Pot Bellied Seahorses

flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweatervest13 http:///t/391007/pot-bellied-seahorses/200#post_3478032
Sorry, I am a little late to the party.
You can freeze some reg water in a 1g jug or some 2L pop bottles (leave some room at the top for expansion). And presto you got a giant ice block that won't leak into your RO/DI water, that should cool it down real nice.
Thanks...that's lot easier than trying to fill plastic bags. The grandkids will be here this afternoon, they are my water change helpers. I guess I might have tore my rotator cuff lifting the 5g jugs to fill the tank. The doctor gave me a cortizone shot and want's to do an MRI to verify. I was in a hurry to fill the 90g and went to Walmart and filled my jugs for water. I brought the jugs in and had to lift them all over my head to fill the tank. I just thought my shoulder hurt because I hadn't used it in so long to lift jugs, but the pain never went away...It never hurt me before to fill my tanks, when it rains it pours.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Happy update!
I'm too ashamed of the red hair algae stuff to post pictures....
I spotted three peppermint shrimp this morning, the first I have seen them since I put them in the tank. I wasn't sure how well they would handle the cold. They will go a long way in helping with the wasted food. The peps in the 56g are worth their weight in gold.
The algae is getting under control, the snails have cleared the tank of most of the diatoms, some (I'm going to call it) red hair algae still remaines but mostly on the sand. The red botryocladia is growing all over in the tank. It isn't as red as it is in the 56g, it looks more of a rust color but it's growing and doing it's job...I harvested a pint of it this morning, the prolifera is very happy too. Tests yesterday read 0 for PO4 and NO3, I don't think, with the horses being so messy and wasted food all over, that there is a way to get a 0 reading if it were not for the macroalgae absorbing it.
It feels like this tank has been up forever, but it's only been since April 19 that I introduced the horses to the tank. The horses themselves are awesome. They are out and about all day swimming across the tank and hunting for food. I was thinking of adding a couple of catalina gobies and some firefish come the first of July. I need to see what I can do about covering the top so I can prevent the carpet surffing dartfish from committing sushi before then.
It got to 95 degrees in the house before my mother would allow the central AC to go on (my bedroom has a window unit and the 56g is always kept cool)...the 90g tank is in the living room...it did not sweat and held it's cool without a single drop in temps. I'm glad I insultated the sump and back of the tank. Something I would not have known to do without my friends on SWF...thank you!
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
LOL...I just missed conversation that's all.
I plan to add a pinkbar goby to my potbelly horse tank, and some green chromis. I really like the catalina goby but it's so tiny I'm afraid it would just be lost in the 90g tank.
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Yeah I know what you mean Flower......it's pretty boring lately :(
When do you plan on adding these new fish?
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Meowzer,
As always now since I'm retired...the first of the month.
The horses like the caulerpa (seagrass looking stuff) and spend all day in it foraging for food. It's in the front of the tank where I can watch them but the 90g seems so empty and everything is mostly on the bottom. Some mid tank swimming fish would help balance things out a bit. I have been doing some tank maintenance today. Harvesting macros, a 5g water change. I have weird hair algae...long red strands and mostly it's on the sand. I'm hoping the macros will out compete it for food eventually. It's cleared up quite a bit but it's STILL THERE...and I hate it.
Mr Limpid,
Time stands still...everyday seems just like the day before, and if it were not for my meds in a pill box that says Monday thru Sunday...LOL..I wouldn't know what day it was. I have no place to go, nothing to do, and nobody to demand anything of me. I should be happy as a little clam....the grandkids were here for two weeks, but they went home day before yesterday and now the house is so quiet.
Such is my life now....My little zoo drama....
Rodney the new parrot seems so unhappy. It has been too hot to ban the dogs to the garage so the birds can come out of their cages, so they have been cooped up. Jellybean (the bluefront amazon) doesn't seem to care, but Rodney (the cockatoo) likes his people time. When I walk past his cage he tries to grab my shirt with his little foot and pull me to him...I talk to him for a bit, and when I walk away he throws his birdfood all over in a hissy fit.
The dogs .....they go in and out all day long, that is how my mother gets her daily exercise, she always asks the dogs if they want to go out and they act like they haven't gone in three days jumping around. As soon as she lets them out into the yard and goes and sits down, they scratch at the door for her to let them in. Nothing alive has to go potty that often, I just don't understand why she keeps asking them if they want out.
 
mr. limpid

mr. limpid

Active Member
sorry to hear life is so blah. glad you have a hobby to help pass the day. My father is retired and all he does is watch sports or go food shopping, that's it. When I get to retire probably in 14 years I have a few hobbies that will keep me going, my fish plan on keeping them going as long as I can, designing and building doll houses and playing my war games. I also collect old board games which will play with the grand kids. I think the problem with people who retire (not saying you) they don't know what to do.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Limpid http:///t/391007/pot-bellied-seahorses/220#post_3479741
sorry to hear life is so blah. glad you have a hobby to help pass the day. My father is retired and all he does is watch sports or go food shopping, that's it. When I get to retire probably in 14 years I have a few hobbies that will keep me going, my fish plan on keeping them going as long as I can, designing and building doll houses and playing my war games. I also collect old board games which will play with the grand kids. I think the problem with people who retire (not saying you) they don't know what to do.
LOL...More than anything, I don't have people around me. My mother sleeps quite a bit....her exercise is letting the dogs in and out.
It isn't that we don't know what to do, but by the time you retire...... imagine that you no longer can hold onto, let alone turn a screwdriver or take the vibration of hitting a nail with the hammer because of arthritis. What could you build then? I can't go on those long walks I always did because the knees are gone. I was an artist, I used to paint in oils, and I woodburned beautiful scenes in furniture...I can hardly hold a pencil now. I used to walk a minimum of 6 miles a day, I can't walk a city block now. I used to have my own horse and now I can't even sit in a cart for a hay ride let alone a saddle because of my back. My dream of retirement, I would have all day to ride my horse and I would take my art box to the medow and paint.
It didn't happen all at once, just slowly over the years I could do less and less. I'm not really complaining, I have had a great life and I have no plans for it ending soon. I just really don't have much of anything I can do anymore. I even had to hire a lady to come vacuum and mop my floors. The grandkids left the hose out, and I will have to ask her to roll it up for me.
The first thing I purchased when I got my first paycheck was a 10g fish tank....I can't imagine my home without a fish tank. If I have to...LOL, I will hire someone to help me take care of the tanks. I have things I can do...it just takes longer. Mother is good company when shes awake. The dogs and birds are constant entertainment. and I have my fish tanks.
This little conversation has helped me ... LOL ...get over my pity party. Right now, I have to go get the critters up and fed for the day, Thanks.
 
jaodissa

jaodissa

Member
I think I fell in love with the pinkbar goby!! Too cute. I want one now.
I can mail you some more kids if you like! Mine need a good grandparent figure in their lives lol. How old are your grand kids? My children are 4 and 5. They adore all the fish though! We just bought our son a turtle too. We use to have a cockatoo named Sammi. He would dance and sing on top of his cage too cute.
Have a wonderful Friday! I have to go find some coffee before the children awake and start the day off.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jaodissa http:///t/391007/pot-bellied-seahorses/220#post_3479788
I think I fell in love with the pinkbar goby!! Too cute. I want one now.
I can mail you some more kids if you like! Mine need a good grandparent figure in their lives lol. How old are your grand kids? My children are 4 and 5. They adore all the fish though! We just bought our son a turtle too. We use to have a cockatoo named Sammi. He would dance and sing on top of his cage too cute.
Have a wonderful Friday! I have to go find some coffee before the children awake and start the day off.
I really liked the fish too, and it only gets to be about 4 inches, which is not too large, and not so tiny it would get lost in the tank. I found one for $40.00...I hope it's still available on the 1st. I was looking at the Golden assessor too (yellow dottyback), but they want anywhere from $100.00 to $130.00 for it, and they are always wild caught which could mean disease or parasites. I have a QT but I would rather have a healthy fish to just watch, than one that most likely has a problem...and for that kind of money too...so I took it off my list of "fish I would like to have"...but it sure is a pretty fish.
All the children and grandkids live 2+ hours away in Wisconsin.
I have 12 natural grandchildren, and another 6 that are part of the extended family since my children married others who already had children, so altogether I have 18. 4 and 5 are wonderful full of energy ages....some folks love little babies, and nobody can really stand teenagers...but for me, 3 to 11 are the best years! Sure send them my way, you can have them back when they turn 12 and 13....LOL
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by bender77 http:///t/391007/pot-bellied-seahorses/220#post_3479922
I love your new horses! One day maybe I'll have a bigger tank with a bigger species horse!
I really love seahorses! Do you have dwarfs right now? Since you said bigger species I assume that's what you have. I loose track of who has what on this site, sorry.
I love the pots because they are so different. The Kuda and Erectus are awesome looking too. I love my Kuda horses, but the Erectus had the best personality exhibited towards each other, very entertaining. The Potbelly horses are very active and like to swim all over the tank and foreage for food, they are just babies, I've only had them since April 19th.
The Kuda are very slow moving and spend most of the day hugging whatever hitch, and slowly going from one to the other.
 
bender77

bender77

Member
I have erectus. I meant something like ingens or pots Lol. 12 in horses would be cool. I'm way to lazy to hatch shrimp every day.:rotfl:
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by bender77 http:///t/391007/pot-bellied-seahorses/220#post_3479947
I have erectus. I meant something like ingens or pots Lol. 12 in horses would be cool. I'm way to lazy to hatch shrimp every day.

Hatching live shrimp.... that's also why I don't have dwarfs. I think they are counting tails to be honest with you. The guy who sold me the pots said he has had them for over 10 years and the largest one was 8 or 9 inches including the tails. My erectus were around 7.5 inches after 1 year.
I think the pots have grown since I got them, the little tiny skinny female is now the same size as the other female, and I have one runt male that's like half an inch smaller than the rest. The big male is just slightly larger than the two females. I think I will get out the camera while I feed them tonight and see if I can get some pictures to compare them to when I first got them...maybe because I see them everyday I don't notice the growth. The Kuda seem huge to me...I will take some pics of them as well...
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Picture time: Okay....please excuse the algae. The tank still has lots of diatoms. The red are macroalgae and I have caulerpa prolifera in there as well.
This is the largest male (Fred), the shell he is in front of is 9.5 inches tall from bottom to the center point...so he is about 8 inches nose to tail.

Here are the two females, Flutter (top) and Freckles. They are about 1 inch smaller than Fred.

Fred with Freckles below him.

Freckles and Fred again...see how close in size they are.

Both males...Spot is on the right.

Just because everyone always asks for FTS, here it is in all it's algae ridden glory...I hate new tanks.
 
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