Caring for seahorses.

Seahorses are the most popular of all marine fishes to have as pets. The popularity of the

seahorse is not surprising when you take into consideration all of its features. This is a

fish with the head of a horse, has the ability to change color like a chameleon, an armored body resembling an armadillo, and a prehensile tail much like that of a monkey.

What is involved in setting up a seahorse stable and caring for such animals?

do. You will need to fill the aquarium with synthetic sea water. Most pet stores sell a

product that comes close to actual sea water. Seahorses do fine in salt water with a

specific gravity as low as 1.020 or as high as 1.025, with the salinity somewhere in

between, You will need to purchase a tool called a hydrometer to measure the specific

gravity and salinity. If your space is limited and your budget is small you can get a small

aquarium. It is important though to provide adequate filtration. With proper filtration a

five gallon aquarium can house as many as fifty dwarf seahorses. For the large seahorses

a 15-gallon aquarium is room enough for a half dozen adult seahorses. Again it is

important to provide adequate filtration. If you are unsure of the type of filter you should

buy or how the filter will work, any pet store employee should be able to help you. It is

important to buy a specific filter for marine aquariums so make it clear that you wish to

purchase a filter for a seahorse aquarium. The best filtration system is a combination of

an undergravel filter with a canister filter filled with the appropriate media. This

combination will provide the right amount of mechanical, biological, and chemical

filtration to maintain optimum water quality. Seahorses are one of the few marine fishes

that can live in cramped quarters. They are relatively inactive and peaceful fishes and do

not require a lot of swimming space. They have also learned to adapt to a variety of

living conditions. They can withstand a 10 degree farenheint change in temperature as

long as it occurs gradually over the course of a day The seahorse aquarium should be

topped with a tight-fitting cover and a fluorescent light fixture. A fluorescent fixture with a light spectrum balances to promote the growth of aquarium plants is important.

Seahorses need light when feeding to track down the their live foods and bright light

encourages the growth of green algae. A lush growth of algae is very beneficial because

it releases oxygen into the water while it absorbs dissolved carbon dioxide and nitrates,

which are poisonous to any fish.

What do you feed a seahorse? If you are keeping pygmy seahorses their nutritional needs can be met by feeding them newly hatched brine shrimp. These are available for purchase in a pet store, but most aquarists keep a separate aquarium for raising the brine shrimp. There are many commercially brine shrimp hatcheries available

but you can also set up your own hatchery with a mason jar and an air stone. Seahorses

larger than three or four inches will need more substantial food. Giant seahorses feed on

grass shrimp. You can also feed adult brine shrimp, mosquito larvae, bloodworms, and

live baby guppies or mollies. To avoid running to the pet store every other day most individuals that keep seahorses tend to also keep an aquarium raising food for the seahorses. Some seahorses can be trained to accept frozen brine shrimp that has been carefully thawed and swirled through the water in a lifelike manner. This is an unreliable

method of feeding because seahorses eventually lose interest and will refuse to eat it after

a few weeks. It can be used in emergencies when you have not had a chance to get to the

pet store or you do not have any live fish available. No matter what you feed them it is

important to remember that several smaller feedings a day are much better than one big

daily feeding. Seahorses require a constant, adequate supply of food in order to thrive.

They feed continuously through most of the daylight hours, so some food should be

present at all times to prevent malnourishment.

Like all fishes, seahorses are occasionally bothered by various ailments.

Prevention is always the best cure to treating diseases. If you select a healthy specimen

to begin with, maintain proper feeding, and practice good aquarium management, then

most diseases you won’t have to worry about. The most common disease is gas formation

which occurs in two forms. In some cases, actual bubbles of gas form just beneath the

seahorse’s skin. The bubbles most often form on the head. These can be expelled by

inserting a sharp needle just through the membrane of the bubble taking extra care not to

prick the seahorse. In other cases the formation of gas in the brood pouches of the male

can be a recurrent problem. Unlike most animals, the male seahorses carry the young.

Gas can result when the air is trapped within the brood pouch during the expulsion of the

last of the young. It is easily diagnosed by the swollen, bloated appearance of the pouch.

Fin rot is another problem that afflicts seahorses in captivity. This is when the

fins of the seahorses begin to look frayed and ragged for no apparent reason. This

damage is most obvious in the dorsal fin. In the he early stages of the disease it is evident

as a fine white line along the edge of the fin which gradually advances towards the base

of the fin until the fin rays become exposed. If the bacterial rot is left untreated the entire

fin will be destroyed and the body tissue of the sea horse will become infected. It is

important to treat fin rot early and there are a variety of commercial products that you

can safely treat your seahorse with. Seahorses are subject to a number of parasitic diseases which can be very serious. The most common parasitic disease among seahorses

is that of the sea louse. This is a blood-sucking parasite can pierce the skin of the seahorse. Affected seahorses can be so irritated that they can refuse to eat, and are furthered weakened by a loss of blood. In severe cases, death will occur. Most seahorses purchased from a reputable pet store have removed instances of sea louse on the animal.

If you do discover such a parasite, it needs to be removed immediately. You can do this

by prying the parasite loose with tweezers. Another common parasitic disease is that of

ich. The first signs of ich are whitish pinpoints that appear on the seahorse’s body. It

spreads rapidly and it can cause a seahorse to have respiratory distress. There are also

commercial products that you can treat your seahorse if you suspect they have ich.

With proper care and maintenance, sea horses are fascinating creatures to watch.

It is important to read up on these animals before making an impulse buy. In order to thrive, sea horses have specific needs that must be met. You can always talk to a pet store employee with questions and concerns about raising a seahorse stable.