Have kept freshwater aquaria since 1998 and marine aquaria since 2000, beginning with a 75 gallon coral and fish reef. 

Our 28 gallon bowfront captive bred H. whitei aquarium was set up between July 6, 2003 and April 2004.  We felt the time and effort to keep seahorses was becoming too time consuming and have since sold our seahorses to a local reefkeeper.

 

The 28 gallon H. whitei tank after removing almost half of the macroalgae and re-aquascaping.
The glass feeding station is in the centre of the tank
and is sheltered by surrounding live rock and macroalgae.
Photo taken January 18, 2004.

The 28 gallon tank as of November 29, 2003.

A close up photo of the centre of the 28 gallon tank.
Photo taken November 29, 2003.

• Female Photos
• Male Photos
• Multiple Seahorse Photos
• June and July 2003 Photos
• October 2003 Photos
• January 2004 Photos
• February 2004 Photos
• Tankmates

Tank:

• Top Fin 28 gallon glass bowfront tank with centre brace, measuring 24" W x 15" D at its deepest x 17" H. 

Cover/Canopy and Stand:

• Tank has a flip up glass cover and black plastic-coated pressboard stand with shelves and storage cabinet.

Heating:

• Two Tronic 50 watt heaters with heater guards placed one either end of the tank.

Thermometer:

• One Hagen hang-in-tank glass thermometer which measures both F. and C.

Filtration/
Powerheads/
Skimmer:

Powerheads:

• One Hagen 101 powerhead, on low setting, placed low in the right corner at the back of the tank to slightly increase lower tank circulation.
• One Hagen 301 powerhead, set on low flow (which is still very powerful for a seahorse tank), with foam in the prefilter.  This powerhead has been placed on the top left side of the aquarium and its flow is directed across the back of the aquarium to minimize turbulence in the lower part of the tank.

Cleaning Regime:

• Twice Weekly: Rock and sandbed are turkey basted and foam in 301 powerhead's prefilter is removed and cleaned in saltwater or RO water.
• Weekly:   Hagen 301 and 101 powerheads are removed from the tank for cleaning.  Foam media is cleaned in outgoing changewater.  Plastic parts of the powerheads are cleaned in tapwater with a never-used-in-the-mouth toothbrush.  Delicate impeller chambers.

Lighting:

• Two 15 watt Envirolite bulbs in a Hagen incandescent fixture.  Ideally, bulbs will be changed annually.
• One Eclipse Natural Daylight P15T8 18" fluorescent tube in a Perfecto Fixture Model 24 PS-5.

Daily Photoperiod:

• Lights are on a timer to provide a consistent 8:00 am to 7:00 pm photoperiod, for a total of 11 hours daily.

Maintenance:

Tank Chemistry:

Live Rock/
Substrate:

• 34 lbs of mixed Tonga branch, Jakarta and Fiji live rock.

Substrate:

• 2.75" of various sized Aragamax sandbed.

• Seven female and two male H. whitei are currently kept.

Length of Time these Seahorses Have Been Kept:

• Two pairs of H. whitei first introduced to the tank between April 23 and  May 13, 2003.  The two males subsequently died.
• Three females introduced June 19, 2003.
• Two females and two males introduced July 23, 2003.

Temperature Range for Our Seahorses:

• Ideal temperature range for H. whitei is 72 to 77 F.  I try to maintain this tank at 73-74 F.

Acclimatization Process:

• All of our captive bred H. whitei have been shipped from Seanic Aquarium in Ontario, Canada, and have usually been kept by this small seahorse supplier for at least one month in his holding tanks.  Because they are pre-quarantined, I believe they do not have to be quarantined before introduction to our main seahorse tank.
• Once any new horses arrive, they are placed in a one gallon plastic container.  I use our pH probe to initially measure pH in the horses' water, then use it to monitor the rise in pH when adding water from the main tank. 
• Water from main tank is added by using a turkey baster so the pH doesn't rise too quickly.  Once the container has enough water added from the main tank, a small Hagen 101 powerhead set on low flow is used to oxygenate water in the container.
• I continue adding water from the main tank.  To keep water levels constant, in the container, I also remove water with the turkey baster.  Water removed from the main tank is replaced with NSW that has been aerated for a day and has been heated to the same temperature as the main tank.
• Acclimatization may take two hours to make sure pH doesn't rise too quickly and to reduce stress for the new horses.
• Once pH in the container is the same as that of the tank, the horses are removed, one by one in a cup, and placed into the main tank.

• A mix of frozen PE mysis from J&L Aquatics, Sally's Omega 3 Brine and Hikari mysis from the lfs.

Nutritional Supplements Used:

• One drop of Kent Marine Garlic Xtreme from J&L Aquatics.
• One drop Tahitian Blend from Ocean Aquatics.
• Several drops of Kent Marine Zoe from J&L Aquatics.

Number of Feedings per Day:

• Feed once in the morning and once in the afternoon each day.

Feeding Station and Feeding Tools:

• Feeding station is a clear green glass ashtray (never used as an ashtray) placed in the centre of the aquarium on the sandbed.  It is surrounded by macroalgae and LR for hitching purposes.
• One large medicine dropper for introducing mysis and Omega 3 brine into the feeding station.
• One small Tupperware container with a tight fitting lid.

Feeding Method:

• In a small plastic container with a tight fitting lid, mix one drop of Garlic Xtreme, one or two drops of Selcon, one drop of Selco, one drop Tahitian Blend, and several drops of Zoe. Mix thoroughly.
• Add enough frozen PE mysis, Hikari mysis and Sally's Omega 3 brine shrimp for morning and afternoon feedings to the nutritional additives mix.  Let thaw and soak in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
• Add tankwater to the mysis, Omega 3 brine, additives mix so the medicine dropper can suction it up.
• Slowly release mysis and Omega 3 brine into the feeding station so all seahorses can see the food.
• Watch with delight how the seahorses and some of the peppermint shrimp go wild for the food!
• Put lid on the leftover mysis and Omega 3 brine and store in refrigerator until the afternoon feeding.  Rinse medicine dropper in tapwater and let dry.
• Before the afternoon feeding, suction out any leftover, then feed the rest of the mysis, Omega 3 brine, additives mixture with medicine dropper.
• Before lights out, suction out any leftover food from the feeding station. After using the feeding station for several of days, I was able to judge how much food to use for each feeding so there is little or no leftover.

Training Seahorses to Eat from Feeding Station:

• When setting up a feeding station, make it the most inviting place in the tank. Surround it with the horses' favourite hitching algae or fake plants. Move stuff around if needed.
• After I set up my "inviting" feeding station, I rounded up the horses that weren't already at the station and allowed them to hitch. Then I dropped the mysis into the bowl. One or two of the horses were at first intrigued by the falling mysis, but once it hit the bottom of the bowl, they lost interest. With my medicine dropper feeder, I'd gently blow on the mysis to stir them up at bit. That got the horses' attention again. Some would go for the food, while others would just look at it. I'd keep lightly stirring the food or add a tiny bit more to get their attention even more. Eventually, at the first feeding all the horses would get the idea that THAT stuff was their food and they'd chow down.
• Took a week of rounding up the stray horses (by gently pulling them off their far away hitches and guiding them to the station) before they caught onto the idea that food was almost ALWAYS going to be there. Took some work on my end and didn't really like to unhitch a horse, but that's what worked for me.
• When I upgraded the seahorse tank to 28 gallons, I placed the feeding station in approximately the same place as it had been in  the old tank, surrounding it with all their favourite hitching places.  Shortly after introducing them to their new home, I fed the horses in the feeding station.  Yes, they remembered exactly where to go and what to do with the PE mysis and Omega 3 brine.
• Now, I put food in the bowl and go. The horses that aren't at the feeding station will eventually mosey over and all are eating from the bowl very well now.

• No other fish are in our seahorse tank.

• Two astrea snails.
• Six nassarius snails.
• Six cerith snails.
• One turbo snail.
• One small bright orange starfish.
• Three peppermint shrimp.

• A few worms in the sandbed.
• A few bristleworms that are removed whenever they're vulnerable for removal.  I know I won't be able to get them all out, but a reduced population is my goal.

• No corals in our seahorse tank.

• Unidentified green and red macroalgae.
• One bunch of halimeda.

Dealing with Problem Algae:

• Have had no problem algae, but do remove over-growing macroalgae by pulling it out.

Acclimation Process of Macroalgae:

• Usually, very little acclimation is done for macroalgae.  I may simply add some tankwater to the macroalgae's bag, then place the macroalgae straight into the tank.

• No additional hitching areas or other decorations besides the LR and macroalgae in our seahorse tank.

• No sump used.

• No refugium used.

Hospital Tank:

• Plastic Living World Small Pals Pen, 2.25 gallon capacity.

Cover/Canopy and Stand:

• Small Pals Pen has a plastic top with holes in it for air exchange.  When in use, it sits on the kitchen counter.

Heating:

• Not heated with a heater, is small enough that the powerhead heats the tank.

Thermometer:

• One Hagen hang-in-tank glass thermometer which measures both F. and C.

• One Hagen 101 powerhead, on low setting and pointing toward the front of the tank, placed on the right lower back corner to slightly increase flow in the lower regions of the tank.

• Hospital tank is unlit.

• Hospital tank has no LR or substrate.

• For hitching there is a fake rock with fake plants.

Hospital Tank Maintenance:

• When not in use, the hospital tank and hitching posts are thoroughly cleaned in tapwater, dried, then stored in a plastic bag.

• No quarantine tank used.

• RO water made from a Kent Marine TFC 24 gpd RO unit.

Brands of Salt Mix Used:

• Either Kent or Instant Ocean salt mix is used.  Usually buy whichever of the two is least expensive when more salt is needed.

NSW Mixing Container Size:

• Five gallon covered pail.

Aeration and Heating:

• One Hagen 101 powerhead for aeration.
• One Tronic 50 watt heater with heater guard.
• Heated to 73 F. to match the temperature of the tank.

Length of Time Aerated and Heated Before Using:

• RO water is aerated and heated for two or three days before salt mix is added, then aerated and heated at least overnight.

Equipment Used for Water Changes:

• One turkey baster to baste rock, sandbed and macroalgae to lift detritus into the water column so foams can trap and remove detritus.
• One small plastic medicine bottle to place over foam on filter intake during filtration system removal to prevent accumulated detritus from settling back into the tank.
• One 2 litre plastic container to hold filtration system and powerhead that are removed and cleaned during water change.
• One five gallon pail to receive outgoing changewater.
• One  6' hose for siphoning two gallons of water from the main tank.

• Moving Sandbed:

• I siphoned out enough water to fill the hospital tank, put in a chunk of live rock covered with macroalgae for hitching, pulled the Hagen 101 powerhead from the seahorses' tank to provide aeration, then caught each horse with a cup of water to transfer to the hospital tank. Snails and star fish went into a little plastic container. Then, siphoned water from the seahorse tank into a 5 gal pail to hold the live rock and macroalgae while I removed the sand from their tank. Scooped out the sandbed and the remaining water into the 28 gallon bowfront which made lots of cloudy water in the new tank.
• Must have cleaned the poor prefilter media 10 times, and there was still crud in the sandbed.  But I continue dstirring up the sandbed and cleaning the filter media. When finally finished cleaning the sandbed over a 24 hour period, the sand was so clean, it looked like new.
• Once all the sand was out of the seahorse tank, I poured new salt water mixed with water from the live rock pail back into the tank. Cleaned the foams from the tank's AquaClear 150 in saltwater, set it back up in the tank and put the rock and macroalgae back in, leaving room for the feeding station in its old location.
• Then came the re-acclimatization of the seahorses to the new water in their tank. Used a pH monitor to observe the pH change while exchanging water back and forth from the tank into the hospital. Took an hour to acclimatize the horses. I'm sure they were wondering what happened to the sandbed because the held fast for the longest time to their hitching posts back in their old tank. They must also have suffered some shock from all the moving around, too. But when I fed them a couple of hours later, everyone came to the feeding station and ate well.

• Moving the Rest of the 12.5 Gallon Tank's Inhabitants:

• I siphoned out enough water to fill the hospital tank, put fake plant for hitching, added a spare Hagen 101 powerhead to provide aeration, then caught each horse with a cup of water to transfer to the hospital tank. Snails and star fish also went into the hospital tank. Using a small, clean plastic ice cream container, emptied water from the 12.5 gallon tank into the 28 gallon bowfront.  Transferred the rock and macroalgae to the the 28 gallon tank, and arranged the rock. 
• To prevent seahorses from getting lost behind the rock, rock was stacked against the back of the glass. 
• To provide a similar feeding station to the 12.5 gallon tank, the station was placed in a sheltered area in the middle of the tank surrounded by various macroalgae for hitching.
• Once the rock, feeding station and macroalgae was in their final positions, pH was measured in both hospital and 28 gallon tanks.  As it turned out, pH was 8.14 in both tanks.  Did not check salinity, but temperatures were the same.  Decided to transfer water back and forth between the two tanks for 15 to 20 minutes to make sure the seahorses would suffer minimal shock from moving them to the 28 gallon tank.
• Transferred each seahorse in a cup of water to the new tank, making sure each one was released near the feeding station.  Each horse hitched onto the macroalgae around the station.  They looked like they were settling in easily, so I fed them.
   

Horses Readily Take to Feeding Station After the Move to the 28 Gallon:

• Since I set up the feeding station in roughly the same area of the new tank as it was set up in the old one, the seahorses caught on very easily to their new feeding area.  Fed them shortly after introducing the horses to the new tank and they all fed well, even one of the new cerith snails chowed down with them.