True. 3 days has been the longest.
So Casper wanted to get out tonight. I was petting the dog and cat wile sitting on the floor right in front of the tank. Casper was right in front and saw me petting the dog and cat. So I lifted the lid to try and pet/scratch her and she tried to get out. Took me a bit to make sure all arms were in before I closed the top. She would not leave the top for about 10 mins and kept squirting water out of the tank. Prob 15 times. I put a shrimp in on the other end and she could care less. So I grabbed the magfloat and moved it around. This got her attention and she went after it right away. She took it and went into her rock like normal.
My first Vulgaris tried to get out a few times and did 2 times
Just went and looked and there is a very tip missing from one of her arms. She seems very cranky.
My top is 1x2" frame with 1/4" cast net material stapled so there is no way to get through. Her eyes are as big or bigger then the netting. I looked very close to see is I could find the tip in the top or anywhere else. God I sure hope she is not eating them as I have heard of before.
My first Vulgaris tried to get out a few times and did 2 times
Just went and looked and there is a very tip missing from one of her arms. She seems very cranky.
My top is 1x2" frame with 1/4" cast net material stapled so there is no way to get through. Her eyes are as big or bigger then the netting. I looked very close to see is I could find the tip in the top or anywhere else. God I sure hope she is not eating them as I have heard of before.
Also I know its kind of common for octos to loose suckers but i count 6 floating in the water column. with the 1/4 - 1/2" tip missing and the suckers floating around I am a bit freaked out.
Loose suckers or thin, skin like disks with a hole in the center? They don't shed their suckers but do shed the sucker lining. Sometimes it looks like snow. One O. briareus, KaySoh (videos linked), would regularly use the Koralia to assist in shedding. Fortunately, she performed this using the suction around the cover and not by putting her arm into the front where the impeller might cause damage (now I cover them with a media net). I would look for something that Casper could be getting into that is sharp. I've only seen self cannibalism once and that was after skin damage (aging octo partially drying out after an unnoticed escape). Check your water parameters, especially Ph to be sure something is not irritating the skin. If there is no further damage in the next couple of days I would suspect something in the tank.
skin like disks about the size of suckers. I will look it over close tomorrow and do water tests.
Quick update. Casper is doing great. Growing very fast. I got some large legos and stack several with shrimp hid inside. Funny to watch her trying to drag them to the bottom because there is so much air in them. I leave several in the tank and I find her playing with them often. When ever I reconnect the Magfloat she waits until I leave then removes the magfloat and the one on the outside falls on the floor and scares me. When I use a paper towel to clean the outside of the glass she chases the paper towel. I am very much enjoying her and I want to make sure she is living a happy healthy life
So this has happened 2 times now. Casper is at the top and when me or my GF is near the tank Casper shoots water out at us. when she does this she does it many times in a row. She gets water 15' away from the tank and gets it all over the wall. Now I know I could put glass on the top but I do like the top being open for better gas exchange and cooling. The water spray is not a big deal to me but want to know if anyone else has dealt with this
I've had several that have shot water at me (no question about the at part) but not on a regular basis (I do keep a solid cover (with small holes) over the tank(s). It is not uncommon but the interpretation runs anywhere from showing dislike to play.
My opinion on octopus activities and their meanings is that they can all show the same/similar physical traits/actions but the meaning of the actions is individualized. My hunch stems from the fact that they are not social so they don't learn controlled action from peers. This is my personal explanation of why we can never agree on what a color changes or body changes mean. It is simply a hunch and I am not sure how you would go about experimenting to prove it.
My opinion on octopus activities and their meanings is that they can all show the same/similar physical traits/actions but the meaning of the actions is individualized. My hunch stems from the fact that they are not social so they don't learn controlled action from peers. This is my personal explanation of why we can never agree on what a color changes or body changes mean. It is simply a hunch and I am not sure how you would go about experimenting to prove it.
Thanks D. Next time I am going to vid it. I just bought a vid cam that can run constant and I can stream it. I have not seen water on the floor when I come home so I think it does have something to do with a person being there.
The water squirting/spitting I think its about being hungry or wanting attention. Its gotten to be a game and the moment I get home she moves fast to the top and starts wile I am thawing shrimp. Last night I had live shrimp which she could care less about. The floor and walls where pretty wet "Maybe a quart" I had put 2 live shrimp in and she was still doing it. Got so bad that I grabbed a towel and put it over the tank and she stopped right away. Never once did she squirt the towel. then went and hunted the shrimp. I am getting plexy glass tonight. But I am not going to attach it yet. I want to experiment with any kind of lid.
She still likes the legos but still her fav is the magfloat. Its become more of a game. Used to be she would take it into her den. Now she takes it and before she heads into the rock she lets it go and waits for me to get it and put it back on the glass. then she comes and gets it again. I kind of feel like I am the dog in this relationship. I have to fetch the magfloat. I know that octos are solitary creatures but it sure seems like she really likes to interact with me. Could be my own mind making this up but I don't think so. She also likes to hunt the paper towel when I clean the glass "I have to do this often because of the squirting" On Christmas My GFs mother was over and the best way to get Casper to come to the glass is to clean it.
Like D said about littlebit, Casper is not a fan of me cleaning the tank and attacks everything I use to clean with. I have to get crabs for her if I want to do a good cleaning to keep her busy.
She still likes the legos but still her fav is the magfloat. Its become more of a game. Used to be she would take it into her den. Now she takes it and before she heads into the rock she lets it go and waits for me to get it and put it back on the glass. then she comes and gets it again. I kind of feel like I am the dog in this relationship. I have to fetch the magfloat. I know that octos are solitary creatures but it sure seems like she really likes to interact with me. Could be my own mind making this up but I don't think so. She also likes to hunt the paper towel when I clean the glass "I have to do this often because of the squirting" On Christmas My GFs mother was over and the best way to get Casper to come to the glass is to clean it.
Like D said about littlebit, Casper is not a fan of me cleaning the tank and attacks everything I use to clean with. I have to get crabs for her if I want to do a good cleaning to keep her busy.
To encourage at least some gas exchange, we used a peg board as a template, marked the hole positions on the protective sheeting and then drilled holes in the plexiglass doors but not where we place the light. You will want a slightly larger drill bit since the drilling melts the plexiglass (experiment if you have an scrap). Making them close to the size of a thick bamboo skewer is helpful for cleaning. We used an all silicone piano type hinge to make doors and supported the doors from underneath with thinner plexi (this also compensated for the kerf so we could use the cut out). Additionally, we glued (do use the proper acrylic glue - maybe cheaper elsewhere, link is for example. Anything else will separate over time with the saltwater) 1/2 inch square bars along the width to help keep the top from warping (I wish we had added two more - the water temp differences between the water side and the top cause warping, even with thick acrylic) but the weights I keep on the doors minimizes any serious problem. Here is the top we made for our larger tank but check out the Tank Buildouts thread for links to other ideas. BE SURE TO SAND ALL EDGES! It does not take long and will avoid adding blood (yours) and octo arm pieces to the tank.
Thanks D. Great info
Is there such a thing as over feeding Casper? I ask because of a couple stories I have. Over the last month or so Casper comes to the top and squirts water the moment I come in the door. Kind of like how a dog greats you but Casper makes a mess. It has become very aparent that when she does it she is hungry. It has gone from 1 frozen shrimp a day or live one to 4 to keep her happy and she is growing very fast. "I will post some pics" She is reaching about 26" now tip to tip. I am sure the amount of food is helping her grow which I am happy about. Last Sunday me and the GF went to get shrimp and crabs. Got to the bait store and no crabs. Also out of reg shrimp and only had selects "Larger shrimp" I asked for 3 dozen. The guy did not put that much water in the bucket "My mistake for not looking" We left and went down to the beach to try and find some crabs but the tide was high. Took us maybe 45 min to get home and by the time we did the shrimp looked like they were all going to die. Now I wanted to put 6 or so live shrimp in Caspers tank so she could eat when ever she liked and maybe not spit water the next day but because of the shape I used a net and scoped about 9 very large shrimp that were half dead into her tank. In a split sec she grabed 8 of the 9 and went to her cave. She looked like a water balloon. I revived all but just a couple in another tank I use to hold food for her. About 3 hours later I was looking at her and she came up to me and spit out the shells of about 5 shrimp and 3 half eaten shrimp. I did nothing and by the next day the 3 half eaten and the 1 live one was gone. SHE IS A PIG Lol. She did not squirt water at me until tuesday night. Now that the shrimp are lively and she has to hunt them I am putting 4 big shrimp in a day and they are always gone the next day.
Now with salt water fish I know a hungry fish is a healthy fish and over feeding is not good for most. Of course it also makes a lot of waist in the tank but with Casper I am not worried as I am doing 30% at least every week and more like every 5 days.
Oh and D tell your husband I am going to need a bigger boat again
Now with salt water fish I know a hungry fish is a healthy fish and over feeding is not good for most. Of course it also makes a lot of waist in the tank but with Casper I am not worried as I am doing 30% at least every week and more like every 5 days.
Oh and D tell your husband I am going to need a bigger boat again
I really don't believe they will overeat since everyone has observed leftovers at some point in the captivity. I have always fed daily (fasting one day with some but not with others) in whatever amount the octo would eat. There are a number of experienced keepers who believe feeding every other or every third day is best (but still, as much as they would eat). I did go to feeding every other day as they have gotten older and were not interested in food (usually this would start with eating less daily). The one big difference in the two methods was warm vs cold water species being fed but I don't know if this makes a difference. Feeding either way, the animals lived a "normal" but not extended life span so I try to mention both methods when someone asks how much to feed.
I would expect that feeding live would result in higher quantities than feeding dead since there is energy expended in the hunt but since the tank is much smaller than the ocean, perhaps the difference is minimal at best.
Pictures requested!
Edit: I see you were posting along side me and knew you were going to get the photo request
I would expect that feeding live would result in higher quantities than feeding dead since there is energy expended in the hunt but since the tank is much smaller than the ocean, perhaps the difference is minimal at best.
Pictures requested!
Edit: I see you were posting along side me and knew you were going to get the photo request
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