Sea horse tank

[christopherjay]

Ok..So I took the jump and figured that I would try it out..My wife liked my biocube so much that we went out and got another one..We let it do its thing and cycle and I watched my levels for a couple of weeks..Everything calmed down so I went out the the LFS...Well I walked into Nemo Fish and my wife noticed a seahorse... I told her we could give it a try..We came home with our mustang about 4 days ago and he is going strong..I have been feeding him frozen brine and mysis shrimp..I was actually pretty excited to see the guy eat..But we are wondering what else can we put in the tank with him...She wants a clown...The biocube is 14 gallons with a 3inch sand bed and about 20 pounds of live rock..I have some flowerpot and xenia in the tank and some mushrooms...

 

[smoothie]

Go for the clown. Blood shrimp are great additions too

 

[christopherjay]

Thanks..good to know that she can have the clown...She says every tank must have nemo

 

[skriz]

Clowns are too aggressive for a seahorse tank; they'll outcompete it for food.

Gobies make a nice tankmate as they're very passive, just like the ponies.

Also, be carful @ stinging corals.

Seahorse.org had a cool little cheat sheet for tankmates; it's not complete, but it's pretty close.

 

[twistoflime]

Go with gobies or if you want somthing a little more "exotic" go for tilefish. Also clowns are not that great of an idea but you can try one, just be prepared to take it out of the tank if the seahorse isn't getting enough food.
Another good tank mate is a pipefish, which are a cousin of seahorses. Also consider adding onother female seahorse because seahorses are very social creatures.

 

[lukestimp]

I'm with Twistoflime, go with a dragonface Pipefish you won't be disapppointed.. There's plenty of people who have had success keeping Clowns with Seahorse's but if you ask me Raj is right about them outcompeteing the horses for food, If you've ever seen a clown eat at feeding time you'll totally understand why...

 

[lukestimp]

Waiting on

 

[ksauerb322]

Thanks LukeStimp

Stay away from blennies (known to nip at the horses) and a clown in that small area would outcompete them for food. I'd go with a shrimp goby/pistol shrimp and call it a day. Watch your nitrates, seahorses are messy eaters and need to be fed at least a couple times every day due to their small stomachs. A pipefish will need a more established tank or will die due to starvation.

I don't think you can add much more than that, seahorses add a ton of bioload to a tank. That size tank isn't really "ideal" for that type of seahorse. They are vertically oriented fish (20 inch+high tank is recommended), a dwarf might have been a better idea for a nano.

They are very cool critters, I'm sure you guys will enjoy yours as much as I have enjoyed mine.

 

[smoothie]

Never thought a clown would out compete anything. Crazy
Talk to mysterybox. Ralph has some good tips from his pipefish. Even a thread on their care somewhere on here

 

[smoothie]

Yeah never seen the 2 together in a smaller tank. That would be bad especially when the clown reached maturity and decided to host and protect something.
I do love a neon goby though

 

[seamonkeychar]

Certain kinds of gobies (the smaller ones) are a good idea. Be careful though, I have heard (never seen, so don't take this as the gospel truth) of gobies biting a seahorse's tail or otherwise being jerks. It seems like it would be more likely with watchman gobies, since they can be territorial. Cardinal fish, like Bangaiis or Pajamas, should be great with the ponies though.

 

[lukestimp]

I just realized no one has mentioned the Temperature of your tank yet, All-in One systems seem to run pretty warm and with most horses you are going to want to be down around 74-76 Max. You might need to look into a chiller or possibly go with an open top. As

 

[lenny]

I agree with most of the advice given so far, but would like to stress that your tank really is too small to be housing seahorses. As far as tankmates, most gobies are fine, as well as cardinals if they are small. If you keep the seahorse you're going to want to get rid on any stinging type of coral.

Also, many seahorse keepers feel that just keeping one seahorse in a tank is detrimental to their well being due to the fact that they are very social creatures who are genetically predisposed to hanging with a herd, and forming serious bonds with their mate and herdmates.

Also, be very careful when using the term "mustang", since it (and the specific strain of H. erectus it names) is trademarked by the Ocean Rider company, and they will go after shops and/or breeders selling actual "mustangs" derived from their "mustang" stock. So above when you said mustang, if you meant it as generic seahorse slang, I'd stop using that term.... and if they are actual Mustangs.... you REALLY shouldnt be telling people, lol.

 

[christopherjay]

Everyone will be glad to know that the seahorse is still kickin..Eats very well..My temp in the tank is at 75..Room temp is at 70 all the time..Andre knows that it is VERY cold in our house LOL...either way my wife went with a small clown..the seahorse eats from a feeding station so the clown eating free floating food isnt too big of a problem..I will take pictures for everyone tomorrow..thanks for all the input