Hi,

Welcome to the Octopus Q&A Forum, a place where you can ask questions and join discussions about octopus care fundamentals.

If you are having a problem with an octopus or its tank, it is helpful to post as much information as you can. It would be very useful to provide us with your tank size and its parameters. Especially... pH, Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, temperature, salinity, tank mates and the age of the tank. Anything else would also be great!

Please enter your tank and your octo in our Tank Owners' Database (Click on the Features button above) - it's easy to do and it helps us answer your questions.

Click on the Articles button above and choose Ceph Care to access our many articles including
- Keeping Cephalopods in Captivity
- Before You Buy a Cuttlefish
- Checklist: Things to Think about before Buying an Octopus.

For people just beginning we recommond that you read the Equipment List and the Checklist.

Please post photos and reports of your octopus on the Journals and Photos Forum.

Don't forget to take advantage of the Seach capability for finding previous questions and answers on topics that interest you.

Nice to have you with us,

Nancy and Colin

Wow Nancy, surprised that there was never any relies to this thread until now! Huh! Anyway, I was wondering if iodine is toxic to octopus? I have a small fliosus in a 30gal cube that has 2 sea anenomae, so live corals and mushroom polyps as well. He has co-inhabitated this mini reef tank for 4 months now, living in harmony with a coral banded shrimp, 4 damsels and a clownfish!

Hi and welcome to the site!

I don't believe iodine is toxic to octopuses - it's found in natural seawater.

Do you ever have trouble with the anemones stinging the octopus? I know octopuses live on reefs where anemones are found, but they have much less room to avoid them in a small tank. And damsels often make life miserable for an octopus, attacking the eyes. You're fortunate that you still have your clownfish, but somehow I neve thought a coral banded shrimp would be so tasty.

Sometimes you get such cohabitation - but it can also end suddenly, even though a moment before everyone was getting along. But not always. It helps to keep your octopus well fed.

Please post some photos of your tank and octopus on our Journals and Photos forum. We'd be interested in seeing them.

Nancy

Iodine can be toxic in high levels but should be fine unless you add a lot. I hope you are testing for it; you shouldn't add anything you aren't testing for. Also, if the only "coral" in the tank is anemones, I doubt an iodine supplement is needed.

so I wasnt sure where the best place to post my introduction was so I decided that this was it since I have a question too. My name is Alexander and I live in Boise Idaho. I do not have an octopus.... yet. I really want a bimac and have been reading tons on the forum for the last 6 months or so. The reason why I have held out so long is for 2 things. 1. keeping an animal is something i respect and dont want to just jump into something like this and fail because I dont know what im doing due to lack of knowledge. its simply not fair to the animal. 2. because im trying to buy a house within the next 8 months or so and I have been unsure on how likely it is to move an octopus tank across town and keeping the octopus alive. I know it's simple, yet time consuming with a reef tank as long as your prepared, I did it with my 180 gallon. It took forever but it got done. I just am not sure how possible it is with an octopus so I thought this was a great place to ask about personal experiences with it. I have an 80 gallon that is totally ready for an octopus, been set up for about 8 months now as a reef tank. If its possible to move a bimac across town I will probably do it sooner than later. If not or if there is a large risk involved, I will hold off. All of your input is appreciated :) I did do a search to see if I could find this info before posting but didnt find anything. Maybe I was looking in the wrong place.

:welcome: to TONMO! Just in case anyone is looking in the future, the "Introduce Yourself" forum is the preferred place, but here seems fine to me...

People have moved octos successfully, but it does stress them out... I don't think we've seen anyone report on that for a while. I bet some of the experienced folks will have some good advice...

oops haha i looked everywhere for an introduction section. I was like "does this forum not have one" I havent looked for one till today and for some reason am TOTALLY blind tonight. after you said it i looked back again and saw it. oh well. thanks for the welcome, so would you say its worth a shot or hold out?

oops haha i looked everywhere for an introduction section. I was like "does this forum not have one" I havent looked for one till today and for some reason am TOTALLY blind tonight. after you said it i looked back again and saw it. oh well. thanks for the welcome, so would you say its worth a shot or hold out?

I mostly say wait until people with more experience than me chime in, but my intuition is that if you can plan ahead to avoid having to move the octo, that's probably the safest choice.

:welcome: and a couple of thoughts... Depending on the age of the octopus, it may only live 8 months, so then it would be OK to get an octopus right now. It is stressful to move an octopus, but it can be done. I moved three cuttlefish in a 55 gallon aquarium to another room. They did get stressed out, but they survived the move... If your octopus is still alive in 8 months, it will be approaching the end of its life, and moving it (and stressing it), may shorten its life.

Hi!
some weeks ago I've asked about octopus parassites.
My octo has always the same strange hurts on the head and between the eys. I'm sending you the pictures of them. Now in the hurt in the head there's a cut too.
what do you think it could be the cause?
:confused:

Any trauma to the flesh can cause the areas damaged to lose their color changing ability. If there are new sores developing make sure your octopus isn't hurting itself on anything in your tank, or tumbling rocks over on itself. Make sure you keep as close to perfect water parameters as you can. If it's an open sore it may get infected and unfortunately there's not a whole lot known about treating cephs for that yet.

So if it's really that my octo hits on the tank and the rock: what can I do to prevent these hits?

Hey guys,
I am looking at getting a Bimac and I want to know if I should buy a chiller?

To keep your tank in the mid 60's I would think it's a good idea in Virginia.

Thanks, Can you recomend one for an 80 gallon? What is a reliable brand that will not cost me 500 ?

Hello, I set up everything with the live rock. I think I went a little crazy on the live rock. I also bought a refugium and wet dry filter with a powerskimmer for a 200 gallon ( I have an 80). Once again, I think I went a little crazy with that as well. I do not plan on adding my octo until early September. Keeping in mind I just set up the live rock yesterday, when is it okay to add hermit crabs? other suggestions? Should I add pods? I will post a pic of my set up later. I have not received the refugium/filter/skimmer yet. I am filtering the water with a canaster right now.

Hello, I set up everything with the live rock. I think I went a little crazy on the live rock. I also bought a refugium and wet dry filter with a powerskimmer for a 200 gallon ( I have an 80). Once again, I think I went a little crazy with that as well. I do not plan on adding my octo until early September. Keeping in mind I just set up the live rock yesterday, when is it okay to add hermit crabs? other suggestions? Should I add pods? I will post a pic of my set up later. I have not received the refugium/filter/skimmer yet. I am filtering the water with a canaster right now.

Never can have too much filtration for a ceph tank! :smile:

You can probably add hermits and what not in 4-6 weeks safely. I would suggest serpent or brittle stars (not green brittle stars though) and nassarius snails. The octopus won't eat the stars and the snails will hide in the sand most of the time. The hermits will all eventually become food, but until you get your octopus they'll give you something to look at and they'll help keep your sand and rock from looking gross.