Dwarf seahorse feeding

[Jmas4]

If I were to keep dwarf seahorses can I feed baby brine shrimp without enrichment. If I buy decapsulated eggs won't the brin shrimp have enough nutrition so I don't need to enrich them?
Also can I keep a flame prawn goby because they eat the same things?
What about a catalina goby instead?

 

[vlangel]

If I were to keep dwarf seahorses can I feed baby brine shrimp without enrichment. If I buy decapsulated eggs won't the brin shrimp have enough nutrition so I don't need to enrich them?
Also can I keep a flame prawn goby because they eat the same things?
What about a catalina goby instead?

Dwarf seahorses wont do well long term unless you enrich the baby brine shrimp. Even if you feed them immediately they hatch at different rates and they begin using their egg sacs immediately so some of what you are feeding will already be deficient of nutrition. Not only should you enrich the bbs but you should also vary the dsh's diet with copepods and some keepers are having excellent success with keeping some adult mysis in the tank so the dsh's can feed on the mysis larvae too.
I am not a dsh keeper but this is what i have read from folks who keep dwarf seahorses. Hopefully a dsh keeper will jump in and share their experience.

 

[Jmas4]

Dwarf seahorses wont do well long term unless you enrich the baby brine shrimp. Even if you feed them immediately they hatch at different rates and they begin using their egg sacs immediately so some of what you are feeding will already be deficient of nutrition. Not only should you enrich the bbs but you should also vary the dsh's diet with copepods and some keepers are having excellent success with keeping some adult mysis in the tank so the dsh's can feed on the mysis larvae too.
I am not a dsh keeper but this is what i have read from folks who keep dwarf seahorses. Hopefully a dsh keeper will jump in and share their experience.

Thanks for your reply. The only reason why I ask this is because enriching seems to complicated and I want a seahorse tank to be fun not a chore if you know what I mean.

 

[lacrosseboss18]

Dwarfs seahorses are definitely a chore IMO. I had them for 5-6 months and it was a pain. Lots of fun but the feeding was Definitely a deal breaker for me.

 

[Jmas4]

Did you enrich

Dwarfs seahorses are definitely a chore IMO. I had them for 5-6 months and it was a pain. Lots of fun but the feeding was Definitely a deal breaker for me.

 

[vlangel]

Thanks for your reply. The only reason why I ask this is because enriching seems to complicated and I want a seahorse tank to be fun not a chore if you know what I mean.

The enriching is not as complicated as it seems. I enriched bbs when I was raising erectus fry and it was easier than I thought.

However, that being said, the whole hatching, enriching and feeding multiple Xs a day, every day is rigorous. Then if you go on vacation you need to train someone else to do all that while you are away. Those are the reasons I decided to go with standard size seahorses instead of dwarfs. My seahorses came trained to eat frozen food which made vacations a whole lot more feasible.

I read a quote from a long time seahorse keeper that said most folks who have dwarf seahorses don't keep them more than 6 months because of the daily rigor of the feeding routine. He himself only did it for a year and he has been keeping standard seahorses over a decade.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Honestly, the fact you are asking this question means dwarfs are probably not the best fit for you right now and I mean that with the utmost respect. There are so many other aspects of this hobby that can offers gobs of fun without the 'stress" of messing with BBS. I've never kept dwarfs, but I bred seahorses and with that came the chore of BBS. It was an awesome experience, I'm glad I did it, but I don't know if I remember that time being "enjoyable/fun". If you're worried about it being a chore before you even start, I guarantee you it will be a HUGE one in a month. I would revisit that in the future and maybe look to something else right now.

 

[reef_junkie]

Best food I've found for ponies is PE mysis. I believe it's already enriched because the protien content is 69%. This only works if the ponies have been successfully switched to prepared foods but mine go crazy for it.