Often callers/emailers get a little deflated once they learn why they are so challenging, but it is what it is. They are beautiful creatures and, if one is up to the challenge—AWESOME! But we thought folks should know what they are getting into so they can prepare accordingly. We succeed when our customers succeed—that's why education in our industry is so important. Thanks for reading and always being supportive of our posts here!
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:)
 
ADOGG80 said:
Ive kept seahorses for a while, and never kept my temp down at 74. I even ran halides over the tank, temp got as high as 82. I never had issues.
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Yeah, I've seen them kept in warmer temps too, especially in reef tanks. I was attempting to kinda replicate their natural living conditions as close as possible. How long have you had yours Aaron?
 
It's not that the warmer temperatures will kill them (and like Aaron said, some people don't ever have a problem), it's that bacteria multiply faster at warmer temperatures. Seahorses are extremely susceptible to Vibrio and mycobacteria . Vibrio and mycobacteria are flesh eating bacteria that cause various problems. At under 74* the chance of seahorses contracting a bacterial infection is significantly decreased. Another interesting tidbit is that the presence of these pathogens in your seahorse tank can cause a false positive for TB in humans when tested.
 
I had them for a yr and a half or so, then got bored with them. The biggest pain with them imo was their need to be fed multiple times per day. Ted is dead on with he had said regarding vibrio, and whatnot, but I never had issues.
 
SkullV said:
It's not that the warmer temperatures will kill them (and like Aaron said, some people don't ever have a problem), it's that bacteria multiply faster at warmer temperatures. Seahorses are extremely susceptible to Vibrio and mycobacteria . Vibrio and mycobacteria are flesh eating bacteria that cause various problems. At under 74* the chance of seahorses contracting a bacterial infection is significantly decreased. Another interesting tidbit is that the presence of these pathogens in your seahorse tank can cause a false positive for TB in humans when tested.
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Yeah, that's what I've been reading too Ted... and thanks for that tidbit. Lol
 
ADOGG80 said:
I had them for a yr and a half or so, then got bored with them. The biggest pain with them imo was their need to be fed multiple times per day. Ted is dead on with he had said regarding vibrio, and whatnot, but I never had issues.
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Cool...yeah, the feeding twice daily part won't bother us. I feed my tank all the time, and so far she's been feeding hers every other day. As long as I can get horses that's already weaned on frozen foods, we're good.
 
Hell, I would feed more than twice a day. I always fed 3-4 times a day. Yeah, definately have to have them eating frozen, preferrably mysis. If you do decide to get them, ask Dave at AP. Ive always had gl with seahorses from him, and at a great price.
 
ADOGG80 said:
Hell, I would feed more than twice a day. I always fed 3-4 times a day. Yeah, definately have to have them eating frozen, preferrably mysis. If you do decide to get them, ask Dave at AP. Ive always had gl with seahorses from him, and at a great price.
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Ok, cool...I'll definitely keep him in mind when I get ready to get them. Thanks again Aaron for the info.
 
ADOGG80 said:
Ive kept seahorses for a while, and never kept my temp down at 74. I even ran halides over the tank, temp got as high as 82. I never had issues.
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+1
I had and breed ora yellow and orange redi seahorses for 4 yrs temp as around 78 80 all the time never had issues had babies all the time I think the captive is way better then wild u pay more but well worth it and usually eat out of hand or in u hand I should say under water of course . even seen dwarf breed and kept at 80 degrees for there full life span im just saying :P
 
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