seahorse-pipefish selection and care please help me

[seahorse 101]

i have a 40 gallon red sea max and want to turn it into a seahorse tank what are some good things to put in there with them and what breeds do i need to start out with.

[seahorse 101]

help

[LCP136]

The first and most important thing to do is be patient. Seahorses are very unique creatures with very specific needs. To answer your first question, the best thing to put in with them is snails, and that's about it. They do best in a species only tank. Another key thing with seahorses is that you need to buy captive bred seahorses, from Seahorse Source for example. Their tank setup is different from a reef setup. It needs to have lower flow, no fast moving or aggressive fish, as I said, preferably no fish other than the seahorses. The temperature needs to run lower, between 68 and 74 degrees. Good species to start with would be H. erectus, H. reidi, or H. kuda. Pick one and go with it. Mixing pipes and seahorses can be dangerous. Seahorses are captive bred and pipes are almost always wild caught, so they have the potential to transfer any number of diseases to seahorses who are susceptible to them. There should be less live rock than a reef. Its a sort of a lagoon/seagrass bed setup. Live macroalgae is great for them. You have to be careful to incorporate no stinging corals, bivalves like clams, anemones, etc.

The most important thing is take it slow and do plenty of research. This is not one of the easier animals to keep, but it is doable if you are careful.

[sevendigitcake]

the best thing i would suggest is the seahorse and pipefish forum, there are alot of very knowledgeable people over there.

[namxas]

Do pop into the SH forum, however, LCP's post regarding mixing syngnathid species is right on, especiaslly if you're a novice SH keeper.

Also, one of the biggest mistakes SH propensity for contracting bacterial infections.

Finally, be SURE to get TRUE CB stock from a reputable breeder or hobbyist breeder.
These SH will cost a bit more, but in the end will be a lot cheaper to keep (they won't need prophylactic treatment for parasites, and will come to you happily eating frozen mysis (no weaning required). I heartily recommend getting your stock from Dan and Abby at www.seahorsesource.com.