Octopus Hitchhiker

Schismgrl18

New member
Hey,
My store received a shipment of Turbo snails from California and this little guy showed up. Any tips for care would be greatly appreciated. I know impeccable water parameters and an escape-proof (hah) tank are key, but other than that, I am way out of my element.
Thanks so much!
 

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What a cutie! Check out the forums on tonmo.com for care.

The biggest thing to know right off the bat - octopuses are a species-only creature. They're "eat or be eaten." Little guys will be eaten or harassed by almost anything else in the tank with fins. Big guys will...consume their tank-mates, given time.

So keep your little guy separate. A critter-keeper within the larger tank works fine for now. Fill that critter-keeper with rocks/PVC piping, plenty of stuff for him/her to make a den and hide; octopuses need a place to hide to feel safe.

Next, your little guy needs food. Octopuses primarily eat crustaceans - think crabs and shrimp. Hermit crabs count as food for a little octopus; they may eat snails and baby clams too, give it a try. It's easy to throw some of your CUC into its enclosure. Shore shrimp and grass shrimp are also a good option. Tiny tiny fiddlers with disabled claws are another option. Many octopuses will only take live food initially, but can learn to take frozen in time - try feeding by hand on a feeding stick to be sure you observe him/her eating. I've eventually managed to get mine onto frozen raw softshell crab and frozen raw shrimp, using a feeding stick.

That plus pristine water quality (they're messy eaters, like any predator), and absolutely no copper, are the big ones. And of course octo-proofing; that little thing can fit through just about any tiny hole in your system. That includes getting into circulation pumps if they aren't protected.
 
I had one in a 55 gallon tank and he was a character . After the second day
I thought I had lost him . He hid himself under the under gravel filter . He did
emerge when I dropped in a clam . They are amazing but a challenge .
Good Luck
Sea Dwellers
 
Lucky. I've always wanted to have an octopus tank. You need lots of hiding spots, and a good skimmer. Any holes in to the filter/sump have to be smaller than it's beak so less than a millimeter. Good luck.

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