New octo...

aw2

aw2

Active Member
Thanks to RWrestler, a new member here, I've become the proud new papa of my second baby Octopus. I'm not sure what kind he is, as he's still too shy to come out, but I believe it's a Bimac.
Sorry for the blurry pics...I'm usually very demanding of my picture taking skills, but these came out a little blurry. I still wanted to share though.
First one is the little guys new home. A 12gal. JBJ Nano that I set up in my living room, at the end of the couch.



I'll get more pics, within the next few days, once he becomes more comfortable.
 
rswrestler

rswrestler

Member
WOOHOOO!!!!! I'm so happy that you could give him a better home than I could! Just make sure you nail that lid shut! Looking forward to more pics. Again, thank you for your hospitality. I feel pretty lucky that I was able to see your dragon and whitemouth up close!
 
aw2

aw2

Active Member
Hey...it was good to meet you and Jamie. Any time you guys want to come out, you're more than welcome. Next time we'll grab some dinner and a few beers.
Thanks again! I hope the zoos work out really well for you.
 
ams153

ams153

Active Member
thats awsome ive been wanting to set-up a little octopuse tank i was thinking like a 30g one in like 2ish months b/c im still taking the blow for my shark tank with the money.. how do you like your new guy.. how big is he? how big of a tank are you planning to put him in? im ery interested in these guys and do plan to get one when i can
 
aw2

aw2

Active Member
Originally Posted by ams153
how do you like your new guy.. how big is he? how big of a tank are you planning to put him in? im ery interested in these guys and do plan to get one when i can
I've been a big fan of octos for years and years. I go by my own advice of not owning one until you're an experianced aquarist. These creatures are certainly not for the beginner or even moderatly experianced hobbiest. I ordered an aqua-cultered specimen months ago, from another online site. I planned for months, in preparation for his arrival.
I tore down my nano cube and modified it to be escape proof. I read and researched every bit of info I could on them.
Even as carefully as I planned, mine still got out. I used a 5" - 6" piece of duct tape to keep the Nano lid closed. What I didnt take into account was my first little guy sticking the tip of his arm through the crack and getting the duct tape wet...can you believe that? He'd stick his arm through the crack, get the tape wet and then stick his arm back in the water and then back through the crack, wetting the tape. Eventually, he worked the tape lose and climbed out.
When people tell you these things are intelligent, they're NOT kidding.
Now, to answer your questions. The one I got tonight, from RSWrestler is aprox. 3" - 4" arm tip to arm tip. He's in the previous home of my other octo...the 12 gal. nano. And, if he's a Bimac, which I think he is, they need a minimum of 55gal - 75gal, once fully grown (aprox. 20" - 24" arm tip to arm tip).
I always feed live foods, mainly because I like watching him solve the problem of getting the hermit or the snail out of it's shell.
I also keep various "toys" in the tank to play with. Legos, ping pong balls, live rock rubble, etc.
 
pasafire

pasafire

Member
I find these very interesting creatures, but read they are massive escape artists and hard to take care of!!! Do you have others, how big do they get?
 
unleashed

unleashed

Active Member
OMG AW i was sitting right in front of it yest? I didnt even notice that tank lol.or did you get it after I left?too funny.guess I was a little out of the loop after the long drive.but I tell ya I was so happy to get back to mich where its warmer lol - 30 degrees is warm lol. I cant beieve I didnt see it now im bummed
 
aw2

aw2

Active Member
Originally Posted by unleashed
OMG AW i was sitting right in front of it yest? I didnt even notice that tank lol.or did you get it after I left?too funny.guess I was a little out of the loop after the long drive.but I tell ya I was so happy to get back to mich where its warmer lol - 30 degrees is warm lol. I cant beieve I didnt see it now im bummed


No, no...the tank wasnt there when you guys were here. lol
I set it up last night, getting ready for the little guy to arrive today. Stayed up until 4am, this morning, getting everything ready.
Has the 300 thawed out yet?
 
ams153

ams153

Active Member
well im thinking about getting one but ill do my research and decide then i dont normally get fish before researching as much as possible so ill be sure not to jump into this lightly
 
unleashed

unleashed

Active Member
Originally Posted by AW2
No, no...the tank wasnt there when you guys were here. lol
I set it up last night, getting ready for the little guy to arrive today. Stayed up until 4am, this morning, getting everything ready.
Has the 300 thawed out yet?
lol ok no wonder i ddint see it ,but that is def your couch lol.yep all thawed out I got all the water,goop and leaves out of it today.mick waited until the ice melted just enough to pull the ice out by hand in 2 huge sheets.while i vacumed out the tank he fixed the deck rails lol.I didnt realize the extent of its size until we got it into the house this things as big as my couch.we cant wait to get it all up and stocked.but we have to get everything just pefect on it before we can.I still have to scrub out the overflows and the rest of it but its looking better every time I do a little to it.we will def have to hook up again this summer we all had a very good time.oh and thank your helpful neighbors for me again with out their help I dont know how we would have managed getting the tank loaded..if you have instant messenger also and ever feel like shooting the breeze just drop me a line.im usually up all nite until I drop from boredome lol
 
psusocr1

psusocr1

Active Member
aw2
nice octo, they have always got my interest. i love when they do stimulating excersizes with them such as putting there food in a closed jar with a screw on lid. Its amazing how they figure it out and then go intot he jar and eat there food!!
 
mitzel

mitzel

Active Member
OOOO I'm so very jelious . I'm planning an octo tank but as you said I'm doing the research first. I don't want to jump in to it and regrete it .
 
hagfish

hagfish

Active Member
Originally Posted by mitzel
Well I don't know about everybody else but I'm dying for more pictures! ***)
Yes, please more pictures! :happyfish
Are there any that can stay in that small a tank permanently? What have you done to prevent escape?
 
aw2

aw2

Active Member
Originally Posted by hagfish
Are there any that can stay in that small a tank permanently? What have you done to prevent escape?
There really arent any species that are small enough to be kept in that size tank permanently The Dwarf Octo, which is extremely hard to come by, even needs aprox. a 30gal. tank. When wholesalers and LFS sell octos, they dont take the time to find out what species it is and just slap a "common octopus" label on the tank. You could get anything from a Dwarf, or you end up with something like O. Vulgaris which gets quite large.
The little guy finally moved, last night. I tried feeding him, but he wanted to part of it. I kept the lights out all day yesterday and when I turned them on last night, he was gone from his little hole. So, I searched around for him for a little while, but no such luck and I eventually went to bed.
When I find out where he's staying now, I'll see if I can get some more pics.
I have pics of the tank modifications, around here somewhere. Let me look around and try to find them.
 
yimmy

yimmy

Active Member
I have a question...I don't even have a tank yet and am not considering an octo but I have a few questions of curiosity which you can expect from a 14 year old...
What is a recommended size of tank for these long term.
Do they have to be in a tank by themself?
and last but not least if they get out of the tank how long do they have until they will die?
Thanks
Jimmy
 
aw2

aw2

Active Member
Originally Posted by RSWrestler
He didn't find his way out of the tank, did he?

No, no...he's in there somewhere. There was no possible way he got out.
I have so much rockwork in there, with alot of areas blocked off where I cant see...he's there, somewhere.
He did eat though...I found an empty hermit shell today, so he had a little midnight snack.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top