Ocean Rider Seahorses?

[suzimcmullen]

I keep reading around the net about this company called Ocean Rider. Supposedly they sell the ONLY and the BEST seahorses to buy. But I've googled it a hundred different ways, went to forum after forum and NEVER run into a website for the company. Is this a big secret or a mythological company?! Does anyone here know?

Suzi

 

[Joe Cool]

http://www.seahorse.com/

 

[suzimcmullen]

UGH... So they are the one and the same? SURE.... I'm not spending that much on a seahorse! I'll take my chances with the company I bought from.

Suzi

 

[RedDmon]

Those are some crazy prices for Seahorses.

There's a company in Taverneer Florida, upper Keys that sells Seahorses (wild caught) for around 30 or $40.

I can't recall the name, but if you search fro seahorse on ebay, you'll find 'em.

Red

 

[Capt_Cully]

That site is very impressive. Can't beat the location of their facility.

Oh...and....$850 for a SH.....yikes

 

[suzimcmullen]

I am always suspicious of any advice that is coming from a place that wants us to spend money with them. I've been reading their site thinking it was just some place like reef central. I didn't realize that they sold so much product and seahorses.

It sure is frustrating in this hobby how hard it is to get straight answers. Right now I'm trying to decide if I should or should not use sand in a tank with Reidi seahorses. Any thoughts on that? I have been emailing with someone that swears the sand gets stuck in their gills.

Suzi

 

[Capt_Cully]

Not sure about that. I'm building a SH tank as we speak. Planning on going Bare Bottom. Hopefully coral, LR, and SH's will take attention away from the glass bottom. I think it will be fine as long as I keep it clean. Which will ultimately be easier sand-free.

 

[suzimcmullen]

I don't know about barebottom being clean. I can't believe the sheer volume of crap that comes out of the live rock. I constantly blow off my live rock with a turkey baster. I stir up the sand and I change water in my tanks daily. I use a filter cartridge just for collecting the detritus and I rinse it daily as well. Still, I can always blow a lot of brown looking crud out of the rocks and clean it off the walls. I must be doing ok. My one plant in the tank is growing like wild and my tank is growing corralline algae really fast. But being a neatnick myself It feels dirty to me. Before I added the sand I used the turkey baster daily to suck up the stuff from the floor. I couldn't keep up.

Suzi

 

[spleen93]

So where do you think that detritus is going now, now that you have sand? It's going INTO the sand ... it's just that you can't see it now :lol: Barebottom just allows you see it better and remove it more easily.

Ocean Rider is a pretty good company to deal with - I've done their tour at their facility and they have a nice organization. I have to admit, though, that their prices have gone up a LOT since the last time I checked. I guess it depends on how much captive breeding is important to you versus wild caught. Seahorses are getting endangered in the wild ... supporting captive breeding does mean that you're contributing to less pressure on the wild population.

 

[suzimcmullen]

I will probably succumb to their prices eventually, but only to get breeding stock. I'm determined to learn everything I can about breeding these guys.

I just bought 2 Reidi seahorses that are captive breed for 1/3rd their prices. So we'll see what their quality ends up being.

Suzi

 

[parkpark]

Well, also with the Ocean Rider horses, you can breed them, but you aren't allowed to sell the babies! Which for me I think would take some of the fun out of it...

 

[rjsilvers]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12472566#post12472566 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by parkpark
Well, also with the Ocean Rider horses, you can breed them, but you aren't allowed to sell the babies!

Why, exactly?

 

[parkpark]

It states on their website, im not sure exactly, something about how they have specifically bred them , blah, blah, blah, basically so you wont take any customers away from them

(kind of like if you buy a fancy cat or dog there might be a breeding restriction, you promise to spay/neuter them, because the babies can't be registered and since their is no seahorse registry thats the next best thing for them to say)