new to SH

[JulieAnnx33]

Hi I'm Julie,

I'm looking into Seahorse species and i want to know what are the best starter species for a 29 gallon tank, how many can i keep in the tank, can i have other fish species with the Seahorses, if so what kind? thanks for the future help

 

[rayjay]

Best starter species IMO would be erectus or reidi and you can keep one pair in that 29g tank.
You need to be able to keep the tank in the temperature range of 68° to 74°F and maintain excellent water quality.
Purchase only true captive bred seahorses, not wildcaught or tank raised, and keep a species only tank for best chances of success.
Other fish have been kept with seahorses but doing so can lower your chances of success.
TANK MATES GUIDE FOR SEAHORSES
Have you any salt water experience already?

 

[Peka]

I agree with Ray..... And if you are just starting out you might want to get two of the same sex so that you don't have to deal with fry until you feel you are ready

 

[JulieAnnx33]

what would i do with the fry if for some reason i ended up with a male and female? i don't think i would have room in that tank and what do i do with them if they get big?

 

[rayjay]

First of all, the fry won't live in the tank.
They will get caught up in the filtration system and you just clean out the filter.
Or, you can remove them when they are first born and euthanize them in the freezer.
Peka mentioned buying two females and you won't have that problem.
Unfortunately, buying from the LFS is a crapshoot at best in buying by sex unless it is an already developed male.
Most stores sell tank raised that don't have the best of chances of success, and they probably aren't old enough for complete sexing at that time as most, and perhaps all, still look like females.
However, if you buy true captive bred from places like seahorsesource.com or seahorsecorral.com, or from another hobbyist, then usually those horses are older and sex development is more advanced, meaning it is less likely you will buy what looks to be female, but ends up being a male.

 

[JulieAnnx33]

okay thank you, the last thing i think i could handle is a bunch of little fry swimming around. i'm definitely going to try and get same sex seahorses. thank you so much