Ahhhhhh! Disaster!

[Crevalle]

Has anyone seen O. dofleini for sale in the past? Forgive me if I'm being naive, but my wife and I are going to be moving to California in about a year, and I'd like to set up a huge, dedicated O. dofleini tank at that time. Now, assuming I can find one somehow, is this feasible? I know how large they get, but I'm wondering if a 300g cube tank is large enough.

If I cannot find one to purchase, is it possible to find one via scuba diving? Thanks--just looking for more info.

 

[Colin]

They can be found for sale but i think that their sale is mostly restricted to sea life centers, public displays etc etc and i have to agree with that. I dont think even 300gals would let them get near full size.

if you were to get one I'd have to say go for about a minimum of a 6 foot cube which would be approx 1500 gals remember that (Enteroctopus) dofleni can get HUGE

I think from memory prices for juvs started at 600 - 800???

 

[Colin]

.. and you would need a serious chiller/filter

 

[joel_ang]

A pretty big chiller at that. Kepp in mind that on average their armtip to armtip can be 4 to 5 metres and that is very big. Don't forget their feeding, you gotta put quite alot of stuff in them to make them grow so big.

 

[Crevalle]

Thanks for the info. Can anyone recommend further reading material?

 

[Colin]

I'd say to just do a Google searh and there will be quite a few sites with info on their husbandry and enrichment, think of all the public aquariums with displays...

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=giant+pacific+octopus+husbandry

 

[Nancy]

I believe I have seen GPOs for sale somewhere about a year ago, but also, there is lots of diving activity in the area and I believe you could find one.

I was looking at an adult GPO just about a month ago. It's body is a little bigger than a basketball.

It would be nice to get one as a baby and raise it. They have a longer lifespan than bimacs, so you wold have longer to build a relationship.

Nancy

 

[Crevalle]

Nancy--you read my mind perfectly.

 

[joel_ang]

Lifespan up to 4 or 5 years I've heard. With a big enough tank I guess you could swim with it ( And make money out of that too ).

 

[Colin]

It is something that I will try to do one day but only once i have a bigger (much bigger) place to stay and with concrete floors!!!

 

[joel_ang]

I'll put that on my wish list. But we'll need a damn lot of acrylic :?

 

[Colin]

Just remember who your friend is when you need someone to fly across and build it for you!!!!!!

 

[Burstsovenergy24]

So how big would the tank have to be for a GPO? 30 by 10 feet or so?

 

[corw314]

Are you aware of anyone who's ever kept one other than an aquarium?

Someone on this site wanted to catch a baby recently and release it when it got too big.

Interesting!! Guess I would need to win the lottery to own one of them!!

Carol

 

[Nancy]

I don't think the GPO tank would have to be as large as you imagine. I recently saw one in a tank about 6 ft high, 5 ft wide, and 3 ft deep.
I'll see whether I can get more info.

Nancy