Hi,
Although I have had fish tanks since I was a child, I am quite new to the business of octopus care. I live in Sweden and over here it is exceedingly difficult to get your hands on any specimen (or live food for that matter). So far, I have had two specimens (unknown species). The first one was almost dead when I got it from the Philippines, and I never got it to eat and consequently it died within a month or so.
Now, I have a new one. Again, the species is unknown, but I got it as a ‘reef Octopus’ (whatever that means) from a local pet shop (the first one they ever imported); in turn, they got it from Dejong Marine Life. Anyway, the specimen has a diameter of roughly 20 cm and its mantle is unusually long and slender (I have not seen anything quite like it while browsing around the Tonmo homepage). I have only seen it in daylight once, and that was when it entered the tank. Even since, it has dug itself into the bottom sediments and currently lives somewhere under the sand (there are numerous places to hide also in the tank but it seems to live under the sand)… It comes (or came rather) out at night though and I fed it live ‘red-clawed crabs’ (Perisesarma bidens) – the only live food that I could get my hands on. Everything was going well for the first few weeks; it ate every night or every second night. Then, from New Year’s Eve, it is nowhere to be seen anymore. It does not come out and it does not feed… I assume that the hope is lost for this individual, but I am perplexed by the sudden and unexpected events for the worse… What happened?
I was really keen on keeping the tank clean, and picked up the remains of the crabs every day. I also made water changes twice a week (amounting to totally 20 % of the water volume), and the water quality seemed (and seems) fine (no high nitrates, ammonium or cupper levels).
Is there any way to get it going again (assuming that it is not already dead)? It is exceedingly hard to get any octopuses in Sweden and even harder to get your hands on high quality food… Octopuses have always been my favorite animals, and there is really no one to talk to about this matter in Sweden… Can anybody help me please!
Many thanks in advance!
Cheers, Johan
Although I have had fish tanks since I was a child, I am quite new to the business of octopus care. I live in Sweden and over here it is exceedingly difficult to get your hands on any specimen (or live food for that matter). So far, I have had two specimens (unknown species). The first one was almost dead when I got it from the Philippines, and I never got it to eat and consequently it died within a month or so.
Now, I have a new one. Again, the species is unknown, but I got it as a ‘reef Octopus’ (whatever that means) from a local pet shop (the first one they ever imported); in turn, they got it from Dejong Marine Life. Anyway, the specimen has a diameter of roughly 20 cm and its mantle is unusually long and slender (I have not seen anything quite like it while browsing around the Tonmo homepage). I have only seen it in daylight once, and that was when it entered the tank. Even since, it has dug itself into the bottom sediments and currently lives somewhere under the sand (there are numerous places to hide also in the tank but it seems to live under the sand)… It comes (or came rather) out at night though and I fed it live ‘red-clawed crabs’ (Perisesarma bidens) – the only live food that I could get my hands on. Everything was going well for the first few weeks; it ate every night or every second night. Then, from New Year’s Eve, it is nowhere to be seen anymore. It does not come out and it does not feed… I assume that the hope is lost for this individual, but I am perplexed by the sudden and unexpected events for the worse… What happened?
I was really keen on keeping the tank clean, and picked up the remains of the crabs every day. I also made water changes twice a week (amounting to totally 20 % of the water volume), and the water quality seemed (and seems) fine (no high nitrates, ammonium or cupper levels).
Is there any way to get it going again (assuming that it is not already dead)? It is exceedingly hard to get any octopuses in Sweden and even harder to get your hands on high quality food… Octopuses have always been my favorite animals, and there is really no one to talk to about this matter in Sweden… Can anybody help me please!
Many thanks in advance!
Cheers, Johan