Feeding While Away

[Queens]

My boyfriend has been interested in us starting a seahorse tank, so I've been doing a little research. The only real problem I've run into is that we like to travel.

When we travel for more than a few days, I have someone come over to feed my fish, but I can't ask them to come everyday. And we don't know multiple people than can take turns coming over. It's just not possible.

How long can you leave them? Is there any way to get them fed without being there, besides having someone come over?

What do you guys do?

 

[Limbo]

I've not had to do this yet, I'm still building my seahorse tank.

My plan was to not ask a friend to do it as a favor, but pay a friend to do it instead. That way it's not so bad asking them to come over each day. Of course, that means every trip will cost you more. It could be cash, a case of beer, whatever you think is right.

Another option would be to ask someone to house sit so they are there anyway.

Or if you have a good relationship with your LFS, they may look after them for you in the store. Just make sure they don't sell them on you

Also, don't forget, ponies need 2 feeds a day, though I believe they can also go 2 days without food, but not without stressing them. They don't eat when they ship.

 

[ReefNutPA]

Long vacations (week or longer) aren't something seahorse keepers take without having someone come in to feed daily, unfortunately.

It IS possible to go away for a long weekend without them being fed. Feed a bit heavier Friday right before leaving and feed immediately upon return on Sunday. They should be fine.

Of course, none of this applies to dwarf seahorses.

Tom

 

[pledosophy]

I have left for 5 days at a time. i order a couple hundred salt water feeder shirmp and toss them in the tank. With the amount of LR I had there was plenty of hiding places, and often even a couple shrimp left when I returned.

 

[Limbo]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8411062#post8411062 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pledosophy
I have left for 5 days at a time. i order a couple hundred salt water feeder shirmp and toss them in the tank. With the amount of LR I had there was plenty of hiding places, and often even a couple shrimp left when I returned.

Do you order online or from an LFS? That's a great idea btw

Might be an idea to try while at home in case you have a mass shrimp death or something because your tank can't support them sufficiently. If you throw 100 in then you'll know how long it takes them to eat all 100 and could measure how many you need for whatever time frame you were away.

 

[pledosophy]

I order parasite and pathogen free salt waterf eeders from Seawaterexpress.com

IMO if you are going to be gone for more then 5 days the you need to have someone who knows about tanks stop by and help out. You live in a big city, even if you can't find a knowledgable friend i'm sure there are marine aquarium service companys you could hire for your trips. You might even be able to schedule the day they come with a shipment from seawater express so they could add more food.

IME 100 shrimp have lasted 6 days for two full grown reidi.

My system where understocked and fully capable of handeling the shrimp. They were good for the algae too

 

[Queens]

We would definately be able to have someone come every other day or so if we were gone for more than a weekend. It's just not feasable to have someone come by every day, even if we tried to pay them.

I also am uneasy about having someone I don't know personally in my apartment when I'm not there, and have copies of my keys. Just a personal paranoia I guess, but something I always try to avoid.

We would definately be getting larger CB horses. Would they eat freeze dried mysis? Or is frozen the most not-alive thing they'll eat?

 

[JenC4517]

I have had people come over every other day and they are OK.. If that works for you.. LOL if I was closer I would do it for ya... I run into the same problem

 

[Queens]

It's hard get someone to come over every day in NYC because it takes so long to get anywhere, and everyone works such long/unpredictable hours. Asking them to take an hour or two out of already crunched free time can be the biggest favor to ever be asked, even if it involves money.

But, I just called our LFS and they do carry feeder shrimp, so that would be a big help. If I can just pick a bunch up before a trip, and not have to worry about shipping costs and being around to receive a shipment, that would solve a lot of problems.

So far, in doing some basic research (we wouldn't be doing this for at least a year), feeding requirements/frequency seems to be the biggest obstacle. But, it looks pretty do-able.

 

[NanoLurker]

most feeder shrimp, at least what's available here, are FW ghost shrimp. they can work but the problem is finding enough at an appropriate size for the horses, the other problem is acclimating them to SW prior to your trip. the ghost shrimp here that i've used usually live a couple of days in full SW then die (no acclimation). i use seawaterexpress myself but shipping to LA is pretty cheap since they're in nevada, the quality is great and you can specify the size you want

there's east coast supplier of this same shrimp but i'd have to track down the link to them.

 

[cmsargent]

Add a refugium to the tank and keep it well stocked with amphipods and mysis. The refugium will provide a constant supply of food. It probably won't be enough for the horses to live on for a week but it'll help tide them over between visits from your friend.

Another option is to hire a professional. Many of the professional tank maintenance companies offer 'vacation services' and I'm sure you can find one in your area that would come in daily to feed. It'll likely be the most expensive option but you'll have the peace of mind of knowing someone will be there and can handle any emergancies.

Another option might be to have a friend keep the seahorses at their place while you're gone. This would work best if you have friends that also keep marine tanks and maybe have a spare QT tank that the horese can be kept in. If you don't know anyone else that keeps marine tanks think about joining your local aquarium club and making some new friends who can help out with this.