dragon eel

yes, that one, hawiian dragon eel. I have search the web. now i would like to talk to someone with their experience with them. or tip how to take care of them
 
Come on Harley. You know you want to show off your pics. I always like looking at them. I always can't help but to post my pics. T
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Here are questions that I have for all dragon eel owners:
Any special tips or experice you can tell me? so I can avoid to kill this expensive fish.
what are some of the "watch out" I need to pay special attentions to?
Tank questions:
what size of tank you have? what else is in the tank? can they be in the tank with other eel?
How do you have your top of your fish tank covered? would netting be good enough? if you use some type of acrylic or glass do you put extra weight to keep it down
Do they perfer tall tank or long tank?
how deep is your sand bed and how much LR in the tank
Thinking use PVC plumbing parts as their cave and then put LR on top of PVC, so rock slide will not kill them.
light questions:
What type of light, PC, T5, or...
Light period,
water question
Do you run larger skimmer because is a dragon eel?
How often do you do water change? and how much?
do you do additional water change after feeding?
do you add other supplment to the water? ie CA, K, ...etc
feeding
how often do you feed?
what do you feed?
do you just drop food in the water or use a stick wave them in front of them?
how can you tell if they are hungry?
how to teach them to eat non live food?
do you soak your food in supplement like Vit. C, garlic...etc. befor you feed it to them?
What supplement you add to your food?
Misc.
How do you know is male or female?
how do you know if they are strees? rapid open/close of mouth? color change?
do they change color? can you make them bright ?
Thank you for your time.
David
 
dave168 Here are questions that I have for all dragon eel owners:
Any special tips or experice you can tell me? By one from a reputable dealer. Make sure it is eating before you buy it. Get the smallest one you can find. This will force you to get a Hawaiian if you go small. IMO smaller ones are more docile and obviously adapt to captivity easier.



what are some of the "watch out" I need to pay special attentions to? All your normal things to look at when buying a fish. Vlear eyes. Another BIGGIE*** is if you observe the eel for some time you may see him "twitch" their head. Not sure of the cause but I see many Dragons and other Morays for that matter with that condition and I would stay away. Also if you want to keep other fish with the Dragon go small and try and get one that has been housed with other fish in captivity for atleast a few weeks.
Tank questions:

what size of tank you have? I had him in a 180 with many other fish. If your Dragon gets full grown I would look at 150 or 200 Cube. Having the depth would really make things more comfy for a large Dragon.


what else is in the tank? can they be in the tank with other eel? I had many fish with the Dragon till he was moved to his own 75. He wasn't moved b/c he misbehaved but just b/c I wanted to keep him in his own display. I had angels, Butterflys, anthias, tangs, and yes eels with him. If you do go with other eels. The Dragon almost always should be last and smaller. Also each eel must have a reasonable hole or cave to call his own.

Some pics of the other eels that I kept with him. A Snowflake, meletremus, and a millaris.

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How do you have your top of your fish tank covered?
I use egg crate. But I also keep PC strip lights on top of them. Once the Dragon has settled to a spot, usually after a couple of weeks the chances of him jumping is far less likely. A secure top is a definate.
would netting be good enough? NO.

if you use some type of acrylic or glass do you put extra weight to keep it down. Yes but I would not use glass as this inhibits vital gas exchange at the waters surface.
Do they perfer tall tank or long tank? Long and Wide. Think Cube.
how deep is your sand bed and how much LR in the tank. Completely up to you. I would not do a "live sand bed" If you do sand use it as decoration and vacuum it.
Thinking use PVC plumbing parts as their cave and then put LR on top of PVC, so rock slide will not kill them. Great idea, but make sure you go thick enough and their are no sharp elbows that would freak him out and cause him to freak out.

light questions:
What type of light, PC, T5, or... Really doesn't matter. I would just use flourescents or PCs.
Light period, Setup a timer and keep lights on 8-10 hours a day.
water question
Do you run larger skimmer because is a dragon eel? Spend as much as you can afford on a skimmer and this goes for anyone keeping a Marine display.
How often do you do water change? and how much?
I do alot of water changes. I would do at bare minimum 10-15% every 7-10 days.
do you do additional water change after feeding? Some light vacuuming never hurts.
do you add other supplment to the water? ie CA, K, ...etc

No supplements to water. Except use Ro or de-chlorinated water. I would soak food items in Garlic and Vitamin such as vitachem or better yet selcon.

feeding
how often do you feed? Everyone is different with this. I usually do 2 feedings a week until full.
what do you feed? FRESH clams, mussels, squid, prawn, non-fatty fish strips. NO SILVERSIDES!!! They are like twinkies for fish.
do you just drop food in the water or use a stick wave them in front of them? Always use a feeding stick, especially if you plan to keep other fish or eels with him.
how can you tell if they are hungry? You'll learn very quick. When you open the top or they smell food and they jet out of their cave with mouth open they are hungry.
how to teach them to eat non live food? Time. It took my guy two weeks of starving him until he took food. Totally normal for them to go on hunger strikes. weeks at a time. Fresh Clams on the half shell is usually irresistable.
do you soak your food in supplement like Vit. C, garlic...etc. befor you feed it to them? Yes
What supplement you add to your food?
Misc.
How do you know is male or female? No way to my knowledge.
how do you know if they are strees? rapid open/close of mouth? color change? Yes. Faded color, cloudy eyes.
do they change color? can you make them bright ? Bright = Pristine water quality, and Highly nutritious foods
Thank you for your time.
David


Hope this Helps. T
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14801309#post14801309 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dave168
is that Japanese or Hawaiilan? how can you tell the difference?

A lot of folks say look at the colors, but IMO I've seen Hawaiians that have more orange on the face. But for me look at the body: Hawaiian's have more white washed out bodies.

But truth be told they are all the same species just color morphs. A bright or dull one can be found in both spots.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14802200#post14802200 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by LukFox
Holy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want that so bad :eek1: .

Me too, if I could sell my golden I'd buy it now.
 
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