Does your LFS carry Blue Ringed Octopus?

[Fredinva]

I bought similar sized Blue-Ringed Octopus from my LFS back in 1972. Not a lot was known about them then except their bite was extremely poisonous! I had difficulty in getting him to eat anything. I tried pieces of fish, pieces of shrimp, and even a small sacrificial guppy. Nothing seemed to work and eventually he died after about 7 or 8 months. Would I try again........probably not!

 

[jhj159]

I purchased one here locally for $30 back a few years ago, The owner from the Aquarium store told me that it was special ordered for a gentleman but he never went to pick it up, that said I bought it and he told me what I was getting into and I told him yes, I did not sign any waiver or anything like that because I knew about the Blue ring octopus, since then the owner sold the company, it is owned by a different group of owners now. So just out of curiosity I asked them recently about a week ago if they would be able to get one in and they told me yes they would.

 

[PeterEde]

Apparently you can order them in Australia

 

[Sharktak]

As an Australian who grew up in the sea we are taught from a young age not to pick up cans or bottles inthe water.
Personally I've never seen one at the beach but have heard of people finding them and stupidly holding them.
The bite is supposed to be relatively painless but if you don't have anyone with you you will likely die. They produce a neurotoxin that stops your heart. You suffocate and if no one is there to do CPR it's good night.

I'm from Mount Gambier and I have grown up with these little buggers. As you said, we were taught from a very young age about touching them and it is one of the very few things we listened to as kids. They are very common in our tidal zones and are frequently seen while searching rock pools for other goodies. They are mainly nocturnal I believe and are often seen when spotlighting for garfish at night. I would never consider any in a tank for 2 reasons. The danger and the difficulty of keeping them in a tank. They can squeeze through a hole the size of a pencil.

 

[AydenLincoln]

Really sad. Octopuses are insanely intelligent. Fish are quite a bit lower on the intelligence scale. But an octopus is entirely another story… confining them to an aquarium where they’ll never get what they need to thrive (in any sense) is barbaric imo.

Agreed and people defend it and say there’s no research about how they can get depressed and bored. Umm yes there is. And no hobbyist should be keeping one.

 

[Cuzuco]

I have questions about the legality as well and tbh I'm not sure a waiver would even save them from being sued...I mean whoever bought it would have a pretty good case just by saying nobody should be sold one and it was negligence on the shop's side to sell it... possibly manslaughter if it killed someone. I mean think about it, who would be qualified to own one? It seems similar to selling cyanide to someone who seems to be very depressed but having them sign a waiver that they won't commit suicide and only use it as rat poison.

Well in the us it is legal to sell and own weapons and I would imagine that it is more dangerous than owing a blue ring octopus, so I don’t see why this would be a problem.

 

[PeterEde]

I'm from Mount Gambier and I have grown up with these little buggers. As you said, we were taught from a very young age about touching them and it is one of the very few things we listened to as kids. They are very common in our tidal zones and are frequently seen while searching rock pools for other goodies. They are mainly nocturnal I believe and are often seen when spotlighting for garfish at night. I would never consider any in a tank for 2 reasons. The danger and the difficulty of keeping them in a tank. They can squeeze through a hole the size of a pencil.

Any hole bigger than their beak they can get through. Amazing creatures

 

[HudsonReefer2.0]

Well in the us it is legal to sell and own weapons and I would imagine that it is more dangerous than owing a blue ring octopus, so I don’t see why this would be a problem.

So…? This is a poor way of reasoning the purchase of an animal that can kill you. Yeah u could get shot I guess but I rather take my chances w a round rather than a bite from that beauty. Just sayin.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Well in the us it is legal to sell and own weapons and I would imagine that it is more dangerous than owing a blue ring octopus, so I don’t see why this would be a problem.

They have a use to justify their sale. A weapon isn't inherently a threat at all. It's inanimate and what it does is determined by who uses it. If you don't touch it, it sits on a table motionless and won't ever move. A blue ringed octopus has a mind of its own and therefore is inherently dangerous.

 

[hollback]

I was in the store when the owner had finished acclimating it and adding it to the critter cage. He had special ordered it for a customer who must have decided they didn't want it. It was a full grown adult so not sure how much longer it would live. Beautiful little guy and very inquisitive.

 

[Suesea]

I have questions about the legality as well and tbh I'm not sure a waiver would even save them from being sued...I mean whoever bought it would have a pretty good case just by saying nobody should be sold one and it was negligence on the shop's side to sell it... possibly manslaughter if it killed someone. I mean think about it, who would be qualified to own one? It seems similar to selling cyanide to someone who seems to be very depressed but having them sign a waiver that they won't commit suicide and only use it as rat poison.

I know that in some states you have to have special permits to sell, own, and breed any venomous reptiles and even then it's hard to police these people because they do have the permits. Or it's just illegal to own in other states. But as far as saltwater creatures I'm not entirely sure because I saw the DIY king on You Tube purchase an electric eel, was huge, and could kill him and you could see how nervous he was to release it into it's own tank. There are about 4 online sites that I've seen these little ringed guys being offered for sale but never at an LFS.
That being said I have owned a dwarf octopus and he lived about 5 months, he was fascinating to watch and interact with, and I did my homework first. There's no way to tell how old these little wonders are when you get them and they don't live but maybe over a year or so in the wild. I put him in a small glass jar with formaldehyde it was sad..
Then I saw a documentary on a man that formed a bond with an octopus shortly after mine had died. Very touching true story.
Sorry for the novel. Haven't been on R2R lately but hey to all the fellow reefers.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

I know that in some states you have to have special permits to sell, own, and breed any venomous reptiles and even then it's hard to police these people because they do have the permits. Or it's just illegal to own in other states. But as far as saltwater creatures I'm not entirely sure because I saw the DIY king on You Tube purchase an electric eel, was huge, and could kill him and you could see how nervous he was to release it into it's own tank. There are about 4 online sites that I've seen these little ringed guys being offered for sale but never at an LFS.
That being said I have owned a dwarf octopus and he lived about 5 months, he was fascinating to watch and interact with, and I did my homework first. There's no way to tell how old these little wonders are when you get them and they don't live but maybe over a year or so in the wild. I put him in a small glass jar with formaldehyde it was sad..
Then I saw a documentary on a man that formed a bond with an octopus shortly after mine had died. Very touching true story.
Sorry for the novel. Haven't been on R2R lately but hey to all the fellow reefers.

Yeah, thinking about it, they're probably not illegal to own because nobody has had an issue with them being sold or owned to call any negative attention to their sale.

 

[PotatoPig]

Story Time: Spent my childhood in Australia. One time my school took us (aged ~8) on a field trip to the beach for rockpooling. A kid in the class managed to fish one of these little guys out of a rock pool into a Tupperware container and then proudly showed it off to the teacher, who promptly aged around a decade in 10 seconds flat.

/there had been a discussion about some of the dangers in these places, including stonefish and blue ringed octopuses, but 8 year olds aren’t the best at understanding these warnings.

 

[JaimeAdams]

We don't order them in, but I see them offered on the lists.

I know that you can sue for anything these days, but this is no different than keeping venomous reptiles. I don't know about other states, but around here we have stores that sell those things to anyone over the age of 18.

 

[MnFish1]

Yes I have seen them in stores - usually not for sale - just as a 'store pet'. Would wonder if signing a waiver in this case would protect the store. In any case a nice picture

Stopped by one of my LFS today and they had in a small blue ringed octopus (about 2 inches) and not bad at only $69. That said, I did not buy it but first time I’d ever seen one in person or even for sale, making me wonder if any of your LFS get one in?

*They did have warnings on the glass stating it was deadly and that a waiver must be signed when purchased.

Here’s the little guy:

 

[MnFish1]

I guess it depends how the waiver is written. But - to me a similar analogy is I have a gun in my drawer. I'll sell it to you if you sign a waiver you won't shoot anyone (or accidentally shoot yourself)

Exactly. Maybe there's no law specifically stating you can't throw bowling ball off highway overpasses in Idaho but everyone knows that you shouldn't do it. If you accidentally kill someone because you didn't see the car coming it's still your fault for putting someones life in danger.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

I guess it depends how the waiver is written. But - to me a similar analogy is I have a gun in my drawer. I'll sell it to you if you sign a waiver you won't shoot anyone (or accidentally shoot yourself)

I agree. In any case the store would have to be prepared to defend itself legally because simply showing a signed waiver wouldn't cut it.

 

[MnFish1]

Well in the us it is legal to sell and own weapons and I would imagine that it is more dangerous than owing a blue ring octopus, so I don’t see why this would be a problem.

If you touch a gun - it won't kill you - if you touch a blue ring octopus it is more likely (of course there are many fewer octopi in the US than guns).

 

[Reefing102]

I was in the store when the owner had finished acclimating it and adding it to the critter cage. He had special ordered it for a customer who must have decided they didn't want it. It was a full grown adult so not sure how much longer it would live. Beautiful little guy and very inquisitive.

Interesting. That’s full grown? I was reading online they get 4-8 inches, I guess that includes the tentacles?

The interesting part is I was told it was ordered just because it’s been on the list for a few weeks, it cause it was a special order. Just interesting is all lol

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

If you touch a gun - it won't kill you - if you touch a blue ring octopus it is more likely (of course there are many fewer octopi in the US than guns).

You read my mind. You just can't compare an inanimate object to an animal with a mind of its own. Even if you aim a gun at someone and pull the trigger it will do nothing because it isn't loaded. You have to intentionally load, aim, and shoot in order for a gun to do harm. A blue ringed octopus has instincts regardless of your actions. If you hold it and it bites you, you didn't force it to bite you, it did so on its own. You don't dictate exactly what it does like you do with a gun.