Greetings from Hudson Valley NY

Radioactive

Cuttlefish
Registered
Joined
Oct 18, 2012
Messages
27
Hi Tonmo,

Just wanted to say hello and introduce myself. I am in the process of building a 50g breeder for a future Octo. I have been keeping fresh and marine fish and inverts on and off for about 20 years. My current 29g was going to be for a single fumanchu lionfish but then I saw an octo at my LFS. He is by far the cooloest thing I have ever seen in this hobby . Once he changed color I had to have one. Since then I have been researching and feel I am ready to make my first attempt at keeping an Octopus.

The LFS has him as a pacific red octopus . They are asking $100 and he is very small. Usually when I go in to look at him his eyes seems shut. The guy who works there says he hasnt eaten any damsels they put in but will jump all over any crab. He also said he seems more active when he first opens the shop and lights have been off. I would say he is no bigger then my hand. This guy will probobly be gone by the time im ready for him.

My plan is to take everything I currently have in my 29g which is still cycling and move it to the 50. I will then use my 29g for a sump. I have 50 lbs base dry rock and 7 lbs live seeding it. Anyhow I just wanted to say hello and I will post more as I get closer to setting up the 50.
 
Definately!! If there is one thing I learned in this hobby its nothing good happens fast. Luckilly A friend also bought a 50 and we are going through this together. He also wants to house an Octopus and we plan on buying everything together and splitting the costs. For the 50g I was thinking about cycling with damsels but dont want to stress my future octo with them. I know they will most likely become food eventually but I remember reading someone had one that wouldnt eat because a damsel was present. When the damsel was removed (this isnt easy) the octo acclimated to his new environment much easier. I guess my question is if I have 60lbs of rock and tons of hiding room does anyone see this as an issue if I do cycle with them? Thanks for any feedback you can provide.
 
:welcome: to TONMO

I wouldnt cycle with the damsel for exactly the reasons you mentioned. Fish are not really needed to cycle the thank. Some people have done it simply by putting dead shrimp in their tank. I think whatever Crabs, a bunch hermit crabs, a Brittle starfish and shrimp if you can get them, would work great. just feed everything heavily in the beginning to build up the bacteria. when the tank is ready for the octo it will have plenty of snacks and cleanup crew.
 
Thanks I think I just needed to hear someone else say it. I actually kick started my cycle last week by putting in 2 dead clams. They were from Hikari that I used to feed to my puffer. My ammonia is sitting at about 2.5-3 ppm but my wife is getting sick of looking at 2 empty tanks. I also have a 10g cycling. I dont know of any crabs,shrimp, or snails that can withstand a startup cycle but if anyone knows otherwise please let me know. Should I post somewhere else to start a build thread and for my questions or concerns? Thanks again
 
Radioactive
Again (I posted on you tank thread first), welcome to TONMO. I always like to recommend that new members edit their profiles and include something identifiable about their location. This helps a lot in answering questions as well as setting up our "mini" TONMOcons as members travel.

If the animal is an O. rubescens (common name Pacific Red Octopus), then it would need a chiller and water temperatures below 60 degrees. I have always wanted to keep one but don't like cold tanks. The other possibility (assuming the location is correct) is one you will not have space for :sagrin:. The Giant Pacific Octopus (supposedly hard to distinguish between a ruby when small but, having kept neither I don't know how difficult this really is) gets too large for anything but the extreme hobbyist and public aquariums. This one is a definite pass for your first octopus so enjoy your tank build out.
 
Just want to say hi & welcome aboard, Radioactive! Good luck with your build; I look forward to seeing your pics, & reading of your experience...
 
Welcome Radioactive! Used to live in Poughquag -- Hudson Valley is very nice this time of year! If you get near Barton Orchards pick up an apple pie for me :smile:

:coffee:
 

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