Tropical Fish Forums

[Barby Girl]

I'm not planning on running out and buying sea horses or anything (at least I wouldn't even consider it for a few years), but if anyone is bored and wants to give me some info, I'm curious. I've learned to trust you guys more then the websites out there. Can you keep a pair of sea horses (sans fish) in a nano tank? If no, what is your experience/thoughts on recommended tank size? Web info on tank requirements is soooo varied. I've read they are no good to keep with any other fish, due to their slow eating habits, but what about in a tank with a mandarin (obviously assuming the mandarin's needs were being met, I've already researched the heck out of them). Is there any fish/inverts that would be OK tank mates for them? I am a big time planner for the future and I wanted to know these things before I thought about one day having sea horses. Any thoughts from the bored on the board?
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Barby Girl

[Kribensis_2004]

I think a pair of small-mid size sea horses can fit into a twenty gallon aquarium, I would not go lbelow twenty gallons becuse of water quality. mandrains, some gobies and some blennies aree suitable for there aquariums. the fish just can't be aggresive or over acctive. and I would turn of the power heads when you try to feed them, becuse they can't swim that fast for food.

[sirreal63]

I wouldn't even think of keeping a mandarin in anything less that a 75 gallon tank with 150 lbs of rock. I think you already know how most of us feel about keeping these beautiful creatures in less than the required conditions.
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Out on the road today...I saw a DeadHead sticker on a Cadillac...
Jack
110 Gallon DSA Pentagon

[FloridaBoy]

Seahorses in general are greatly misunderstood in the hobby, and because of that they do not fare well in the average setup.
They have special requirements which simply must be met.
Some are tiny dwarf species and others can reach 14 inches.
Here are some links that will help you, and do stop by Seahorse.org with over 7,000 members you will find many answers...

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=16&cat=1837&articleid=2832
http://www.seahorses.de/keeping.htm
http://forum.seahorse.org/
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Keepin' marines happy for 25 years

[Barby Girl]

Thanks for the info guys! Mostly this was to satisfy my curiousity about opinions of real aquarists on sea horses. It is something to consider further down my hobby path (read years). And to clarify, I wasn't suggesting keeping a mandarin in a smaller then needed tank, maybe my wording was bad, I meant assuming the mandarins tank size/LR/pod population needs were met would they live harmoniously together.

LOL, I'm afraid to buy anything more exotic then a clown fish, but I'm a dreamer and a visionary so I keep dreaming for future tanks and coming up with "IF" scenarios.

Sorry if I'm annoying, but you guys are always a lot more conservative then the other websites out there with tank size recommendations and stocking compatibility and that is the approach I want to follow.
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Barby Girl

[sirreal63]

I think you will find more and more people being conservative with stocking. There will always be those that are careless but as more people start to consider the long term effects of this hobby more will see that these fish are not from an endless supply. Careful selection with the best interest of the inhabitants and not the keepers of the tanks will have an ever growing impact on the hobby. The first step is to educate the suppliers, which will be a daunting task. The best way to educate them is with your dollars and if you see something erroneous point it out to them.

Pipefish, Seahorses and Mandarins are delicate creatures and ultimately we are responsible for their lives.
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Out on the road today...I saw a DeadHead sticker on a Cadillac...
Jack
110 Gallon DSA Pentagon

[sharkwrangler]

During a power outtage I lost all my sea horses. I am looking for replacements. I have plenty live algae and grass shrimp to trade for sea horses. Does anyone know any breeders that trade?

[allmost]

I have 2 in a 30 G now.
its connected to my 65G reef system.

water circulation is tricky as u don't want to suck the sea horse out ! .

also mandarin with seahorse ? I am sure one will die very fast, they both go for live food AKA pods, and no way u can maintain that much pod population in a small tank for all those.
they eat live food, and they will not work for it, it has to be available for them anytime they wish.

power head in seahorse tank ? it would suck up the poor thing and kill it in a min!.

basically u need some cheato and rocks so the sea horse can hold on to them, and also it provides good place for pods to repopulate. and u won't need to feed it ! there is live food for it.

I always have a battery operated air pump close to all my tanks in case of power outage. and also a grounding probe, I think those are a must for any tank.
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65 Gallon tank FW
1 shovel-nose catfish
1 Motoro Stingray
20 Gallon SW
2 clown fish
1 blenny
3 anemones
3 coral

[wittd]

One of my favorite tanks I've ever seen is a seahorse, pipefish, and mandarin tank. It is a 40 gal hex. These fish don't need a lot of swimming room but do like the height. He has anywhere from 6 - 20 horses depending on how recently they have bred (2 adult dwarf and 4 adult hipo + babies). He also keeps 3 pipefish, a green mandarin and a spotted mandarin. He hasn't added or replaced any fish in a year and a half and the horses are happy and breeding. He started with established sand and rock, and has a good fuge growing pods like crazy. He also orders pods and the feeder shrimp, but they are possible to keep. It just takes a really experienced person with a good system. Research and learn with the basic systems, and this can be a future goal if you still insist on it.