Help with seahorse

[Lkemja]

hi everyone. Concerned about what my seahorse. She swims around the tNk (not my concern.that means she loves her home) what concerns me is that she lays on the sand and seems to be scratching (like what dogs do) should i be worried

 

[Mick51]

How long you had the seahorse?

 

[Lkemja]

A month.shes the only one that does that. I have dwarfs in tank also and 1 more erectus

 

[rayjay]

How long does it stay lying down compared to the time spent swimming about the tank?
Have you tried a full fresh water dip to see if there is a parasitic problem out of control?
What are you feeding the erectus? The dwarfs? How often and how much? Frequency of water changes and tank cleaning?
You have chosen a very difficult task to keep dwarfs together with standards as their needs are quite different.

 

[Lkemja]

Stays laying about a min. Swims ongoing during day.no I haven't tries full frsh water dip. The dwarfs get baby brime shrimp or cyclops (they love them) and the others get brime shrimp also. Feed 2x day (all eat well)do 10% water changes every week. Last week waited 2weeks due to dwarf having fry.. but i clean out all old food daily

 

[rayjay]

Hopefully you are enriching the brine shrimp nauplii before feeding for the dwarfs and the cyclops will add diversity of nutrients for them.
For the erectus, brine shrimp are NOT sufficient for long term survival unless they are adults that are also enriched. For them it would be MUCH better feeding thawed and rinsed mysis. Baby brine shrimp are not sufficient food for adult erectus as it would take a way too many of them to be of any nutrient value, even if enriched. Frozen brine do not have the needed DHA that seahorses can't manufacture themselves so not a good answer as a standard food.
Having a problem with a seahorse indicates usually that your husbandry protocols are insufficient for what you have in the tank. In my personal experience over the last 18 yrs, I've found that for me, 10% water changes are not NEAR enough to keep water from slowly degrading over time and ending up allowing nasty bacterial expansion which then affects the seahorses. The seahorse with the weakest immune system will be the first to show the signs, but it can then spread to the remaining inhabitants if conditions are not rectified.
It took me many years to find that my seahorses are much healthier and have stronger immunity levels now that I feed four times a day, but only as much as they can eat in about 10-12 minutes.

 

[Hincapiej4]

Hmm, that's a good question..Can you QT a seahorse in copper? I feel like they might be too sensitive..
My partner used to have seahorses that would spawn for her, but we never really talked about how keeping them works.

 

[Mick51]

CH]

 

[Mick51]

I had these guys for about 6 months and they were captive bred fed at least 3 times a day good environment pretty much just them and after about 6 months 1 died why no idea actually looked like it was having spasms then not long after maybe loneliness it just died. Wouldn’t do them again I think their best left in the ocean. JMO

 

[Lkemja]

Hopefully you are enriching the brine shrimp nauplii before feeding for the dwarfs and the cyclops will add diversity of nutrients for them.
For the erectus, brine shrimp are NOT sufficient for long term survival unless they are adults that are also enriched. For them it would be MUCH better feeding thawed and rinsed mysis. Baby brine shrimp are not sufficient food for adult erectus as it would take a way too many of them to be of any nutrient value, even if enriched. Frozen brine do not have the needed DHA that seahorses can't manufacture themselves so not a good answer as a standard food.
Having a problem with a seahorse indicates usually that your husbandry protocols are insufficient for what you have in the tank. In my personal experience over the last 18 yrs, I've found that for me, 10% water changes are not NEAR enough to keep water from slowly degrading over time and ending up allowing nasty bacterial expansion which then affects the seahorses. The seahorse with the weakest immune system will be the first to show the signs, but it can then spread to the remaining inhabitants if conditions are not rectified.
It took me many years to find that my seahorses are much healthier and have stronger immunity levels now that I feed four times a day, but only as much as they can eat in about 10-12 minutes.

they do have frozen mysis. i couldnt remeber the name. grr. i have a 15g tank. times i do up to 15% i have fry in the tank so im afraid to do more changes.

 

[Lkemja]

I had these guys for about 6 months and they were captive bred fed at least 3 times a day good environment pretty much just them and after about 6 months 1 died why no idea actually looked like it was having spasms then not long after maybe loneliness it just died. Wouldn’t do them again I think their best left in the ocean. JMO

aww sorry you lost one. i would be heart broken. thats why im hoping i can help it if its sick.

 

[rayjay]

I'm sorry, but really you have taken on a task that is almost certain to fail. Mixing dwarfs with standards, and all in a tank that is only HALF the size recommended as minimum for just ONE PAIR of standards, coupled with an insufficient feeding regimen and insufficient water changes.
Even the mixing of dwarfs with the erectus can be a possible problem as one may not be able to tolerate pathogens the other brings new to it.
Dwarf tanks work best when you can have high density feeding proportionate to the number of dwarfs. Most dwarf tanks fall into the 2-5g range. I had no problem with up to around 50 dwarfs in my 5g tank.
The standards NEED large volume homes due to their propensity to getting bacterial infections internal and external. It's possible for some to succeed with smaller tanks but it means extreme husbandry and water changes/quantities compared to an already extreme protocol when compared to a normal marine tank. I would not recommend it for someone without a lot of seahorse keeping experience.
I would start off with an extreme water change, like 90%, matching salinity, temperature and pH of existing tank water and set up a hospital tank so that if the condition of the seahorse worsens you can immediately transfer it for treatment.

 

[Mick51]

I'm sorry, but really you have taken on a task that is almost certain to fail. Mixing dwarfs with standards, and all in a tank that is only HALF the size recommended as minimum for just ONE PAIR of standards, coupled with an insufficient feeding regimen and insufficient water changes.
Even the mixing of dwarfs with the erectus can be a possible problem as one may not be able to tolerate pathogens the other brings new to it.
Dwarf tanks work best when you can have high density feeding proportionate to the number of dwarfs. Most dwarf tanks fall into the 2-5g range. I had no problem with up to around 50 dwarfs in my 5g tank.
The standards NEED large volume homes due to their propensity to getting bacterial infections internal and external. It's possible for some to succeed with smaller tanks but it means extreme husbandry and water changes/quantities compared to an already extreme protocol when compared to a normal marine tank. I would not recommend it for someone without a lot of seahorse keeping experience.
I would start off with an extreme water change, like 90%, matching salinity, temperature and pH of existing tank water and set up a hospital tank so that if the condition of the seahorse worsens you can immediately transfer it for treatment.

Totally agree with you on this mine were in a 90 with a jaw fish, gobie, lots of gorgonians and things they could attach to but still 6 months is all I got, sad to watch something so cool die, why I would never do them again

 

[Lkemja]

I'm sorry, but really you have taken on a task that is almost certain to fail. Mixing dwarfs with standards, and all in a tank that is only HALF the size recommended as minimum for just ONE PAIR of standards, coupled with an insufficient feeding regimen and insufficient water changes.
Even the mixing of dwarfs with the erectus can be a possible problem as one may not be able to tolerate pathogens the other brings new to it.
Dwarf tanks work best when you can have high density feeding proportionate to the number of dwarfs. Most dwarf tanks fall into the 2-5g range. I had no problem with up to around 50 dwarfs in my 5g tank.
The standards NEED large volume homes due to their propensity to getting bacterial infections internal and external. It's possible for some to succeed with smaller tanks but it means extreme husbandry and water changes/quantities compared to an already extreme protocol when compared to a normal marine tank. I would not recommend it for someone without a lot of seahorse keeping experience.
I would start off with an extreme water change, like 90%, matching salinity, temperature and pH of existing tank water and set up a hospital tank so that if the condition of the seahorse worsens you can immediately transfer it for treatment.

So you think I should go ahead and try transfer to another tank in the mean time? my husband says that she is still laying down gets up swims around and lays down again. There anything I need to urgently by at the pet store right now

 

[Lkemja]

This us nugget now.

 

[ThePurple12]

Seems like you could try a 10 minute freshwater dip, could be parasites.

 

[Lkemja]

Do I get wayer from my fresh water tank? Since seahorse belongs in salt water, won't it kill her if I dip her in fresh water? Sorry dumb quest

 

[ThePurple12]

I don’t think it really matters where you get it as long as it’s clean. Try to match the pH level and temperature of the freshwater with your seahorse tank‘s water. And no, it won’t kill her!

The scratching really sounds like parasites, and freshwater dips will kill parasites but not the seahorse.

 

[NashobaTek]

Just make sure to dechlorinate the water first. Chlorine will kill them.

Grats on the baby's!

 

[Lkemja]

I don’t think it really matters where you get it as long as it’s clean. Try to match the pH level and temperature of the freshwater with your seahorse tank‘s water. And no, it won’t kill her!

The scratching really sounds like parasites, and freshwater dips will kill parasites but not the seahorse.

Thank you guys so much for all your input. I will do that as soon as I get home so I can keep close eye on her. Should I do the other one too in case?