can i have a shark?

nissan577

Active Member
i have a 30 gallon thats empty with only 1 damsel. and its been like that for like a couple of months now. but a couple days ago my friend said hes gonna give me a shark egg for free. and i was wondering if i would be able to have it and grow it in the tank?
 

nissan577

Active Member
lol ok then what do u peeps recomend for me to have in that tank? its pretty much empty just with one damsel
 

paintballer768

Active Member
I dont know where to start but if I were you, tell your friend to keep it or find another home. A 30 isnt even big enough for a yellow tang.
 

nissan577

Active Member
i know not for a yellow tang i know that. but like what should i do? should i make it a fish only tank or a reef tank or what?
 

itom37

Member
I guess you could hatch it... then give it away or sell it to an LFS. But no shark is going to fit happily in a 30 gallon for any period of time. The egg, i suspect, won't mind, assuming you've got shark-egg-hatching-quality water.
 

itom37

Member
Originally Posted by nissan577
i know not for a yellow tang i know that. but like what should i do? should i make it a fish only tank or a reef tank or what?
Get a Toby (small puffers, valentini, blue spotted, etc.) They're a lot of fun. I have one in a 29 gallon right now, and I think it's plenty of room.
 

paintballer768

Active Member
Nissan, you could do FOWLR or reef in a 30. Ive got a reef going in a 24. I know people on here who have 3 gallon and smaller picotopes for coral frags. Depends on what you want. Theres plenty of help on here for whichever you would like to do.
 

nissan577

Active Member
i know what you mean but i just called him n told him to stay with it. but i already have chromis in all my tanks. i was thinking more like aggressive fish.
 

paintballer768

Active Member
Aggressive fish are still quite limited in a tank like ours. In a 30, you might want to consider a community/reef tank because most of the small fish are timid and usually do well together. This isnt always the case but from what I notice generally speaking. It is possible to find some aggressive fish. Ill take a look and post some suggestions.
I think a school of 5 chromis would be so cool and colorful to watch but its not everyones thing.
 

krj-1168

Member
While - it's possible to hatch out the shark egg in a 30 gallon. There's so many problems with attempting to do so.
1) because of it's size - it's very hard to get a 30 gallon tank with constant virtually perfect water conditions.
2.) Shark eggs shouldn't really be attempted by a novice (to keeping sharks), since newborn shark pups often have major problems in getting them to eat for 1st time. And usually there's a very high mortality rate with newly hatched sharks.
3.) Also - if you get it to survive the first month - you will need to get it a larger tank, or a new home in only 2-3 months.
Personally I would suggest - the minimum tank size of a newborn shark - to keep it for the 1st year should be at least a 75-90 gallon tank. But a Brown Banded Bamboo (AKA Banded Cat Shark) will eventually need a tank that is at least 500 gallons(in about 4 years).
 

monkdaily

Member
man on of my LFS had 2 shark eggs for 55$ each. u could see them moving around in there and i had to walk away quickly since i only have a 55g i would love to start with an egg.
 

krj-1168

Member
man on of my LFS had 2 shark eggs for 55$ each. u could see them moving around in there and i had to walk away quickly since i only have a 55g i would love to start with an egg.
Good thing too.
IMO - Shark eggs are a complete waste of time & money. Usually only people who have experience in raising sharks can get one to survive out an egg case. They majority of people that get them - may watch the egg develop for a couple months only - to have the pup die within a month of hatching.
In the other hand for about $15-20 more - they could usually get a hatched Brown banded Bamboo - that is at least a month old (usually at least -7-9" long) and eating on it's own. These are often much better deals - and will usually leave 1st time shark keeper with a better, more rewarding experience-
Watching their pet shark grow.
 

monkdaily

Member
yeah i just think the thought of raising a shark from a pup would be so tight.....well we can all dream right one day one day
 

krj-1168

Member
yeah - we can all dream. And most us do.
For me I would love to be able keep native sharks - which for me means sharks from the Atlantic coast. But the Atlantic species - most of which are requiems which tend to be only suited for suited for aquariums with foot prints the size of small public aquariums. The only common benthic (bottom-dwelling) species - The Nurse Shark grows to monsterous size averaging about 8-10', and also needs a tank that has the footprint of small public aquarium.
So for the time being this dream - will remain just a dream.
But I still think it wise not to just jump in and do something just because you can. Especially with keeping sharks - that's a decision that need to be researched & planned brfore you even take the 1st step. And see what is practical for you to do.
 
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