Make sure im on the right track

[Bratyboy2]

Well I've been having a great time keeping my reef tank o far and i want to set my next tank up that has been on my mine for a while. DWARF SEAHORSES!

I bought this tank (http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11390248&f=PAD%2FpsNotAvailInUS%2FNo)to start with months ago.

I have read everywhere that live rock and live and pose some major threats to the little gems, BUT i really want them to be in a natural setting and something that looks better then straws.

SO here is my plan....I want to take some base rock that you can buy from the petstore in those bags that are white and stack them in a pilar formation and i can get my hands on a number of dead gorgonia branches from my local store to come out the sides. im going to lay down less then an inch of plain jane sand to cover the bottom.

Equipment will be simply a sponge filter and a 50/50 screw in bulb as light. Our house is at 72F so i im not doing a heater.

Ill be hatching brine shrimp daily for these guys that will be enriched with phyto.

This tank will house 5 ponys to start. As i want to raise them I want to go with 4 males and one female

Other inhabitents include margarita snails and if i dont get yelled at for the idea maybe a handful of dwarf hermits. later on down the road i would like to add Some non photo gorgonia that have been observed for a few weeks to make sure they didnt come in with anything.

I plan to do weekly water changes of 2 gallons and ring the sponges out every 2 weeks.

CAN I DO IT PONY KEEPERS?:bounce1:

[rayjay]

Unfortunately, that tank is much too large for dwarf seahorses, and much too small for standard seahorses

[Bratyboy2]

how could it be to large? people are keeping them in 10 gallons whats an extra 5 gallons? would it make a difference if i stocked more ponys? is it the food concentration thats the worry?

[rayjay]

Food density is a VERY GOOD reason as dwarfs tend not to hunt down their food like their larger cousins do so you have to have dense food such that the dwarfs can snick it up as it passes them by, without them leaving their hitches.
Uneaten food has to be removed before adding the new food because the enrichment is lost quite rapidly.
Not too many keep dwarfs in a ten gallon tank unless they are planning on a heck of a sized herd.
There is no problem with starting with 20 of them in a 5g tank. You could easily start with 50 to 60 in a 15g tank but plan on going through a LOT of enriched bbs.
IMO, unless you are growing multiple species of phyto to enrich with, they won't really be enriched much. The standard Nano is not sufficient IMO.
Also remember that the newly hatched bbs can't feed until they grow into the second instar stage and develop their digestive system.
I let them grow for a day and then enrich in two 12 hour stages with new water and new enrichment for each stage.
It's a heck of a lot easier to use Dan's Feed from seahorsesource.com
(You can put two or three full sized dwarfs on a quarter.)

[Bratyboy2]

I thought they grew up to 2 inches? I guess I can start them in a 5 gallon and then when my heard is big I can move them up to the 15...I really just thought this would be the coolest dwarf tank.

[rayjay]

There may be one every now and then that get to 2" but that certainly isn't the norm.
I've seen postings that people have them up to 1 1/2" but most of mine only get to 1 to 1 1/4"
Life span is definitely shorter than standard seahorses as dwarfs only live to around 1 1/2 to 2 years normally but I've also seen posts where some keepers have managed more.
If you DO get 50 or 60 of them and put them in the 15g, I think you might quickly tire of the work involved with feeding such a large tank.
Cleaning/housekeeping will also become more of a chore.

[rayjay]

Here's a few pics from one site.
http://www.divegallery.com/seahorse_page8.htm