rayjay
Well-Known Member
I would add ALL of the seahorses at the same time as assuming you have properly cycled the tank and then challenged the cycle and it passed, then you should NOT have a problem with ammonia and nitrites. Nitrates are NOT a problem for seahorses. I've never even tested for nitrates in my 18 yrs of seahorse keeping.
If you are adding a LOT of seahorses at a time, then when you challenge the tank, just be sure to up the ppm of ammonia you add for that challenge so that it will accommodate the heavier loading.
Feeding time recommendations WILL vary depending on the method you choose, AND the individual seahorses involved.
Seahorses should do better with a feeding regime that is closer to their natural habit of grazing THROUGHOUT the day so the more times you can feed them, the better for them and their immune systems. Of course, the amount you feed each time should be appropriate for the number of times you feed.
If you have them trained to eat from a dish and only feed twice a day, then you will find the level of food to add to the dish such that by next feeding, or by end of day, you won't have to siphon out the remaining food that will sit there enticing nasty bacteria to multiply. If you dish feed more often, again, feed only what they eat between your feedings.
If you target feed, again it depends on how many times a day, but if only twice, stop feeding when they appear to be less interested in the food. This method to me at least is the least preferable due to time constraints and not being able to determine and end point without feeding them less, more often through the day.
If you broadcast food to them and only feed them twice a day then obviously you have to feed more at a time but again be sure that you don't feed more than they are going to eat in a session so you DON'T have any or much of any to siphon out.
IMO, the best method is to feed at least four times a day, an amount they can consume in 10-12 minutes. This allows for the seahorse's rudimentary digestive tract to extract AS MUCH of the nutrition as possible from the food before passing it out as fecal deposits. In this manner, you provide the immune system with the needed nutrients and you don't end up with as much nutrients being passed via fecal matter into the tank.
For those of you who CAN'T feed through the day, please consider feeding them TWICE in the morning before work, about a half hour or more if you can, between feedings, but less per feeding time. Then again when you come home you can feed again twice with as much time in between as possible.
If you are adding a LOT of seahorses at a time, then when you challenge the tank, just be sure to up the ppm of ammonia you add for that challenge so that it will accommodate the heavier loading.
Feeding time recommendations WILL vary depending on the method you choose, AND the individual seahorses involved.
Seahorses should do better with a feeding regime that is closer to their natural habit of grazing THROUGHOUT the day so the more times you can feed them, the better for them and their immune systems. Of course, the amount you feed each time should be appropriate for the number of times you feed.
If you have them trained to eat from a dish and only feed twice a day, then you will find the level of food to add to the dish such that by next feeding, or by end of day, you won't have to siphon out the remaining food that will sit there enticing nasty bacteria to multiply. If you dish feed more often, again, feed only what they eat between your feedings.
If you target feed, again it depends on how many times a day, but if only twice, stop feeding when they appear to be less interested in the food. This method to me at least is the least preferable due to time constraints and not being able to determine and end point without feeding them less, more often through the day.
If you broadcast food to them and only feed them twice a day then obviously you have to feed more at a time but again be sure that you don't feed more than they are going to eat in a session so you DON'T have any or much of any to siphon out.
IMO, the best method is to feed at least four times a day, an amount they can consume in 10-12 minutes. This allows for the seahorse's rudimentary digestive tract to extract AS MUCH of the nutrition as possible from the food before passing it out as fecal deposits. In this manner, you provide the immune system with the needed nutrients and you don't end up with as much nutrients being passed via fecal matter into the tank.
For those of you who CAN'T feed through the day, please consider feeding them TWICE in the morning before work, about a half hour or more if you can, between feedings, but less per feeding time. Then again when you come home you can feed again twice with as much time in between as possible.
