Seahorse care

[SaltwaterTanks]

Planning on getting a pair of black seahorses I know about basic care but do you guys have any extra hacks or tips to keeping them ?

 

[Old Fritz]

Aren't nearly as difficult as websites and people make them out to be. Here are some things I learned

1) do not use an airstone directly into the tank they will grab onto the airline and bubbles will get stuck in their pouch and cause issues.

2) Getting them used to a turkey baster makes feeding much easier and keeps your tank cleaner

3) They aren't as hard as most people say. Some people make it seem like if you look at them the wrong way they will die

4) if you miss a day of feeding it isn't the end of the world, and mine have lived off of nothing but mysis

5) they do fine in a heated aquarium (had them up to 80 degrees at one point)

Bottom line seahorses are awesome and a super rewarding fish. Have fun with them

 

[matchmakersmagic]

I agree that seahorses arent as difficult as they are often made out to be.

The airstone thing though is a wives tale. They wont get air in the pouch, pouch emphysema, from an air stone. We use open ended airlines because they are more effective at making surface turbulence which is needed for oxygenation. Pouch emphysema is more closely linked to excessive dissolved organics.

I disagree about the not feeding daily though. It's a fact that seahorses lack a true stomach. They have basically a digestive tract that doesn't digest their food completely, evidence by taking a look at their poo lol. In any case, seahorses need to feed basically continuously to get enough nutrition to thrive. This means feeding 2-3 times (small feedings) a day.

Also considering temperature, while 80° wont kill a seahorse what it does do is accelerate bacteria/parasitic growth. One thing I can tell you for sure is when seahorses get sick it's almost always crisis mode. Things get really bad really quickly. A reduced temp will slow this process allowing you a bit more time to react and treat.

The one thing I've learned though is err on the side of caution. Seahorses arent the cheapest fish in the ocean and captive bred is well worth the money.

Select tankmates with care and you'll have a happier tank all around. Catching fish that become a problem is a headache. If you can avoid it it's totally worth it!

Good luck and enjoy your seahorses. Cant wait to see and hear about them once you have them.

 

[Old Fritz]

I agree that seahorses arent as difficult as they are often made out to be.

The airstone thing though is a wives tale. They wont get air in the pouch, pouch emphysema, from an air stone. We use open ended airlines because they are more effective at making surface turbulence which is needed for oxygenation. Pouch emphysema is more closely linked to excessive dissolved organics.

I disagree about the not feeding daily though. It's a fact that seahorses lack a true stomach. They have basically a digestive tract that doesn't digest their food completely, evidence by taking a look at their poo lol. In any case, seahorses need to feed basically continuously to get enough nutrition to thrive. This means feeding 2-3 times (small feedings) a day.

Also considering temperature, while 80° wont kill a seahorse what it does do is accelerate bacteria/parasitic growth. One thing I can tell you for sure is when seahorses get sick it's almost always crisis mode. Things get really bad really quickly. A reduced temp will slow this process allowing you a bit more time to react and treat.

The one thing I've learned though is err on the side of caution. Seahorses arent the cheapest fish in the ocean and captive bred is well worth the money.

Select tankmates with care and you'll have a happier tank all around. Catching fish that become a problem is a headache. If you can avoid it it's totally worth it!

Good luck and enjoy your seahorses. Cant wait to see and hear about them once you have them.

I can tell you I've seen it happen with having an airstone in a tank with them and I have actually pushed bubbles out of their pouch.

I wasn't recommending to skip feedings. I was saying not to fret if he missed a day as many people make it seem like they immediately die if you miss a day of feeding.

80 degrees again wasn't a recommendation. It was just to show that they aren't as finnicky as people say. It isn't recommended for a variety of reasons ie bacterial growth and lower levels of oxygen. However again it is something they can withstand

 

[matchmakersmagic]

I wasn't trying to invalidate your opinion Fritz, merely trying to offer my own.

As far as the air stone, a seahorse would have to literally be hitched, upside down, in close proximity to the air stone bubbles and with his pouch open in order to get bubbles in it from that. Not only is that highly unlikely but it's been shown through experience that a seahorse with pouch emphysema (air in his pouch) can have a pouch evacuation (removal of said gas bubble) and be placed in a newly made salt water QT and not have a reoccurrence. However, once returned to the DT with high organics immediately develop the condition again. It used to be thought both airstones and protein skimmer micro bubbles played a role but that has long ago been debunked.

Again, better to err on the side of caution always, so if you believe air stones are to blame then by all means, don't put one in the tank. I'm certainly not trying to encourage air stones, I'm simply trying to encourage great water quality and use of a good protein skimmer.

High temps and skipping a feeding every once in a while certainly will not cause instant death, I am in agreement with you on that. I just wanted to explain further why its recommended to keep temps low and offer multiple feedings.

There are always many different ways to do things. I'm in full support of folks doing what works for them and their tanks.

 

[rayjay]

Well I'm going to choose sides here and recommend anyone starting into the hobby follow more along MMM's recommendations which are more in line with my 17+ yrs of seahorse keeping/breeding.
Keep in mind that some people are successful in keeping seahorses in conditions most of wouldn't consider after a few years of experience. As seahorses, like people, have varying levels of immune systems, those with seahorses that have a stronger and more robust immune system may tolerated conditions the most other seahorses aren't able to. Look around at family and friends and you probably will notice certain people seem to never get ailments while others seem to be always sick, with the majority falling somewhere in between those extremes.
Unfortunately we don't get the opportunity to pick seahorses with the best immune system and indeed will have NO idea of the individual immunity of each of ours without a history to go by.
This means better chances of success will come from treating ALL as if they all have poor immune systems.
When I first started, success was nowhere near what it is today in keeping seahorses, and I believe the primary reason for that is the fact we acknowledge bacteria disease as the biggest threat to success, and, that water quality is the reason the bacteria are most likely to be that threat.
You can have ALL test kit readings showing excellent and STILL have poor water quality when it comes to bacteria as there are NO TEST KITS AVAILABLE TO THE HOBBYIST to advise us when the conditions are about to become problematic to our seahorses. We have to therefore be PRO-active rather than RE-active for better chances of success.
Now, to comment on air and bubbles in pouch, it WAS an accepted thing when I first started in 2002, but, within a few years it became known that the correlation was indeed false, and the suspected actual culprits are either bacterial or organ related, maybe both.
I use open ended air lines in all my seahorse tanks, first, as mentioned, it produces excellent water motion at the surface for proper gas exchange, and open ended doesn't produce the fine mist and salt creep like air stones produce.
As far as temperature is concerned, we now recommend a range of about 68°F to 74°F for tanks because, unlike in the wild, the water is captive and not everchanging and the nasty bacteria multiply on an exponential curve rather than linear and this is MUCH more prominent as temp gets above the 74°F.
For me, when it comes to feeding, I've found over many years that feeding less food at a time but doing it more times a day appears to maintain healthier seahorses. I personally feed no less than four times a day but in total probably the same amount of food is put in the tank as many do for twice daily feeding.
My thoughts are that as explained, seahorses don't have a normal digestive tract and are unable to make the most of the nutrition passing through said tract. By feeding them less each time, it allows slower progress of the food through the tract so that more nutrients are absorbed. Some may have even noticed at times, some excrement where the food almost appears the same coming out as going in.
A side benefit I find is that with less food placed in the tank at a time, the more is actually consumed overall, and, tank bio-loading is reduced.
As MMM said, there are many successful ways people are using today to keep seahorses, and, my comments are based on MY experiences over many years, AND based much also in what I've read from trusted sources about situations I personally have NOT experienced, or not been inclined to research for myself.
If your method is successful, then keep doing what is working, but always keep a watch for any sign of problem that may indicated a change might be needed in the future.
Too many times I thought I had things worked out only to find that when I least expected it, problems kicked me in the _ss with seahorses actually paying the price for my negligence.

 

[Paulie069]

Well I'm going to choose sides here and recommend anyone starting into the hobby follow more along MMM's recommendations which are more in line with my 17+ yrs of seahorse keeping/breeding.
Keep in mind that some people are successful in keeping seahorses in conditions most of wouldn't consider after a few years of experience. As seahorses, like people, have varying levels of immune systems, those with seahorses that have a stronger and more robust immune system may tolerated conditions the most other seahorses aren't able to. Look around at family and friends and you probably will notice certain people seem to never get ailments while others seem to be always sick, with the majority falling somewhere in between those extremes.
Unfortunately we don't get the opportunity to pick seahorses with the best immune system and indeed will have NO idea of the individual immunity of each of ours without a history to go by.
This means better chances of success will come from treating ALL as if they all have poor immune systems.
When I first started, success was nowhere near what it is today in keeping seahorses, and I believe the primary reason for that is the fact we acknowledge bacteria disease as the biggest threat to success, and, that water quality is the reason the bacteria are most likely to be that threat.
You can have ALL test kit readings showing excellent and STILL have poor water quality when it comes to bacteria as there are NO TEST KITS AVAILABLE TO THE HOBBYIST to advise us when the conditions are about to become problematic to our seahorses. We have to therefore be PRO-active rather than RE-active for better chances of success.
Now, to comment on air and bubbles in pouch, it WAS an accepted thing when I first started in 2002, but, within a few years it became known that the correlation was indeed false, and the suspected actual culprits are either bacterial or organ related, maybe both.
I use open ended air lines in all my seahorse tanks, first, as mentioned, it produces excellent water motion at the surface for proper gas exchange, and open ended doesn't produce the fine mist and salt creep like air stones produce.
As far as temperature is concerned, we now recommend a range of about 68°F to 74°F for tanks because, unlike in the wild, the water is captive and not everchanging and the nasty bacteria multiply on an exponential curve rather than linear and this is MUCH more prominent as temp gets above the 74°F.
For me, when it comes to feeding, I've found over many years that feeding less food at a time but doing it more times a day appears to maintain healthier seahorses. I personally feed no less than four times a day but in total probably the same amount of food is put in the tank as many do for twice daily feeding.
My thoughts are that as explained, seahorses don't have a normal digestive tract and are unable to make the most of the nutrition passing through said tract. By feeding them less each time, it allows slower progress of the food through the tract so that more nutrients are absorbed. Some may have even noticed at times, some excrement where the food almost appears the same coming out as going in.
A side benefit I find is that with less food placed in the tank at a time, the more is actually consumed overall, and, tank bio-loading is reduced.
As MMM said, there are many successful ways people are using today to keep seahorses, and, my comments are based on MY experiences over many years, AND based much also in what I've read from trusted sources about situations I personally have NOT experienced, or not been inclined to research for myself.
If your method is successful, then keep doing what is working, but always keep a watch for any sign of problem that may indicated a change might be needed in the future.
Too many times I thought I had things worked out only to find that when I least expected it, problems kicked me in the _ss with seahorses actually paying the price for my negligence.

Well said rayjay I only wish I had as much exp,, I did water changes for 2yrs that basically went against everything mentioned throughout this thread and had pretty decent success which goes to show more than one way to skin a cat. But I’m so grateful I came across this website with so many knowledgeable people such as yourself and MMM vigil to name a few. And I’ve been slowly trying other ways I’ve done things and hoping for best. All really matters is ponies are happy n healthy so they can continue to keep a smile on ur face