kelloggii seahorse

[jessinator752]

a friend of mine recently purchased a pair of kelloggii seahorses and is keeping them in a 10 gal tank. does anyone have any expierance with these type of seahorses? i'm trying to find out any info on them so i can pass it on to her. do they need a skimmer going in that small tank? what kind of corals or plants go well with them? what is the best way to set up a tank for them? she said she's been trying to research them but she can't find any info online. thanks.

[erikharrison]

very little flow, especially in that small of a tank. Maybe a f/w hang on back filter?? I don't think you will need a skimmer, but you can put some softies in there for sure, and as far as plants, you could put some macro algae in there as well. They need spots to latch onto, some LFS sell them.

[jessinator752]

would gorgonians do ok in the tank? or isn't there enough flow for them?

[jkhunter]

I use a HOB filter with my seahorses stuffed with live rock rubble. You should be careful when adding live rock into the tank because you need to feed seahorses heavier than regular fish and they eat slower too. Bristle worms in your live rock begin to grow rapidly and will venture out during feeding times...which can cause problems with seahorses. If they get too close to a bristle worm while feeding, they can get some of the bristles in their snout which can cause snout rot. In a 10 gallon if she would like a skimmer...I would say a fission nano would work well, but a skimmer is not necessary. As far as corals go...anything that does not have stinging tentacles is fine (naming those to avoid is quicker...bubble coral, euphyllia, ANEMONES, sun coral). Macros are great for color and hitching posts, they also provide a home for copepods and other bugs to live in and the seahorses will snack on those. The brighter the decor is...the more color displays the seahorses will show (especially during mating).

NOTE: Watch your intakes on filters and pumps!!! If the seahorses are young their tails may go into the intakes and damage their tails!! I cover mine with fine mesh bags and secure them with rubber bands...better to be safe than sorry!

[jessinator752]

thank you everyone for the info. i am passing all this on to her. she said she has sponges around her filter to protect the seahorses.

[Headless_donkey]

Kelloggii seahorses are not the strongest. They are a hybrid breed used for many different things. They are very active, but have the tendency to get sick. They are very difficult to nurse back to health. I am with Brian. Check out seahorse.org. BTW seahorses like flow and it avoids problems in the tank. Just make sure they don't get sucked up by powerheads and such. As the seahorses get bigger they become strong swimmers.